Easter Holidays in Romania
Easter Holidays in Romania

Immerse yourself into the rich customs of the locals.

10 Days

Easter Holidays in Romania is a time when a lot of traditions come to life and we invite you to experience them. Painting Easter eggs, the “shooting of the rooster”, perfuming women and first farmer’s celebration are some of the customs you will witness. While discovering the unique traditions specific to the Easter holidays you will also visit Romania’s most beautiful sights in Transylvania, Bucovina and Maramures. In 2020 the Orthodox and Catholic Easter are just a week apart so you can experience both.

2022 dates are April 16-25. 

Highlights of the Easter Holidays in Romania
  • Visit the most famous attractions in Transylvania: castles, medieval towns and quaint villages
  • Take part in a Painting Easter Eggs Workshop
  • Taste a traditional Easter meal
  • Attend local festivals and witness interesting customs
  • Learn about the architecture specific to the churches from Bucovina and Maramures
  • Ride a narrow-gauge steam train

 

Suggested Itinerary
This is a private and self-drive tour. It will be organized for you only, so you will not be part of a larger group.

Day 1  16th of April 2022 – Saturday

Your Easter Holidays in Romania will begin by landing in Bucharest, the country’s capital. You will then pick up the rented car from the airport and transfer to Brasov.

Optional, you can start your tour one day earlier and have time to visit Transylvania’s famous castles, Peles and Bran.

Accommodation in Brasov.

Drive time: 3h

 

Day 2  

In the morning you will attend the Catholic Easter Mass at the Saint Peter and Paul Cathedral, the only baroque monument in Brasov, appreciated for its beautiful interior decorations.In the second part of the day you will travel to Apata to take part in one of the most interesting customs of the Hungarian community, “the shooting of the rooster”.

This festival is seen as a revenge against the rooster, which, centuries ago, called back the invading Tartars who were about to leave the village after seeing it abandoned. Children dressed in traditional clothes compete against each other and try their best to aim for the rooster drawn on a wooden target.

The shooting of the rooster

Accommodation in Brasov.

Drive time: 1 h

 

Day 3  

Start the day by visiting one of Romania’s most authentic villages, Viscri. Admire the colored houses of Saxon heritage and the beautiful fortified church, part of UNESCO’s World Heritage sites. Next on your itinerary is Sighisoara, a remarkable medieval town with narrow cobbled streets and old historic buildings, also a UNESCO site.

Viscri Village

During the day you may also witness an old Hungarian custom, the sprinkling of the girls with water or perfume in order to wish for their wellbeing.

Accommodation in Praid.

Drive time: 3h 30’

 

Day 4  

Today you will discover the underground salt mine in Praid, a place where you can relax for a few hours and enjoy the benefits the salty air can have on your health.

Sighisoara

You will then head towards Bucovina and pass by the Bicaz gorge, an 8-kilometers-long route bordered by impressive mountainous rocks. You will also stop for a short visit at the Neamt Citadel, a massive medieval fortress.

Accommodation in Bucovina.

Drive time: 5h

 

Day 5  

It’s time to explore Bucovina, the region famous for its painted monasteries. Eight of them are part of UNESCO’s World Heritage sites and you will begin with a morning trip to Moldovita Monastery, which stands out through its colorful external frescoes.

Easter holidays in Bucovina, Romania

A highlight amongst your Easter Holidays in Romania will be the visit to the Egg Museum, where a collection of over 5000 painted eggs is displayed.

In the afternoon you will have the opportunity to travel to two other monasteries, Sucevita and Voronet.  

Church in Bucovina

Accommodation in Bucovina.

Drive time: 3h

 

Day 6  

You will keep on learning about the tradition of painting eggs for Easter by taking part in a special workshop. While trying your hand at different decorating techniques you will also be taught about the history and the significance of this craft.

Painting eggs for the Easter holidays in Romania

Later that day you will travel towards Maramures, one of the last truly rural places in Europe. On the way there you will stop at the Barsana wooden monastic complex and have the opportunity to admire the interesting architecture and beautiful views.

Barsana Wooden Monastery

Accommodation in Vadu Izei (Maramures region).

Drive time: 4h 30’

 

Day 7  

As the Orthodox Easter approaches, people start getting ready for the celebration. In the morning you will have the chance to visit a traditional market in Sighet and see people buying everything they need for the holiday, such as lamb meat, eggs or sweet cheese.

Countryside

Also in Sighet you can go to the Memorial of the Victims of Communism, a museum located in a former prison and to the nearby Sapanta Merry Cemetery, unique in the world for its lively decorated crosses and amusing poems.

Memorial to the Resistance and Victims of Communism

Accommodation in Vadu Izei.

Drive time: 1h

 

Day 8  

You will enjoy a fairly-tale like experience by riding the Mocanita, the only fully functional narrow-gauge steam train in Europe as it takes you through a 6-hour ride deep into the Vaser Valley.

Mocanita

The rest of the day will be spent with the locals as you will observe them getting ready for Easter.  You will see men slaughtering the lamb and women cooking the meal for Easter Sunday and baking “pasca’’ and “cozonac”.

Easter Meal

Accommodation in Vadu Izei.

Drive time: 2h 30’

 

 

Day 9  

In the morning you will go to church and witness the Easter Sunday mass. Villagers dress in folk costumes and bring baskets full of home-made food to be blessed.  After the mass is over, you will have the chance to eat a traditional Easter meal.

Easter Holidays in Romania - children praying

In the afternoon you will visit the wooden churches for which Maramures is so famous. The one in Desesti has some of the best preserved interior paintings, while the wooden church of Budesti is worth-admiring for its unique architectural style.

Budesti Wooden Church

Accommodation in Vadu Izei.

Drive time: 1h

 

Day 10  

On the last day of your Easter holidays in Romania you will attend a festival known as “Udatoriu”, in Surdesti. The old agrarian custom celebrates the hardest working villager and it is full of the cheerfulness of the locals.

You will then travel to Cluj-Napoca from where you will take a flight back home.

Optional, you can prolong your tour with an additional day during which to explore the Transylvanian capital or continue towards Sibiu-Bucharest.

Drive time: 3h 30’

 

Since this is a private tour, the start and end days and locations are flexible, just let us know your preferences. As presented here, this is a self-drive holiday but we can also organize it as a guided tour.

 

Why travel with us

Suggested Itinerary Viewed On Map
Suggested Accommodation

Bella Muzica 3* – Brasov

Located in the Old Town of Brasov, the building which hosts the hotel dates back to  the XVIth century and has elegant interior decorations that help conserve the charm of old times. The hotel features 34 rooms, beautifully furnished, each one of them having a private bathroom. Guests can also enjoy spending time outside in a little, peaceful courtyard or eating at the hotel’s restaurant, which offers traditional and international dishes.

Bucovina Lodge 4* – Vama

Located in a beautiful location, on a hill, near the forest and overlooking the Vama village, Bucovina Lodge is a 10-room charming hotel. It is very well positioned for visiting the famous painted churches of Bucovina, the mountains and traditional villages from this part of the country. The coziness of the rooms, the quality of the service and the warmth of the host will make you feel just like home.
Stefania Gusthouse Praid

Stefania Guesthouse 4* – Praid

Located in a quiet area, at the foot of the mountains, the guesthouse was built and decorated in a traditional style specific to the szekely people. The six rooms are comfortable and each one has a unique design, with hand-painted furniture and tapestries hanging on the walls. The inner yard is full of vegetation, and the small pond and wooden terrace are perfect for spending a few tranquil moments in the middle of the nature.
Teleptean Guesthouse

Teleptean Guesthouse 3* – Vadu Izei

This rural guesthouse set in the village of Vadu Izei is decorated in a rustic style, specific to the region of Maramures. Each of the 10 rooms is large, with wooden traditional adornments on the walls and a private bathroom. The delicious homemade food and the hospitality of the owner are the guesthouse’s greatest treasure!
Easter Holidays in Romania: Included Services
  • Trip planning. This will include a personalized self-drive booklet with vouchers for accommodation, detailed information about the places you are visiting, directions, useful contacts and recommended things to see and do along the way
  • Accommodation for 9 nights in standard double rooms with breakfast (B) included
  • Rented car on the above itinerary: sedan car for up to 4 people (Ford Mondeo or similar) or minivan for 5-8 people (Renault Trafic, VW Caravelle or similar; fuel, taxes and parking fees are included)
  • Entrance tickets to the Workshop of painting eggs and the ride with Mocanita
  • 7 dinners (D): 1 in Praid, 2 in Bucovina, 4 in Maramures
  • 1 lunch: in Maramures, on Easter Day

Services which are not included in the tour package price:

  • Entrance tickets to tourist sites, except those mentioned above. Per person you are likely to spend up to 50-70 USD
  • Meals, except those included above. On average you can pay for a meal 10-15 USD
Prices
The prices are calculated for a self-drive private tour for groups of the sizes mentioned below. If you are interested in a guided tour, please send an inquiry for the prices. 
Group Size
Price per person – EUR
8 persons
6 persons
4 persons
2 persons

920 EUR

990 EUR

950 EUR

1200 EUR

Traveler’s Reviews
Bernhard & Isabel from Switzerland/France
“We did a fully custom 4 week “tour of Romania”. After an initial contact (Skype) to assess my interests, they made a detailed day-by-day proposal. They offered not only attractions that we certainly would not have discovered ourselves (like a visit to a sheepfold, a custom boating trip in the Danube delta, an egg-painter artist), but also proposed unique accommodations (e.g. in a castle, on a small farm in Bocovina) and arranged for guides e.g. in Maramures. Both my wife and I are very happy with the tour and feel that we got much more out of our visit than we would have had we made arrangements ourselves or made our own day-by-day plan.
Steven from UK
“They organised a self-drive tour through Transylvania for us and it couldn’t have been better. Organising the tour was a breeze with easy communication to ensure we got exactly what we wanted to out of our trip. We were provided a comprehensive itinerary and guidebook which was extremely useful and made everything easy. The accommodation was great, a combination of hotels and local Guesthouses that provide a real look at the Romanian culture. I can’t recommend enough their services!”

Are you looking for something else? Check our other suggested tours focused on culture, history and traditions. 

Here are more pictures from the Easter holidays in Romania. Easter holidays in Romania

Easter holidays in Romania

Easter prayer in Romania

Easter food basket in Romania