Hello. I am taking a tour of Romania with another operator that ends in Bucharest May 10, 2027. Where would you recommend going after that? I haven’t been to Eastern Europe. I love architecture and gardens. I am considering Budapest or Croatia. I will be using public transportation and have about two weeks to travel after my tour.
Thanks in advance
Those are two good choices. Budapest is great but with two weeks, you’ll likely want to go somewhere else as well, perhaps Vienna. Also, there’s Bulgaria, right next door to Romania but culturally very different (Slavic rather than Romanic). Many travelers pair these two. Take a look at Rick’s TV episode on Bulgaria if you haven’t already. Or a bit further, but just a short flight from Bucharest, what about Turkey? When we visited Romania last year our flights were on Turkish Airlines through Istanbul, although we didn’t stop over there (our time was more limited and I had been there before). Istanbul is actually closer to Bucharest than is Budapest or anywhere in Croatia, so if you went to either of those you might well want to fly anyway— those are quite long and grueling trips by train or bus from Bucharest in southern Romania.
Thanks. So many places to consider. I had not considered Turkey. If I travel to Budapest by train I could do a 1-2 night stopover somewhere to break up the trip.
What stopovers between Bucharest and Budapest would work depends, I suppose, on where your Romanian tour has already taken you and whether you want to see more of that country, since much of the route is in Romania. The tour we were on (Road Scholar) ended in Cluj-Napoca, which has an airport, rather than Bucharest. Cluj is a fine city and it’s a lot closer to Budapest than Bucharest is, but sounds like (presuming your tour will visit at least some places in Transylvania, as it wouldn’t be much of a Romanian tour if it didn’t, but perhaps not Cluj) ) you’ll need to backtrack back to Bucharest?
Unless the train is mandatory, fly. I have been on 1 Romanian train and it was "interesting". The new high-speed train is dont think is running in Hungary yet so it may be a long train trip to Budapest or anywhere. Buses maybe faster, but ... Budapest is over 12 hours by train, Sofia is 10, but there may be a night train. Everything else is longer and further. The Bucharest airport is fairly easy and there are also direct flights to budapest out of Târgu Mureș and Brasov.
Other choices? Malta comes to mind. Did that from Bucharest once on Wizzair. There are a number of commuter flight options. The one i just noticed that I love is fly into Corfu (90 min) then head up the coast and go home from Dubrovnik. The commuter flights start under $50.
Oh, here is a train option. Bucharest to Belgrade in about 12 hours then there is this great, somewhat famous scenic train to Bar on the coast of Montenegro.
I was on several trains when I was in Romania and didn't have any problems with them. They just seemed like normal trains.
I was going to suggest Budapest, as that's where I went after Bucharest, but I only went for five nights. I did fly there using Terram Airlines, and it was a short and uneventful flight that cost around $70 one way.
You could, of course, spend some time in Budapest and then travel throughout some more of Hungary, but then again, Turkey is another good option, and it's such a beautiful country.
@Mr. E., how do you get from Corfu to Dubrovnik?
We did the train from Bucharest to Budapest (there's either a song or a travelogue with that title). We stopped in Brasov for 2 nights. Then we did the leg to Budapest as a night-train. I'm a fan of night-trains.
Thanks so much. My tour ends in Bucharest. I will consider flying to the next location.
jules m, up the Albania and Montenegro coast. I know a guide. 5 to 10 days. Great trip.
Definitely drop south, and visit Bulgaria, right next door to Romania. We had a trip that started in Bulgaria, and then went to Romania - we liked Bulgaria more. If you like Romania, you’ll love Bulgaria.
Veliko Tarnavo, the old capital of Bulgaria, was an especially favorite part. Bulgaria just started using the Euro this year, by the way.
June, Budapest and Vienna as bases then day trips and maybe 1 overnight out of each.
Thank you for all the information.
Many choices to consider.
Moldova borders Romania and we've heard good things (mainly from people who grew up there). We'd certainly consider.
