Reviews about Romanian Friend tours
This is the Romanian Friend travel journal, filled with reviews and memories from people who’ve visited Romania with our help. Like an open guest-book.
We care very much about our customers’ experience when using Romanian Friend’s services. That’s why we handpick our guide-partners, carefully review all of our tours and help plan your trip just like a trusted travel advisor would. We ask all our customers for reviews to know if they had a great time on our tours and if there’s anything that can be improved.
So here are the travel memories and experiences we collected from people who visited Romania and booked tours with Romanian Friend:
Great tour by Mihai. Lots of information provided about Romanian history and traditional ways of life in the countryside.
It was amazing to see a wild bear right there in front of us. We learnt so much from Simona and so appreciated her passion and knowledge
Iancu made my day! :) The tour is wonderful itself, but with Iancu is another level! He is such a friendly, knowledgeable and funny guide. He gave me a lot of interesting information regarding Romania, we visited some amazing places that I wouldn't know and I wouldn't do by myself. He is super flexible and he stopped every time I wanted to take pictures (he loves photography as well and for me it was big plus!). He really did everything in his power to make me happy and to enjoy the day. The top was the picnic over Dumesti admiring an amazing sunset! He also gave me lots of suggestions for my next days in Romania. Merci Iancu :)
Romanian friend were very helpful at making suggestions and arranging a bear watching experience with Simona who was an excellent guide. We saw lots of bears and learnt a great deal.
Our driver/guide Leo was exemplary in providing background details, translating the boat driver's commentary and explaining the local customs. The sand island tour into the forest was particularly interesting for we Australians have the largest sand island in the world, but despite different hemispheres and climates, the botanical parallels were obvious. A tour we highly recommend.
Unfortunately this is the second time that I have had to cancel because if unforeseen circumstances. Alex has been very helpful when I have had questions, and Romanian Friend promptly refunded me. I look forward to meeting Alex hopefully next May. I have heard nothing but great reviews about Alex and I really want to see this forest!!
Mihai was super helpful, knowledgeable, and really flexible. We are lucky enough to have him as our guide 2 days in a row (2 separate tours), and we felt we got into a really comfortable rhythm with him. The sites we saw were absolutely beautiful, and we really enjoyed getting to hang out with him.
We had a great time on the food tour. The food we ate was SO delicious, and we felt like we saw normal Romanian places. (It's such a touristy thing to say, but it's true.) Mihai was super knowledgeable and relaxed, and we appreciated the effort he putting in to making sure we had a great experience.
Our tour guide, Ioana, was great! She lives in the area and knows all the best places to go. We hiked to a shepherds’ hut to see cheese making, then we hiked down picking porcini mushrooms on the way. Tasted the local moonshine - tuica - at a local producer while munching on hot potatoes baked in the hot fire under copper stils. We met local weavers, visited a must see museum and she got us special access to wooden churches in the countryside. We were both impressed with our guide and Romanian Friend because they were responsive and made every effort to tailor the trip to our interests and our schedule. Highly recommended!
Excellent tour. Great guide and lots of really interesting information. We saw 6 bears and 1 fox!
This was a really memorable tour and highlight of Brasov for us! Wow, what an experience to watch bears and foxes up close and learn more about their habitat and life.
Really good tour. Our guide Leo was informative and professional. Very interesting insight into this time in history.
Tour was fantastic. Simona was very knowledgeable and informative. It really was a once in a lifetime experience. Any body going to România should include this in there itinerary
We had a brilliant time, our guide, Nick, went out of his way to include extra's that were not in the original schedule to ensure we got the maximum experiences of Romania from the time we had available. His knowledge and commentary on everywhere we went really enhanced our understanding and appreciation of all the amazing places we visited. As we prepare to leave, our favorite memories were: Pele's Castle, Bear viewing, Manastirea Barsana, Village Breb and the Horse & Cart Ride around it, Sighisoara, Brasov, and Viscri. We would unreservedly recommend these guys. Dave & Samantha
Easy to book, it was a perfect day, we had wonderful time with our guide who show us lot of stuff and had lots of explànation Thank you!
The tour was excellent with Simona, besides being really nice and easygoing, she seemed to know everything there is to know about bears and also how the management and protection of them is and has been taken care of in Romania
I loved this hike. Sebi was a terrific guide to the mountains and all things Romanian. All questions prompted interesting conversations. The mountains were glorious, the hide was super comfy and company was excellent. Saw 2 bison and a bear visited on 2 days! So good to learn about the conservation efforts. Highly recommended.
Great experience. Tour, guide and lunch top marks. Hike with incredible views, highly recommended!
The Untold Stories of Bucharest: Prostitution, Holocaust and Communist Terror tour was fantastic! Elena was an excellent tour guide and provided us with an unforgettable journey through the history of Bucharest. We explored a cemetery, saw monuments, and got wonderful recommendations for local restaurants and bars. We highly, highly recommend this tour with Elena!
This was a terrific tour - great guide, interesting conversations and good food. The tour took us to parts of Bucharest that are off the tourist trail. Highly recommended.
Excellent experience of Romanian rural culture and great, friendly guide. Wholeheartedly recommend it.
I found Romanian Friend online when I searched for being able to watch bears in the wild. The trip was very easy to book and fitted in with my travel plans. Our guide Simona was very friendly, informative and showed a real love and passion for bears. We saw 5 bears on our trip and it was incredible. We used Simona's binoculas to be able to view the bears very closely. A fantastic, unforgettable experience. Thank you.
We had the Bison Tour in the Carpathian Mountains. It was amazing. We were met by two friendly guides who were careful to help us and show us all that they could of the environment and people in are as well as the animals. One of them was a professional ecologist who had been responsible for the reintroduction of the animal in the wild 5 years before and was a park ranger. The other a great leader with a deep understanding of the mountains, so friendly and interesting and made communication so easy and enjoyable. We were super lucky... we saw the herd of 12 animals initially in the woodland and then followed them through the clearing into the meadow. They were amazing animals and this touch with wilderness will never be forgotten by us. We were a family of 7 people and ranked this the highest memory of our two week holiday in wonderful Romania. We cannot rank the Romanian Friend tour highly enough - the guides were wonderful and the organisation very clear making it very sure where we were to meet and what to expect. Thank you
Your platform is fantastic! Quick response and totally reliable. Guide and your top marks, including delicious lunch. I highly recommend it.
We really enjoyed our bear watching experience with Simona, who is incredibly knowledgeable about the bears and was able to answer every question we asked. We saw at least 4 different bears. Transportation was straightforward, and they accommodated dropping us off in Zărnești rather than back in Braşov as we were staying there that night.
We had a fantastic tour! Our guide Simona was really knowledgeable and funny, with lots of stories, facts and always on hand to provide more context and info. The pick up and drive to the hide were easy and we all had a brilliant view of the 5 bears that joined us on the day! Absolutely a highlight of our trip to Romania!
We could not have asked for a better tour or guide (Mark-Alex) He was super knowledgeable and passionate about Romania and the Danube Gorge. Great communication and response time before the tour answering any questions we had. Highly recommend to any visiting Romania, booking was very simple.
This tour was very nice and I learned and saw a lot of fascinating things about Bucharest. And the guide was very friendly!
I really enjoyed this opportunity to try different beers at places that I wouldn't get to by myself. Kudos to Anita who organises the tours and to Andreea who was the guide on this tour. Thanks also to Romanian Friend where I booked the tour. They have been really helpful and unlike another site where I booked a couple of day trips, Romanian Friend confirmed dates, etc with the tour operators before confirming rather than canceling at the last minute.
The bear-watching tour was fantastic. Simona was a very knowledgeable and fun guide, and always had the best interests of the bears at heart.
I took this tour on my first day in Romania and it was an awesome introduction to the country, to Bucharest, and of course, to Romanian food. Excellent choice of places to stop along the tour and Mihaela was a great guide.
Vlad and his wife were lovely people! It was a pleasant way to spend a morning. Vlad took us on a moderately hard (walking uphill for about an hour) up to the top of Mount Tampa. We then walked down and passed through a farmer's market to pick up some cheese. It would have been nice if we had a little extra time to explore the market, but I think he was trying to be conscious of our time since we had a train to catch. Vlad's wife cooked a very large and delicious 3 course lunch, and they shared some homemade cherry alcohol. They were able to cater to me (a vegetarian) and my daughter who is not a vegetarian. It was a really nice time.
Isti did a nice job leading us through the valleys, and up and down the mountains. The hike was moderate, with slightly challenging uphill areas at times, but he was great about slowing down when we needed it. The scenery was absolutely beautiful and lunch was great. Bring snacks because we hiked for almost 4 hours before getting to our lunch stop!
Well organised, all went to plan, picked up from hotel and delivered back. Great spot to watch bears, which we did.
This was a great experience from start to end. It was easy to book the tour and well organised. What we appreciate the most apart from seeing bears was our tour guide Simona. She is very knowledgeable and passionate. She shared her knowledge of the wild life with enthusiasm. We highly recommend the tour.
The short bear watching trip was excellent. The guide was very knowledgeable and patient. Great organisation, thanks.
Really enjoyable small group tour. We liked the balance of walking and exploring different areas of the city we might not have visited with learning about the history and architecture and sampling local food. Our guide, Mihaela, was extremely welcoming, generous and knowledgeable. Very pleased to have found this tour, a great experience for first time visitors.
We were a group of seven friends and enjoyed a 2 day hiking tour in the Piatra Craiului National Park which was brilliant in every way. Our guide Mihai was excellent and we learnt a lot about the area, wildlife and recent Romanian history. The B&B was in a beautiful setting in the mountains - the hosts were wonderful and food simple but excellent. We would highly recommend and wished we had booked three days. Romanian Friend were great and Marian in particular very helpful. Thank you
Romanian Friend led us to this amazing team who run excellent conservation projects. The hide we stayed in was really special, great views, comfortable, remote. Our guide was very friendly and answered our constant questions about the Carpathian Mountains, the forest, Romanian history and culture. He was also a great cook.
We really enjoyed our tour. Our guide Simona was very informative and we were able to see 6 bears in different hierarchical positions. We learned a lot and had a great outing.
The tour was very well organized. Our guide Leontin was very friendly and knowledgeable. The boat trip in the Danube Delta was great, and we were able to observe many birds. The tour in Constanta was also very interesting. We can only warmly recommend Romanian Friend.
It was a really interesting tour that I remember very fondly. I was picked up early before sunrise by a guide who researches bear populations in the region. Therefore, he had some experience where to find bears. We drove 40min out of Brasov. I could use binoculars and a thermal monocular to look for wildlife. After some time, we discovered a wild bear strolling around.
Very nice tour and our guide Alex was super friendly and gave us very useful information about wildlife, nature, and Romanian mountains in general. We highly recommend this trip! Thank you Alex :)
Communication was good, Alex met us on time, and he really knew his way around the forest. Luckily he didn’t try to scare us too much, it’s spooky enough being in an unknown forest at night. A fun and interesting tour.
Excellent organization and experience. Simona was a top guide! Super!
Great experience with a great, competent guide. Highly recommended
The 4 day tour was very pleasant. John was an excellent guide. I truly enjoy the private guide experience, and thanks to Romanian Friend team for suggesting this trip and customising it to our preferences.
Thanks. It was amazing and teachingfull tour
Our trip to the Poenari Castle & Transfagarasan Highway on August 2, 2024 was an amazing and unforgettable experience. Our driver Don and accompanying guide Elena were extraordinary in their warmth and making us feel comfortable. From 8 am until 8 pm we were guided by experienced Romanians who were skilled at providing us with the local history, facts and sights and sounds on this great tour. We were moved by the gravesite visits of Romania's monarchy as well as the long and winding road of the Transfagarasan Highway. On our way on the highway we encountered at least 5 bears on the side of the road. This trip was well worth the cost and we highly recommend that you take this tour.
The Danube Delta trip connects you with nature and leads you with a feeling of wonderment. The bird life and vegetation are amazing. The staff assist in better appreciating how wonderful this part of the world is. The sunsets and sunrises are to die for and the local food is fantastic. You must experience this very special opportunity.
Vlad was an incredible guide who took us on a tour that ended up being our favorite experience during our time in Romania. He picked us up punctually, drove safely, and engaged in great conversation the entire time. You can tell how much passion he has for Romania and those who live in the village he took us through- the people clearly love and respect him. I recommend this tour to EVERYONE visiting this beautiful country - Vlad will take you on a life-changing journey. It felt like adventuring with a long-time friend and I felt very safe!
Thanks Charlie for a super walking tour of Braşov. We gained a great understanding of the history and future of this special city of Braşov.
We had an amazing day with our guide Charlie. The tour was very extensive, we visited a lot of sights in just one day, everything was organized really well and we felt that we were in great hands. Charlie is a very knowledgeable and fun tour guide. I absolutely recommend this tour.
Our tour guide was very personable. He learned everyone's names and where they were from. He was very knowledgeable about the castles we visited and the places we passed through. We were allowed time to eat wherever we wanted at Bran Castle, and to decide as a group the route we would take back to Brasov. I appreciated that he stopped the van so we could take the best iconic photo of Bran Castle in the distance on the hillside! Our guide obviously loves his job and he made our experience richer because he does love to show off his country.
Booked a paranormal tour of the Hoai Baciu with Marius. I had such a great experience! Got to visit all the hot spots and get great story telling with pictures of the famous historic phenomena. He also came prepared with odds and ends for the hike, like bug spray and EMF meters! You can tell Marius really cares for the forest, as he picks up odd bits of trash left behind by other careless hikers and loves to show off his favorite trees.
The tour was good. My expectations were a little different, I expected more of a foodie or gourmet experience. There was more history/architecture than I expected, but nevertheless it was good cause I learned a lot more like this.
First of all, we are really glad we booked this tour and would recommend it 100%! Adela is an awesome and super knowledgeable tour-guide. We learned and saw so much in just one day. We visited Sarmizeregetusa Regia, Corvin Castle and Alba Iulia and it’s really hard to decide which one is the highlight because all 3 are totally worth seeing and give an amazing insight in romanian history!
I had a brilliant experience…. The booking and confirmation process was smooth and easy. Communication regarding the trip was really good. Alex (my guide) was really knowledgeable, experienced and friendly! I would strongly recommend the wildlife and bear watching experience! I will be sure to return next year!
We had an amazing hike. Our guide Mihai was amazing. He is extraordinarily knowledgable about the mountains. A truly incredible and beautiful hike. I highly reccomend booking with Romanian Friend. They made setting everything up easy and advised us well - we just had to focus on enjoying the hike.
Very enjoyable tour. Lots of information about Romanian food, culture and history. The walking was made challenging due to the extreme July heat - so be well prepared! Very good day overall.
Florin was an amazing guide! Loved this trip from start to finish. Learned so much throughout the day and never had a dull moment. We stopped for a fantastic lunch after walking about Alba Lulia. Florin was loaded with fascinating facts and handled all of our questions with professional and comprehensive responses. Corvin Castle was a delight and the stories filled our afternoon. The scenery of both Alba and Corvin do not disappoint! Florin is a master of his craft. A very memorable day!
Very good, informative with great views of the Bears
The wildlife tour in Carpathian mountains was an excellent experience. We saw bears, vipers, toads and loads of frogs. Thanks to our guide Jeno.
Adele was a fanrastic guide! We enjoyed hearing the history and stories about Transsylvania!
Our guide was great, working with us (a diverse group ages 7 to over 70) to plan activities and keeping us informed of what was happening next.
We really recommend using Romanian Friend for your Short Bear Watching Experience, Our guide Simona was fabulous, she was so friendly and extremely knowledgeable about the bears she obviously cared a great deal about them . We will recommend Romanian Friend to all our friends and family, First Class .
Simona was very knowledgeable and gave a lot of good information along with a great tour. A nice look at the Romania countryside with a local as well as the bears!
The tour was great. Everything regarding the trip was dealt with very smoothly. Our driver/guide kept us comfortable and safe and shared some interesting information about Bucharest during the communist era. The parliament building is not to be missed. It is amazing. The Ceausescu mansion was also very much worth visiting
Bogdan was an excellent, knowledgeable guide who made sure we had a really great day out. He gave us lots of information on the local area and wildlife whilst we did a beautiful hike, and also continued to offer advice on places to visit afterwards. Highly recommend this trip!
Absolutely professional, knowledgeable and good fun. We were in good hands and saw some beautiful sights and had great experiences on our private tour. The accommodation was first class. Everything was above our expectations. Much better than the impersonal big group tours. Highly recommended.
Romanian Friend were very clear and efficient in planning this holiday. Very easy to do. The holiday to Maramures and Bukovena was wonderful. Both areas are beautiful and varied. Our guide, Florin, was superb, very knowledgeable and helpful. Very aware of our capabilities (we are both elderly) and what we wanted to do. We had some very good walks, visits to local attractions. He seemed to know lots of people in the area of our village where we stayed in Maramures, and so we saw people and things we would not otherwise have done. His driving was careful (in contrast to our taxi driver in Bucharest!). The accommodation in both areas was very good, though quite different, and also the food. We were very glad we took the extra day (6 instead of 5) which allowed us that more time. We strongly recommend this trip to anyone interested.
Excellent hiking experience in national park with guest house stay. Moderate plus effort but well worthwhile. Bogdan our guide was great, an experienced mountain guide, excellent source of information on the outdoors, all things Romanian and life in general.
Booking process was seemless and Simona, our guide, was very knowledgeable about the area and it's wildlife. I would recommend this trip to everyone and when I'm back in Romania I will be booking again.
Communication was prompt and responsive after booking our tour on where and when to meet the guide. Guide was knowledgeable and provided useful insight on the bears and their habitat. Enjoyed the trip.
We simply loved this tour- beautiful nature and a nice tour guide, Tiberiu!
We enjoyed our two days of adventure with Marius our guide. He gave us lots of choices and provided cycling strategy and route options.
Amazing tour, very safe and well organised. Super knowledgeable guide. We saw about 6 bears and a pine marten. One of our best ever nature experiences.
Our food tour with Romanian Friend & our guide Adela was amazing! Adela taught us so much about Sibiu and all the food we ate was delicious! Highly recommend this tour.
We had such a great time with Simona ! We've learnt a lot about bears and Romanian wildlife. Thank you so much for this moment ! One of the best parts of our trip across Romania.
This short tour covered a lot of territory. Our guide was friendly, informative and always helpful. It was interesting to see the countryside going to and from the Delta and learning more about Romania. However, the main reason for taking the tour was to do a boat cruise on the Danube Delta and it did not disappoint. We saw a good variety of birds, sometimes in the hundreds, and navigated through narrow channels and into and out of lakes. The small boat was ideal in size and the photo opportunities afforded from it were excellent. Thanks to Dan for being a great companion during the 2 days.
It was a really great hiking. We learned a lot of things about hiking. Bogdan is very nice, have an interesting life journey and know a lot of things about hiking. We are delighted about our hiking ! The landscape was amazing.
We had an amazing day out with Oana and the ranger and spotted a bear (fortunately from the car) and bisons only after an hour of hiking. It was a real adventure as we went on unbeaten paths but we felt looked after all the time. Oana was lovely and very knowledgeable.
Nick was our guide for this 4 day tour. He was an absolute fountain of information and we learned so much. The itinerary he planned, visiting Sinaia, Brasov, Sighisoara and Sibiu, worked really well. We have to admit that the bear experiences were the most exciting for us. The first was at a hide, seeing bears not habituated to humans, and how cautious they are in the wild. The second was along the Transfagarasan Highway where the bears have been fed by people so are not concerned about approaching. Bears came right by the car and it was fantastic to see them close up, with the car windows wound up firmly. Thanks to Nick for a terrific experience.
Our guide Elena was friendly, relaxed and most informative about everything that she showed us. The tour moved on at a perfect pace and we saw the most significant sites in Bucharest. On the walk Elena bought us some Romanian pretzels and chocolate and would have provided a drink as well but we had already brought water. Full marks to Elena for an enjoyable tour and answering all our questions.
It was very easy to book through Romanian Friend. The information was clear and it was easy to compare and choose suitable tours. We really loved our trip and Adela made sure to adapt the itinerary to our liking and interests. This was a highlight of our stay in Romania.
Ilana gave a great tour. I loved all of the history she presented as part of the journey. I felt like I got to know how the citizens lived their day today lives. I would definitely recommend this tour. The food was delicious as well.
Very fun 2 day tour of Maramures with Mihai. We saw so much, ate delicious food and also found some time to relax as Mihai did not rush us and adjusted the itinerary based on what we wanted. Highly recommend.
I made the 3-day tour as sole client with Bogdan as guide, who picked me up in his car and drove us to Magura. He also delivered me back at my hotel in Brasov at the end of the tour. The routes followed tracks taking in the Curmatura and Grind huts and the rocky side of Piatra Craiului. I was very pleased with the routes we made although the tracks were often continuously steep in difficult forest trails, equally demanding on leg muscles both up and down. We typically made about 16 km and 600-800 m altitude in 5-7 hours. The weather was cool and occasionally damp. One day saw a strong wind from the valley with very low temperartures which caused us to change our jackets several times. The accommodation in the Montana guesthouse was very good, warm and clean, with breakfast, dinner and packed lunch provided in the neighbouring restaurant – the hosts were very friendly. Bogdan is an all round sportsman and was sensitive to my limitations. He was an excellent companion at mealtimes and over a beer at the end of the day, very jovial and well informed of Romanian history. The routes are marked but not always easy to follow. We met three pairs of trekkers who had lost their way and Bogdan was gracious enough to guide them and give detailed instructions. On the last day we also took in the more touristic area with Bran castle and Poiana Brasov. I would readily use their services again and perhaps for winter sports, now that I have a better idea of the fitness level required. I would recommend these guided tours to anyone. They can accommodate all capabilities.
Great tour. We drove through beautiful countryside to get to the forest where the hide was situated. We were lucky to see 3 bears as well as some smaller animals. It was really special seeing these beautiful creatures in the wild. Simona was very professional, knowledgeable and passionate.
Simona was friendly, likeable, funny and knowledgeable. Plus we got to see bears. Great trip, thanks!
It was luck that I've found this tour. We had a fantastic tour with Daniel on a warm Saturday morning. Loved the food and the local perspective as well as all the interesting information. It wasn't just a preconstructed tour, he reacted to our questions and knew a lot. The guide also considered allergies and had ideas of alternatives.
Fun tour with interesting takes on food in Romania, and super friendly guide!
fantastic trip! everything was well organised and the guide super friendly. he told us what trail options are and we got to choose - and we went for a harder one. the guide kept a good pace, was very careful, and made breaks in good points so we can admire the views and also get fresh spring water. this area is so beautiful, this trip was really worth it!
our guide was Sergiu and this trip was really nice. we were looking for a day out to do some light walking in nature and he took us to some great places in the national park. he was very friendly and made sure everyone was taken care of. the trails in the forest was beautiful, the air so fresh and clean, and the lake a wonderful serene sight. and we also learned so much about Romanian history!
This was a really good tour, which provided me with a mixture of experincing village life, nature and fortified churches. Adela is a fantastic guide who has alot of knowledge about the area and Romania in general. Adela didn't rush us and let us have plenty of time at each destination to take everything in and relax. I recommend this tour if you want to get of the the main tourist trail and experience more around Sibiu.
what a lovely trip! Adela took us through traditional villages around Sibiu and it was like she knew everyone. we went for walks, short hikes to get better views, had a lovely lunch in the garden of a family, and learned a lot about how life in Transylvania goes. thank you!
great experience, Alex knew so much about the forest you can see he's really passionate about it. and forest is an interesting and eerie place to visit
Apuseni Natural Park was gorgeous, and Radu was a wonderful guide. He chose the right hike for our group's needs and went out of his way to point out interesting sights on the way to and from the park. This outing was the highlight of my trip. Thanks, Radu!
Myself and my partner had an incredible time on our bear watching experience - it was just the two of us so it felt extra special. Simona was brilliant - she picked us up in Brasov and on the journey to the hide was full of fascinating information about Romanian bears and the difficult relationship between bears and humans in the country. Once in the hide, she let us borrow her binoculars and camera, and even sent us all the pictures we took afterwards. It was raining quite heavily the afternoon of our tour, so we were worried we wouldn’t see any bears. We needn’t have worried - right after we arrived our first bear appeared, and we ended up seeing 7! It even started snowing at one point, adding to the magic of the experience. We were amazed at how quickly Simona was able to identify each bear, and it was wonderful how excited she got at seeing certain bears, especially one in particular that she hadn’t seen in a long time, it made it all the more exciting for us. We would definitely recommend this tour for anyone coming to Brasov.
Great idea to spend a day around Brasov. The guide had a good knowledge of the local history, traditions and idiosyncrasy, as well as kind and willing to help. 100% recommend
Alex was very knowledgeable and clearly comfortable hiking through the forest. The stories of his experiences made the hike more enjoyable!
I did the 4 day version of this trip with Mihai and it was really good, I saw everything I wanted. the team prepared an itinerary based on what I wanted and they also gave me accommodation options, so I could choose everything I wanted. I saw the tourist spots of Transylvania but also got to see rural life and slow down, which was great. Mihai, the guide, was super friendly and easy going.
We had a packed day with Charlie, who was a friendly and very knowledgeable local guide / driver. He dispelled many myths about Romania and gave us a history lesson about Vlad Tepes - where he was and where he wasn't! Castles, monasteries, a fortified church (Lutheran - another surprise) and glorious views of the Carpathian Mountains - Charlie made sure that we saw what we wanted to. By the time we got back to Brasov we were exhausted but happy. Thanks for a memorable day!
easy booking and well organised tour. you can see the guide is a wildlife specialist, not like other regular guides. I'm glad we did this instead of visiting the bear sanctuary, seeing animals in the wild is a unique experience.
we're both experienced hikers and initially thought about going on our own in Piatra Craiului but Marius at Romanian Friend advised us against it - and I'm so glad we listened to him. These mountains are beautiful - but not to be taken lightly. We did the 2 day trip and guide took us on trails up to the crest with difficult sections that I don't think we could have done on our own without extra time, risk and effort. And we also saw fresh bear marks as they just came out of hibernation. Our guide was prepared for that, but no close encounters luckily! The mountain guesthouse was great too, rustic and delicious food. We had a great time and made a great choice with this trip, thanks!
Great experience and very knowledgeable guide. Observing wild bears safely is amazing! Would highly recommend.
Charlie was a fantastic guide! Very knowledgeable and fun. He was great with our 8 year old daughter who loved the day! We visited all the sites and in addition we visited caves! We had a very enjoyable day and learnt a lot. Would highly recommend!
this was the most unusual part of our trip in Romania. my husband and teenage soon weren't sure about doing this, but in the end they really liked it. Alex is a great guide who knows everything about the forest and showed us some very interesting places. highly recommend!
Marius at Romanian Friend suggested this when I told him about our plans and we loved it, it was the highlight of our family trip in Romania! the guide was very friendly and took us to places we would have never found on our own, or thought about going to, and gave us a nice presentation of the other side of Bucharest. and the food was great too! a real off-the-beaten path experience, thanks!
I was skeptical at first but this turned out to be a very interesting tour. Alex is very friendly and knows a lot of stories about the forest and special places in it. and the forest itself was indeed very strange. definitely recommend to those looking for a non-touristy experience!
Very nice tour with our Romanian friend Mihai. Felixibel attitude, interesting information and nice food.
Our guide was EXTREMELY knowledgeable which is great because I'm quite a curious traveler. He had the wisdom of someone who not only has been a guide a very long time but also an informed citizen of the world. Tiberius was also quite careful to avoid crowds ensuring we got there ahead of time to beat the crowds. For this reason alone, the tour was very much worth it. I enjoyed his stories and learned a lot.
Photography Tour of Romania: Traditional Villages & Local Life Tour was the best thing we did in ROMANIA. VLAD WAS AMAZING! HE HAS SUCH A PASSION FOR HIS COUNTRY AND WANTS TO SHARE IT WITH EVERYONE! We chose to take the hike with Vlad and climbed up a huge hill/mountain side for a sunrise in a little town 30 minutes out of Brasov. Be prepared to climb for about 30 - 45minutes. It was well worth the climb for the morning sunrise. We walked along the mountainside and met amazing residents who lived there. People were very generous and offered us treats and coffee at each stop. If taking this tour, try and bring a little treat for the residents as some of them are just trying to get by with the harsh weather conditions at times. If you cannot climb, I am sure Vlad can still provide you an amazing experience exploring little towns off the beaten track. Thank you Vlad for showing us the real beauty of Romania. Liz and Steve Canada
we were looking to get out of Bucharest and be in nature on our last day so we contacted Romanian Friend on Friday, they quickly replied and on Saturday we went on this tour with Oana. the trip was great, Snagov forest is wonderful and we had a great time. the trails were not difficult at all and the bikes were proper and well maintained. thank you!
It was really neat to see bears in the wild! Really great experience and guide was very nice. I would recommend to do this! Note that there are different locations for the look outs, so it may look different than in the pictures. Our location wasnt this pretty meadow in the pictures, but still, the bears came quickly and that was the important part. They feed the bears to keep them out of the nearby farms etc, so you will see bears.
what a great experience, my teenage son who never saw animals in the wild loved it! Simona is a great guide, very patient and knowledgeable. highly recommend and thanks to Marius at Romanian Friend who made it possible for us to join last minute!
Great tour that gave us lots of interesting experiences from Maramures! Florin was a very friendly and knowledgable guide.
We greatly enjoyed our food walking tour! By far the best day we spent on our visit to Bucharest! So many tasty things and super well organized.
We had a fabulous trip in the mountains which were especially beautiful after a fresh fall of snow. It was a good length of day out and a good intro to the range. Bogdan, our guide is highly experienced and knowledgeable and we were fortunate to benefit from that.
great trip with a super knowledgeable guide, we had a very very good time and learned so much about Romania. thank you!
The tour was great! The guide was informative and I learned so much more than I already knew. She was able to answer my questions and give me advice on restaurants, getting back to the airport, and food. I learned so much about the history of Romania and its people.
Vlad is a wonderful guide, photographer and proud Romanian. he took us to some great spots and into locals' home. for any photographers interested in beautiful sceneries and rural life this trip is a must!
Great small tour to some fantastic locations. Adela was a flexible, friendly, and very knowledgeable guide who made it a great day.
Excellent time. Florin was a fantastic guide and we really enjoyed our trip!
We had an amazing two day hike with Mihai. He was knowledgeable and accommodating, letting us squeeze in other activities if we wanted. A beautiful way to explore stunning landscape. The chalet we stayed in overnight was also beautiful and cosy.
**A cultural insight into history, neighbourhoods and food with a well-informed and personable guide** Bogdan met us outside the National Theatre with snacks and talked us through the relevant history of Bucharest and Romania which we needed for context of our visit through inner-city neighbourhoods and then onto a delightful, low-key restaurant for a platter of local foods. We then caught the tram to the food market where Bogdan talked us through the various produce/provenance and bought fresh fruits/dessert to accompany our last stop at a super-popular sausage/meat stand next to the market. We sat down and enjoyed the sausages/fruit/baclava and local beer. Before catching the tram back, Bogdan bought delicious doughnuts. All highly recommended! Thank you Bogdan!
This tour was the highlight of my whole week in Romania across various towns and cities. Was so cool seeing brown bears in the wild (we saw 4 in total) and Simona our guide was extremely knowledgeable, friendly, professional and engaging. You simply cannot go to Brasov and NOT do this tour!
Mihai was a fantastic guide! He was knowledgeable, but also really fun to spend the time with while walking around Cluj-Napoca and trying new foods.
We extended our the three day Transylvania trip to four days and we were so glad that we did. Our guide, Florin, was awesome. He made each city come alive with his stories of their history and people. His dialogue kept us interested and entertained! What a wonderful introduction to Romania for us Americans.
My girlfriend and I had a great evening roaming the forest in Hoia Baciu with Alex. Alex had a wealth of knowledge of the forest and a strong storyteller about his years of experience with the forest. We really appreciated his balanced approach to the legends, which in itself made it all the more fascinating. If you are 50/50 definitely go for it! Alex also went out of his way to make us feel comfortable pikcing up and dropping us off at our hotel and gave us a lot of good tips to know about Romanian culture and ettiquette. It was the start of the trip so very handy. Thanks mate!
I learned most of my information about travelling in Romania from Romanian Friend. It was very helpful in planning our road trip through Transylvania. Our Cluj food tour with Robert, Mihai's colleague, was the first thing we did after landing at the airport...it was interesting and yummy! He included facts about the history of the area and we enjoyed the different foods we sampled, as well as lunch at the restaurant. He adapted the tour to us, since we don't drink alcohol or coffee. Thanks for a great experience!
The night time tour through Hoia Baciu Forest was amazing! The forest is beautiful especially under a full moon. Our tour guide Alex was very knowledgeable and we enjoyed hearing many spooky stories about the area.
Excellent tour, really nice guides and the bears did not disappoint. Good communication.
My friend and I booked a private tour to Maramures through Romanian Friend and it was fantastic! The booking was easy to arrange throught the website and the responses and information leading up to the tour was quick and helpful. The actual tour was so fun! Our guide Florin was very knowledgeable and so friendly that all the locals seemed to love him enough to invite us into their homes and share their lives with us. I definitely recommend!
I had a perfect 2 days hiking trip in the Bucegi mountains with some great views and nice landscapes from rocky cliffs, to a nice plateau, an interesting gorge and beautiful autumn forests. The tour guide Radu was very nice and had a lot to tell about the region and the history of rumania. I booked the tour last minute and was happy it worked out. I really loved this hiking trip and would highly recommend it.
Our tour with Peter, Adela's husband, was a multi faceted delight. His knowledge of where to be when, in order to highlight each view made for great photo opportunities. He is a wealth of information about Romanian history and culture. His patience with our many questions was boundless. We were greatly enriched and enjoyed ourselves so much! We were so fortunate to share a day with him and recommend him highly.
Simona was an incredible guide. She was knowledgeable, friendly and made the whole experience fun. Seeing the bears was a highlight for us in Romania and we were so glad we decided to do the experience. If you like learning a bit about Romanian communist history and nature, you won't be disappointed!
Adela showed us stunning scenery on top of Corvins Castle, Alba Lulia and Sarmizegetusa Regia .This was a long day but Adela was patient with our questions and gave us some of the best photo ops of our trip. Cannot recommend this tour more, Adela is committed to showing you the best of the Sibiu area.
This tour was an incredible experience. Iancu was a very friendly and knowledgable tour guide, and took us to some great spots with amazing views that we would definitely not have found on our own. He even provided a picnic with desert, drinks, and cheese after at the top of a mountain with more incredible views following the traditional Romanian restaurant lunch, which was an awesome bonus. Will be highly recommending this tour to anyone visiting and even family I have nearby that has likely never been to the specific spots Iancu knew about. Thanks Romanian Friend!
Perfect tour with Alex, giving detailed and sophisticated explanations, always surprising and good transitions to the next topic :-) Highly recommended
Perfect Tour! Exciting and very informative bear watching. +++ for Simona.
Romanian friend made planning a bespoke tour that included everything my wife and I wanted very easy, and I cannot praise our guide Bogdan enough. He was knowledgeable, thoughtful, and friendly. Making our tour a real delight! Would happily recommend these services!
Top!!!
My tour was awesome, Mihai was phenomenal and we did whatever I preferred. Outstanding Food spots, delicious beer suggestions and overall awesome History Lesson about Cluj and Romania. Best part of this tour was I made a friend for Life, he's always welcome in our Home in America. Please utilize these awesome Tour Guides, they work hard and put their heart and soul into making your experience a positive one. Cheers and Here's to the next tour...
We had an early start of the day, just in time to catch the first rays of sunlight on the rolling hills of the countryside. The morning mist unfolded sleepy valleys. An absolute gem of a sight! Vlad is a very warm and welcoming person. It was a pleasure to chat about Romanian culture, photography and life in general. He was both easy going and knowledgeable. Shortly after being invited for coffee by a neighbour, it became apparent how much some of the locals look up to Vlad and even confide in him. He was very quick to help us communicate and also exchange some words, smiles and jokes with the locals. There is nothing touristy or staged about this experience. Nor should you expect bursting out your camera at every corner. Which for us was perfect! It's totally fine if you aren't a photographer. You will surely be making some great memories. After nearly 9 days travelling through central Romania, our day-trip with Vlad was one of our most cherished moments. Looking back, I would have definitely traded in more days to explore the countryside near Brasov. It truly is an "unspoilt" and genuine part of Europe. So if any of this is in your plans, make the most of your time but remember to slow-down and enjoy! Thank you so much Vlad & Romanian Friend.
Our tour with Vlad was the highlight of our stay in Brasov. He took us to places we would have never known about and we thoroughly have lunch at his apartment. Vlad seemed as interested in getting to know about us as we were to get to know him and his culture. Booking through Romanian Friend was easy and communication throughout the process was a breeze. If you're in Brasov you should definitely book one of Vlad's tours!
3 Day the best of Transylvania tour with George was outstanding. Very nice design, great English, good communication, perfect transportation, very nice people!!!
Alina made our visit to the Parliment building and Nicolae Ceaușescu's home seemless. We really enjoyed the extra time Alina took to explain the boulevards, monuments and the whole story of the revolution at the square. The extra bonus was their car was comfortable and they brought communist era chocolate !!
I cannot recommend this tour enough. Florin is an amazing and incredibly skilled tour guide; he has an incredible knowledge of the communities you visit, the history of the region, and the religious symbolism you come across visiting the various churches and distinct regional architecture of the Maramures region. Florin is very personable and it often felt like he knew virtually everyone within the villages we visited. I don't know exactly how many languages Florin speaks and can read (it's a lot), but I do know he was very fluent in English and was able to not only read many of the very old Romanian and Greek church texts but also had a wealth of information about each site we visited, including the beautiful murals in the churches. I was able to meet many of the locals, who were incredibly kind and welcoming. I extended to a third day and did the steam train ride, which I also really enjoyed--It was incredibly beautiful and worth the additional day if you can swing it. The Pension we stayed at was amazing. The host was incredibly kind and the meals were fresh. She not only makes the meals (dinner was three courses each night) but also makes many of the foods you eat as well, including the cured meats/sausages, cheese, and fresh vegetables. Everything was fresh and sourced from her land or the local community. It was one of the coolest Bed and Breakfasts that I've stayed at. I had originally just planned on a more standard Transylvania tour but am very glad I decided to travel to the Maramures region and experience this tour. While I loved visiting Transylvania, I deeply loved visiting the Maramures region, and in retrospect, I feel that had I not visited this region and done this tour, I would have missed out on an incredibly beautiful and culturally rich and distinct region of Romania that you just cannot get if you don't visit the region. If you are looking for a fuller, richer, experience within Romania that goes beyond the typical Transylvania tours, I highly recommend this tour. It will be well worth your time and money.
Alina, my guide, and Gabriel our driver took me from Bucharest to Constanta to see the Black Sea and Constanta old town. They were very friendly, Alina very knowledgeable. I had a paddle in the Black Sea and explored the Old Town on my free time. A very comfortable clean car, the journey was a pleasure.
Florian was a very knowledgeable guide and we enjoyed our time with him. This Romanian Friend tour is very well priced, particularly compared to other companies. We learned a lot about the history of the region and Cluj.
I cannot praise both Romanian Friend and our guide, Simona enough for this wonderful experience. Booking was easy and the communication quick and straightforward. The tour itself was magnificent, an unforgettable experience seeing bears in the wild. Simona was friendly, knowledgeable and great company. Visit Romania and especially the beautiful City of Brasov!
We loved our Romanian time capsule tour with Elena. So much more interesting than a traditional museum! Elena was an excellent guide, extremely knowledgeable and informative and able to illustrate what we were hearing about with examples from her own family’s experience. Highly, highly recommended!
My tour guide Andra was very well informed about the architecture and history of Bucharest. Her English was excellent and she answered questions very satisfactorily.
We had an intens and beautiful 2 day hike including sleeping in a mountain town with great views and food. Thanks Alex for guiding us to the top of the Om peak, was a great experience!
We absolutely enjoyed the food tour and Mihai was an excellant guide. He gave us a wealth of information. He is such a caring guide and always looked out for our well being. Thanks Mihai!!!!!!
We were absolutely thrilled by the sight of the bears and the informative commentary from Simona. Despite the feeding being an artificial lure to encourage bears to visit the hide each afternoon, we how sympathetic the program must be so that farmers and wildlife can coexist. I recommend this tour to everyone. You will feel exceptionally lucky. Thank you, Simona!
Excellent trip. Great communication throughout. Our guide, Simona, was very informative and knowledgeable about bears. We had a great time. Highly recommended.
We had a great day out with Alex, Florin’s colleague, who apart from guiding us round two fascinating and contrasting places, was a mine of information about Romanian history, culture and the countryside.
We enjoyed our tour with Peter, Adela’s husband. Booking, pick-up and all communications were simple and professional. We wouldn’t have experienced these areas of Romania without the services of this tour and we are grateful for the opportunity. We recommend and would use Romanian Friend again.
Our guide, Radu was very helpful, knowledgable, patient and easy to get along with. We had a really good experience with him and we are well pleased. I certainly recommend him and the rest of the Romanian Friend team for your adventures in Romania!
Everything was super smooth and professional, even though there happened to be a news crew joining us that day. We saw nine bears in total and learned so much about the animals and this part of Romania. The best thing I've done in Romania - definitely go for it!
Booked a Bear watching trip through Romanian friend with Simona. Everything went perfectly,from beginning to end.far exceeded my expectations. Saw many bears. Simona was very friendly & informative. Excellent trip.
A quick glimpse into the Romanian highlands in the company of a professional guide.
Alex was an excellent tour guide and really knowledgeable. Highly recommended for the night tours of the Hoia Baciu forest.
I had decided on visiting Timisoara this year because it was the European Capital of Culture. While planning this visit I decided that I wanted to experience some of the natural scenery present in the Banat area of Romania in the vicinity of Timisoara. So I chose 2 Romanian Friend tours to do this, one of these being the tour Magical Hike in Nera-Beusnita National Park. I went on the this tour on a very nice weather Saturday with Liviu, my Romanian Friend guide. Liviu was a great person to take this tour with, as he was very friendly and helpful and loves the outdoors. So we had a very pleasant day together doing several hikes in the National Park. We had very good conversation during the day and Liviu answered the questions that I had, we discussed other places in Romania that I had previously visited and the present state of the environment in Romania. We began the day with a 2 hour drive from Timisoara to Nera-Beusnita National Park, including a short stop for breakfast just outside of Oravita. When we reached the National Park, we began our first hike to reach the beautiful small lake called the Eye of the Bey. This hike was quite easy, with mostly flat terrain and took about 45 minutes to arrive at the lake. The lake being quite scenic, we spent some time there enjoying the atmosphere. We then continued our hike for another half-hour to arrive at the waterfall location. This location was also quite scenic, but due to the time of the year (late summer), there was very little water going over the falls and I had to imagine what it might be like during the spring of the year, which Liviu explained was the best time of the year to see real waterfall views here. But it was still a nice hike to get to the falls. We then retraced our steps from the falls back to the Eye of the Bey lake and to the beginning of the trail, where we were able to view a local fish hatchery close to the trail. We then drove a short distance to the Sasca Romana (Roman tunnels), believed to have been present since Roman times in this area, to explore them for a bit. Our hikes were now completed, but Liviu took a slightly different route back to Timisoara and I got to see several small villages in the area, Socolari and Iliada. I particularly enjoyed seeing the local houses and architecture in these villages and was told that while these villages are not presently as active as they once were, new activity is occuring in them because Romanians and foreigners are purchasing houses and properties and renovating them as vacation homes or cultural landmarks. This was encouraging to see. All in all, it was a great day in the rural Banat region and Liviu was a great guide to share the journey with.
This was our second tour we did to see the bears. Again saw about 7 bears. You do get pretty close to them and get a good view watching for about 1 and 1/2 hours. Plenty of information and very well organised from start to end. See our other report. Will be back next year.
Everything about the booking and contacting our guide Simona was clear with good phone and email contact. The meeting place for the pick up was central and easy to find. We saw about 10 bears and were very happy with the whole experience.
On Sept 6, 2023 I met with Mark-Alex in mid-morning to begin our Walking Tour of Timisoara. I had just arrived in Timisoara the afternoon before, so I was just beginning to know the city when we met that morning. Mark-Alex is easy to engage with and very easy to have conversation with. We talked about many things during the tour and I asked many questions during our walk. So we had good back and forth discussion throughout the walk. Beginning the tour, we walked through and explored the three main squares (Victoria, Liberty, Union) of the city, St. George Square, Eugene Savoy Street and into the Maria Theresia Bastion area where Mark-Alex gave me plenty of background on how the Habsburg Empire made Timisoara into a fortress town after they had captured the town from the Ottomans in the early 1700's and how nobles like Eugene of Savoy were instrumental in this process. There was good focus on the history of the city, which I enjoyed. We then walked back through Union Square to explore some of the fabulous buildings and architecture located there. Near the end of the tour we walked out to the Piata 700 area to stop in and see the food and flower markets in this area and to try some ethnic foods and get a coffee. This was a nice ending to a very good tour. I felt very pleased with the outcome and I give Mark-Alex the credit for it.
The Essential Walking Tour of Bucharest was a really delightful and interesting introduction to the city; long enough to cover some ground but not too overwhelming or tiring! My guide was knowledgeable, flexible, and excellent company for three hours or so. I learned a lot about the history of the city and Romania itself. Definitely a great way to start my week in the country.
Our guide for this tour was Alex, who was very nice and funny. He brought us along scenic roads while making the drive to the Delta and arranged a boat ride as well as a visit to the Veterans Cave along the Danube. He was very passionate about the history of the locations he brought us too, and told us about the recent renovations being done in the town of Băile Herculane when we visited.
The tour was amazing, The guides was very accommodating and knowledgeable, and even stopped for us to buy grapes from the locals which were delicious. Highly recommend this tour!
It was great experience for me and my mother, we felt like professional photographers for few hours! It was fantastic to see the bears in the nature.
Romanian friend gave us a great introduction to the country. Florin was thoughtful, friendly, informative and relaxed company on our day out with him. Wish we had time for more.
We did the 1 day hike in the Apuseni Natural Park with Radu. Radu was great and the hike was great. Great views! Would definitely recommend for a nice day trip.
The two day hike in the Apuseni mountains was a lot of fun. Iancu was very friendly and shared many stories with us during our hike, and made the tour very personalized, adjusting events and locations on the fly based on our interests. We stayed overnight at a lovely inn that had great traditional food; the owner of the inn was also very kind and let us meet the farm animals. If you're interested in learning more about life in a traditional village, as well as going on scenic hikes, this tour would be perfect for you!
We had a great experience. Marius was a terrific guide and created an experience that worked so well for us. Highly recommend.
Our tour guide was just awesome. His deep knowledge about history and culture and his dedication for his job and his travel guests made our trip an unforgettable event. Would like to give him again our special thanks for the Dacians. Anke & Rita
An absolute highlight of our trip to Brasov. My son and I spent a fantastic day with our guide Oana and two rangers tracking Bison through the mountainous forests. An unforgettable experience.
We chose the two day hike and enjoyed it a lot. Our guide, Mihai, was very knowledgeable and knew the area well. He shared many stories with us as we hiked and set a good pace for our entire party. The overnight stay was in a lovely inn with great traditional food and featured an extremely beautiful scenic view. Additionally, we met a lot of animals along the way. If you want a good hike through the mountains with good company, this tour won't disappoint!
The day was amazing won Piatra Criaului. I was travelling solo and worried about picking the right trails to hike safely. Romanian Friend provided a certified guide who worked out a great plan and provided transportation to and from my hotel. The route was matched to my skill and comfort level and the 2-3 hours on the ridge was full of picture perfect views. Thanks for a great day Iști and Marian!
Everything went perfectly. The guide was on time and he guided me very competently through the attractions.
A true Romanian friend. The night tour was incredible! Alex knows his stuff, he is an expert of both the forest and the local culture. The forest has such a magic atmosphere... it played with our imagination! I would totally recommend the experience to anyone interested in discovering Hoia Baciu's mysteries and stories.
Robert was a superb guide and made sure we got to see some bears, even if it necessitated a second trip! This was a unique and thrilling experience, thank you.
Everything went perfectly. The guide was on time and he guided us very competently through the attractions.
Radu is an excellent tour guide. A two day hike tailored exactly to our interests and walking pace. Thorough discussion of trails and choices so we were happy every step of the way. Radu has a deep love and knowledge of the mountains and brilliant English so we had great conversations too. He went above and beyond to make sure we had an exceptional experience. Thanks Saint Radu!
We had a great trip! Bogdan was a fantastic guide and the 2 days of hiking was exactly what we wanted. He quickly assessed our ability levels and tailored the trip around that. Finding some amazing routes that we never would have found alone. Would highly recommend!
I could not have imagined a better guide for this trek than Itsi. His passion, patience and talent for guiding is remarkable and very much appreciated!
I could not have imagined a better guide for this trek. His passion, patience and talent for guiding is remarkable and very much appreciated!
My tour with Peter - the husband of Adela - was just amazing. He has so much knowledge about this breathtaking part of Roumania, the Carpathian mountains. You feel the love he has for his home region! I was lucky to have him as a personal guide, so I could ask everything and got a perfect answer to all. Peter was very friendly and the whole day in a good mood. I recommend him absolutely for this tour and I hope to be able to do the tour again with friends I'm going to inspire to come to Transylvania and to do this tour.
Full success. We saw about 10 bears and two foxes. But the best was our knowledgeable guide Simona. She gave us a lot of insides about the behaviour of bears, the pros and cons of the rising bear population but also interesting, determined facts about romainian environmental law. All in all: We strongly recommend!
The Danube Delta Tour was the highlight of our visit to Romania. The richness of nature and especially the abundance of rare bird species is beyond comparison in the rest of Europe. The tour was well-organized and the guesthouse was really cozy and well-kept. The breakfast and dinner were amazing - simple but fresh and lots of fish. The village was bigger than we imagined and there are a few places where we could enjoy the sunset and have a drink. The tour shows all aspects of the delta including the local culture. If you are more into bird watching the tour can be a little fast. Also pay attention to proper clothing and equipment (for rain and sun) and don't forget the binocular!
Thank you Florin for all you showed us throughout the day. Your historical knowledge in particular made the Citadel the highlight of the day. It was our first trip to Romania but we will definitely be back to explore more areas of this beautiful country!
Florin is a great guide, giving us so much interesting information and anecdotes relating to various buildings statues, churches and sites around the city. We enjoyed his company and recommend this tour to anyone visiting Cluj in the future.
Terrific tour. We all asked many questions and our guide knew the answers to everything. We toured a cemetary and the squares associated with the revolution.
We loved it - we got to see 6 bears!
Our guide, Charlie provided an outstanding day full. His knack to manage diversity in groups is becoming impeccable and he is a bundle of joy, passion and laughter!
Thank you for this adventural experience. We had a great trip with our guide Zsolt. He was very kind and well informed about this area. Thank you Zsolt for this hiking trip (luckily have seen no bears) ;) Everything was good organized. We totally recommend this tour to everybody. Christina & Tim (from Germany)
Bogdan couldn't be with us but his colleague Robert was a great tour guide and a pleasure to spend time with. He is wealth of knowledge. We toured the town of Sibiu and Brasov. The night we spent at Samedru was great. What a beautiful place! Got to see 5 bears on the way to the top of the mountain. This was a very special tour, thank you!
Adela couldn't be with us so we had the chance to be guided by her husband Peter :) Amazing tour and we had a wonderful time! We highly recommend!!!! Thanks again :)
We started our tour on a morning with perfect weather. Florin picked us up on time in a very comfortable car and we drove to the countryside. During the ride he shared interesting insights about the history and particularities of the area and we picked up some agricultural products from a local shepherd family. We started our hike perfectly equipped with sticks (not mandatory but useful) and enjoyed a wonderful day in the hills. We felt safe and well taken care of during the whole time and we can highly recommend this tour. Be equipped for a hike in the wild - bring proper shoes and clothing!
All our dreams were fulfilled. We saw bears, had a great hike of 30 km in the mountains and last but not least we had the brilliant guide Razvan. He was so good with our son who has a mental handicap, was responsible, … The hide was so beautiful and the food was excellent,…It was a ‘top experience’! Thanks a lot to Romanian Friend who made this possible after many attempts!
Very informative site. Quick responses, good communication. Everything was as said. Incredible tour and wilderness experience, highly recommend!
My tour was fantastic, amazing and thrilling!! Alex was very very good….strike that, he was absolutely brilliant!!! He had an amazing knowledge of everything. I simply wished I’d been able to take in more as all the info was truly mesmerizing. To be able to go hiking in Hoia Forest at midnight on the last day of July under a full moon was quite special and very unforgettable!! I would love to do the tour again. Even if one were a skeptic of paranormal activity etc in the forest, the experience of walking through there is unique unit itself. I had an amazing time. And being able to see a rather vein fox (stood there for ten minutes posing as we took photos) added even more to the experience. Truly an enchanted tour that I shall never ever forget!! Mulțumesc Alex!!!!!!!!
The day trip to the mountain villages was great. The canyon was beautiful, then we hiked up to Magura. It was a difficult, but rewarding uphill walk. Zsolt was very patient with us and encouraging when we moved slowly. The food was wonderful and the hosts were very friendly. It was a wonderful day with a great guide.
This may well be the best one-day hiking tour in Romania. In fact, I found the hiking tours available on Romanian Friend way before my trip to Transylvania and this hike immediately struck me as something I needed to do. Now that I've done it I can say that the hike fully lived up to my expectations and then some! The weather was picture-perfect and my guide Mihai provided a great deal of interesting information during the tour. All in all it was a perfect day out in the Făgăraș Mountains for me!
Anita's colleague, Bogdan is a wonderful guide through the markets of Bucharest. We had a really great time and sampled some wonderful food. He happily answered all of our questions and we had so much fun just chatting with him. He was a great guide through the markets, and showed us a few other places in the old town that we hadn't seen before. If we return to Bucharest, we will request Bogdan again.
Thank you very much - you gave us the chance to experience bears in the nature. It was so exciting! We counted 8 bears, could have been more. Our guide told us so much about bears, the conflicts with humans and the nature management, we learned a lot and appreciated it.
Romanian Friend were very helpful in planning our trip, and gave us useful advice as well as organising our transfer to the start of our trip. Our tour of the Danube Delta was really fascinating - we saw lots of beautiful birds, and ate a wide variety of very tasty fish!
Alex was the best tour guide! We learned about the forest but also so much about Romanian history and folklore. And we did catch some crazy things on camera! We highly recommend this tour!
The best tour I have been on. Mihail is friendly, knowledgeable and a delightful guide. There were three of us and he was really flexible and adaptable - at no point did I feel like I was being herded around. I can't recommend this experience highly enough.
Great food tour and a lot of fun. Mihai was very accommodating regarding preferences of places to go. He was full of information on the food and the region. I highly recommend this as a way to explore Cluj.
Our tour was very good and our guide Charlie was very knowledgeable. We interacted with some of the villagers via our guide! We really enjoyed our day!
Loved this tour. Was very easy to book. Interesting information given by Bogdan. Good food and great company.
Very well organised. It was brilliant that there always was plenty of water and something to snack on as well. Nick, our guide had so much information. He gave us an excellent insight to all the places we visited. And we learned so much, which helped to understand about the country and its history. He even introduced us to some local people. He was very flexible and amended the schedule, when necessary - that was really cool. We loved the tour and the places we stayed.
We thoroughly enjoyed our night tour of the forest. Alex is a great guide who has a special connection with the forest. This connection was obvious throughout the tour. He is very knowledgeable about the forest and the mysteries about it. And he was super-accommodating - one of us was injured and needed a slower pace. He made sure she felt comfortable throughout the tour.
This was a wonderful, unforgettable experience. Simona was a great guide and drove us to a bear hide in the forest early one evening. We saw eight bears eating, resting, interacting and scratching - truly memorable to be so close to these wild animals.
Alex was our guide for this tour. During the drive to Corvin Castle, we discussed Transylvanian, Romanian, and eastern European history extensively, which was very interesting. We also discussed myths associated with werewolves and vampires. Alex showed me around the castle and explained the castle's history and events. Then, we had lunch near the castle and made our way to Alba Iulia Citadel. Alex was nice enough to take some photos of me. He shared the location's history and we had a lot of fun. The drive back consisted of lots of fun and interesting conversations. I really enjoyed it and would definitely recommend him! I'd also recommend Alex's tour of the Hoia Baciu forest! Overall, it was a great experience.
It was amazing!! Simona is great guide with great English, very friendly and nice, and very knowledgeable. On the way to the bear hide and back she shared a lot of interesting information about bears, nature, Romania. The bear watching was unbelievable! We saw 10 bears, and we were so lucky we saw them immediately! The ranger who went with us to feed them was also very cool.
The trip out of Zarnesti was such a great experience for me and my 8 year old son. We saw 8 bears! A younger male wanted to challenge the dominant male, so there was quite a fight going on! The hide was only about 20 minutes drive out of Zarnesti and the car went all the way to the hide. Our guide was very helpful and answered willingly all our questions. Highly recommended!
What a fantastic trip! Our tour through Romanian Friend was excellent. The knowledge of the guide, the wildlife we saw, the scenery….it was executed brilliantly. The communication from booking to the tour starting was also fantastic. Would highly recommend.
Amazing! Really great, the personalized attention, the information, the knowledge that Marcel had, and the attention to details from Bodgan planing everything. Thank you!
We had a wonderful day with our guide Zsolt who took us to the villages of Magura and Pestera as well as the Bran Castle. He was incredibly knowledgeable about the history of the region, and made the day really enjoyable and educational.
The tour was fantastic! Our guide was very knowledgeable and flexible, and a pleasure to travel with. We saw may gorgeous things together, from a river fortress to a medieval castle (complete with moat and dungeon), a beautiful very old church, and fascinating Roman ruins and museum. The region is incredibly rich in history and features jaw-dropping nature. Definitely a tour we would recommend!
Elena was our guide for this tour. She gave us a very interesting insight into aspects of life in communist Romania. This was a really interesting experience!
Amazing bear experience with a knowledgeable, friendly and fun guide (Simona). Would highly recommend and can't wait to lock in more tours in the future in Romania.
Romanian friend were very helpful with helping me plan my trip. They have a lot of information on their website and I was able to email them directly with any questions. We had a great tour and it was a great way to get our bearings, see the sites abnd learn about Brasov. Our guide was very knowledgeable and was able to answer any questions we had. We got picked up from and dropped of at out accommodation which was very helpful.
Romanian friend were very helpful with helping me plan my trip. They have a lot of information on their website and I was able to email them directly with any questions. We had a great tour and it was a great way to get our bearings, see the sites and learn about Buchaest. Our guide was very knowledgeable and helpful and gave us lots of information. She went out of her way to make sure we had a great time.
Really interesting tour, a great cemetery to visit and Andra really knew her stuff. Used pictures to try and help explain and show things aswell as just describe them.
We really enjoyed our food tour of Cluj with Mihai. He was an excellent guide with interesting knowledge and the tour was a great introduction to the food and culture of the city. His recommendations for further places to visit while there were also really good and much appreciated.
Great experience bear watching, guide was knowledgeable and spoke excellent English, definitely recommend 10/10
Great Hike with Radu, picked us up from our hotel, the route was beautiful and was very patient on the steeper areas of the walk. Would recommend to anyone interested in seeing more of the country
Just the perfect mixture between sightseeing, tasting amazing food and listening to fun facts. Our tour guide was fantastic. Thank you!!! We can only recommend!! Thumbs up and thanks for an amazing tour!!
Marius from Romanian Friend matched me with another solo traveler so I pay less. Mihai was our guide and he took into account our suggestions and also made great choices himself for our 3 days tour in the region of Maramures. We visited many wooden churches, monasteries, villages, the merry cemetery in Sapanta and made a great journey in a Mocanita steam train. We had a great time. Come and visit this lush green region so full of little stories, nice wood architecture and sculpture..those Maramures doors and arches!!!
The tour was amazing! Alex was very knowledgeable and provided us with different perspectives surrounding the lore and hauntings, while also incorporating the historical aspect. 100% recommend.
I couldn't have asked for a better guide! Everything was perfect, we had a beautiful, interesting and scenic hike through the traditional villages, and Adela is such an amazing and interesting person. Highly recommend!
We had an absolutely amazing day with Oana on our wine tasting bike tour. Oana was incredibly knowledgable and kind. The views were amazing. She made the entire day seamless and easy. Everything exceeded our expectations, from views to wine.
It was only over a week ago that our small group of four people completed a tour through Magura and Pestera, and we are still in awe of the beauty surrounding that area. Everything was green, with amazing views of the mountains on the background and you get to witness the rural life and culture of people living there. Our guide, Mihai did his best to answer all our questions, had a good amount of patience to wait after us to finish taking photos as everything was so picturesque. We are grateful for Marius's , Marian and Mihai's assistance, this was a trip we won't forget!
I would highly recommend this tour, definitely worth doing to see and understand Romanian culture attitude and history.
It's a fantastic tour, Andreea is very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about Romanian history and culture. We got local insight as we went through old and new districts. The highlight was Obor Market and skipping the BBQ queue to sample the wonderful Romanian dish 'mici' washed down with tasty local beer. I highly recommend this tour.
Simona was very kind and the experience was amazing.
We went with Petre, Adela's husband, and he was a great guide! He knew everything and we trusted him! Thank you Petre!
The tour was very easy to book and extremely informative. In addition to providing a great overview of the city, our guide answered many questions and shared insightful information about the history, culture, modern-day living, and more — plus some excellent practical tips for our stay in Timisoara.
The tour was absolutely fantastic. The sights were stunning. Adela was responsive beforehand and an excellent guide during. Adela is great.
Adela was very knowledgeable, informative, friendly and professional. We had a wonderful day on this tour and highly recommend it.
Was absolutely wonderful. Probably we were lucky with the weather. And also with the company. And especially with our guide Viktor, 10 out of 10 for Viktor. As well as being great at pointing out the flora and fauna, also fascinating account of the history of the Delta. So, highly recommended tour, thanks!
The 2 day tour proved to be a great to experience the Romanian Carpathians. Romanian friend smoothly set us up with our guide from Brasov who was superb. He took us on a couple of glorious hiking routes that we wouldn’t have found without him. He was incredibly knowledgable and passionate about his beautiful part of the world. Highly recommended!
We really enjoyed our tour of Viscri & Sighisoara Citadel. Charlie, our tour guide, was fantastic. He was so friendly and knowledgeable about the region and the different towns and forts that we visited. It was really great to visit some less touristy places (compared to Bran Castle and Peles Castle, which we did with Charlie the day before) and we had a completely different experience since there were so few people. I really hope people take the time to see more of this region, like on a tour like this one, and not just see Bran Castle. Everything was great, and we were very happy to have Charlie as our guide for our group of 4 people for 2 days.
The bear watching tour was a last minute decision on our last day in Brasov. My family and I were absolutely amazed with this experience. We must say a specail thank you to Simona who was the most fantastic guide that we could hope for. She picked us up from our hotel and was very communicative and pleasant during our entire time. We were lucky enough to see 7 bears while we were there and made great memories. Thank you Simona and Romanian Friend.
Unfortunately we had to cancel our tour, which was very disappointing. Our contacts with Romanian Friends and the guide Florin were very good. Florin offered to meet us at Cluj Airport and take us too our hotel, so that was very kind. We hope very much we may be able to take the trip on a later occasion.
We really enjoyed our tour of Bran Castle & Peles Castle. Charlie, our tour guide, was fantastic. He was so friendly and knowledgeable about the castles and the region. And he made it so easy to change our lunch timing so we could eat a little earlier than he had planned. In general, I'm glad we did this tour because we got to Peles Castle earlier than most of the tour groups and only had to wait a few minutes in line to get in, and at Bran Castle, having the tour meant we already had tickets and we could easily get in. The crowds waiting to buy tickets looked bad, definitely worth booking the tour to avoid that. We had Charlie for 2 full days of private tours for our group of 4 people, and it was a really great experience.
My trip from Bucharest to the Black Sea was really good. Our guide Alina was very knowledgable and Gabriel drove us safely there and back. The guides provided for ample free time to allow me to out my toes in the sea and walk around Constanta. I recommend them for your visit to the Black Sea
The tour itself was brilliant! We saw 11 bears, 10 of which were at the hide (we saw one on our drive out). We had nearly two hours at the hide which was amazing, and the group size was lovely and small - just one other couple with us. Simona was a pleasure to spend time with and pointed out some of the history and local sights on the drive. If you want to hang out with bears in their natural environment, learn more about their life and ecology and have a wonderfully intimate experience with them, don't miss this tour!
Great tour! We got to see various wild animals (bears, bisons, a boar, deers) and enjoyed some hikes and tranquility in the beautiful nature of Fagaras mountains. Our guide Radu provided us with a lot of information about wildlife, romanian history and geography. We recommend!
We booked a 1-Day tour to the Iron Gate starting in Temeswar. Our gide Alex was excellent. He drove the care very, very safe down to Orsova. Right there we had boat tour at Donube in a small tourist boat and got a fantastique impression of this part of the river. Afterwards we had been at a fishrestaurant at the Golf Dubovei and had a very good local fish. On the way back he introduced us Herculaneaum, which I would recommend everyone, visiting this area. Alex gave us all the time very useful background information about historical, political developments. In addition he explained us the nature and the region. We enjoyed every minute.
Excellent tour with Vlad, the highlight of my 12 days in Romania!! This is a must do tour for serious photographers!!
Marius was the perfect mtb guide tailoring your trip to your ability and fitness level I highly recommend
Great Experience; perfectly organized! Simona picked us up at the hotel to meet the wildlife-guide in the National Park. The first bear appeared just one minute after we arrived in the hide. All in all we saw about six of them. The wildlife-guide explained a lot about these fantastic animals. Highly recommendable tour for those who are interested in real wildlife!
It was great experience. We learned a lot about the wildlife of the bears. Simona she is a great guide.
Absolutely fantastic experience. Mihai our guide was knowledgable, funny and warm and gave the perfect amount of info. Brilliant 3 day trekking in the snow on some fab walks, also the guesthouse made us grilled cheese (Buls) - shephard’s food. Would highly recommend Romanian Friend and Mihai. Very organised and informative. Impressed.
Great service and a great experience! We saw 7 brown bears including a mother with two cubs. We also booked a hotel transfer to o the tour and the service and driver were excellent. I can’t think of anyway this could have gone more smoothly and I would highly recommend it to anyone.
Tour was great. We saw a very large brown bear. Our guide told us alot about bears. The hide is safe and comfortable. I recommend Romanian friend!
This was a fantastic tour. The guide was extremely knowledgeable and kind and new just where to take us. Thanks for a great trip. We highly recommend it.
We found the Castles tour through Romanian friend and could not be any happier! Karoly was an exquisite guide who was so knowledgeable and made the whole experience 100x better! Karoly knew the castles so well and could easily predict how busy they would be, so planned the day perfectly to make sure we could beat the crowds at all sites! He also takes amazing photos as a bonus! Karoly also was very willing to go off route slightly to show us a few extra highlights, we could not recommend enough!
We had a great experience with Romanian Friend in Timisoara last week. I am planning our wedding in Timisoara this October and wanted to organise a short walking tour for our guests. With all my questions and queries Marius has been very patient and helpful. Whilst visiting this February we met with Alex-Mark our guide who took us on a private tour of the city. He was able to share is wealth of knowledge and experience to give us a interesting, historical and fun tour. Thank you for a great experience we can't wait to see you again in October! Isabelle and Dorin
My sister and I shared a delightful day with Elena exploring the Obor Market and other locally known food stops. Elena was knowledgeable about the history of the areas we encountered. She was friendly and welcoming. I am in Bucharest another week and plan to take my husband to all the places Elena introduced me to because they were so good!
The tour experience, and our tour guide Florin exceeded my expectations. Florin was truly a fountain of knowledge; able to provide historical context for each of our stops (4 cities and 3 castles) which really brought the entire trip to life. Thank you Florin for giving us a tour of your beautiful country - unforgettable.
It was a fascinating tour and an amazing experience to imagine how people lived. Would highly recommend this visit!
Absolutely fantastic tour with Ioana who was hugely knowledgable, personable and thoughtful. We thoroughly enjoyed our immersion in to communist rule and life in Bucharest in 1984. The flat was beautifully preserved and we felt very privileged to see it. I would thorough recommend. We had my 76 year old father with us and my 14 year old daughter and we all loved our experience.
Staying on the farm in the beautiful Romanian countryside was amazing! I would recommend this experience to anyone.
I went on Vlad's Tour with a friend, and we both agreed - this was the BEST day we had in our entire trip through Romania. Vlad is a relaxed, humorous, fun, and patient guide, and he took us on a journey to some secret places that honestly felt like a Disney trip. Even better, he knows some of the people in the traditional villages, and so we got to see into people's homes, farms, lifestyle, in a way that is perfect for a photography trip. I've been on many photography and guided tours in different parts of the world and this was the most enjoyable by far. Thank you, Vlad! I hope we see you again ;)
We loved he personal tour we got from Ioana. We were a few minutes late but she patiently waited for us at the station and gave us a warm welcome. Ioana clearly liked educating people about what communism used to be like. I guess our genuine curiosity helped.
We had an excellent tour from Brasov with Romanian Friend to spot some bears. They took us to a different location that was further away (at no additional cost) to increase our chances, and it really paid off. It was a great experience and the guides were very knowledgeable about the bear. Would recommend!
We had a great tour with Tiberius. He is a experienced guide und gave us a lot of informationen about the history of the region and the people. We loved the lunch stop and delicious traditional food in the beautiful garden of Viscri 32.
Amazing! We had a very nice tour. Everything was good, with beautiful sight from the cabin, wonderful nature and really nice guides. We will definitely come back one day
Great tour! Did not see any bears on the first day, so we were invited the next day when we saw 2 large females! The guides Alex and Calin were great, very knowledgeable about bears and Romanian nature in general. And they also gave us tips about hiking in the mountains.
We had an amazing time and would recommend our guide Charlie 100%! He was so welcoming, enthusiastic and friendly and never got impatient with our constant questions, we learnt so much from him in such an enjoyable way and had a fantastic experience, and saw far more than we would have by ourselves. He kept suggesting extra detours to make the day even more enjoyable, all of which we happily agreed to and were so glad we did! We did so much and never felt rushed. He was also a very safe driver. 10/10 Multemesc Charlie!
Communication from Simona before the tours was very good. Easy to find the pick up place. Good information from Alex during the tour. Sadly we didn't see any bears but Simona gave me the opportunity to attend another tour the following day. Good price for the tour (other companies were offering a higher price for the same tour).
Guide was amazing, he had knowledge and was excellent at spotting birds etc. One negative aspect - too much fish in the meals. The local cuisine is delicious but fish heavy and if you're not a big fan or used to it, it may be too much...
Alex our guide was very passionate and knowledgable about the forest. Unfortunately we did not witness anything paranormal except that the K2 meter was going off in the rotunda clearing area of the forest for no apparent reason but it never went off in the wooded area at all then started again when we entered the clearing for a second time. Although we got no other activity, the evening was an enjoyable one. Thank you to Romanian friend and Alex for an interesting and different evening.
The tour was great and I would definitely book again with Romanian Friend. My guide Bogdan was very nice to talk to and I could not have wished for a better guide for my hike!
I really enjoyed this tour. Driving on the Transfagarasan Road was an incredible and unique experience. The rugged beauty of the Fagaras mountains is like nothing I’ve ever seen before. The views from the peaks and along the ridges are incredible. The hike up was equally amazing - I really enjoyed the bits of climbing we did and navigating the tricky terrain. Mihai was an excellent guide - he is like a walking encyclopaedia of the local area - and is very passionate about sharing his knowledge. Romanian Friend has also been a great resource throughout my trip. It has given me a lot of great advice that I wouldn't have otherwise found. It's great to get some insider tips from locals too! I would definitely recommend doing this tour! It was unreal.
Saw 4 bears on this trip, amazing! our guide, Alex, was very informative and passionate.
Very nice experience with our guide Alex! We were lucky, we had seen two bears!:)
Really positive experience. Easy to book and great communication. The guides themselves were lovely and informative. We saw bears very quickly which was lucky and it was magical. Thanks for a memorable evening.
Une journée magnifique ! Ce tour d'un jour a été parfaitement organisé et s'est déroulé à merveille. Adela a une connaissance très impressionnante de la région et de l'histoire des sites visités. Elle a su prendre en compte nos demandes et est très sympathique ! Je recommande vivement ce tour !
Adela was a fantastic guide and is very knowledgeable about Transylvania… she got us everywhere on time and also took us to a beautiful village in the mountains outside Brasov . Our vehicle was very comfortable and had air con. I would definitely recommend any tour with Adela. Booking via Romanian friend is very easy and the site has lots of options. You won’t be disappointed! Ruth
Our night tour to Hoia Baciu forest with our guide , Alex was amazing . My three kids loved the experience and Alex is clearly very passionate and knowledgeable about what he does . I would definitely recommend the night tour to anyone staying in Cluj … you won’t be disappointed.
IT WAS A GREATTTT & PERFECT ADVENTURE!!!!!
Nach meiner Anfrage für eine Tour kam schnell eine Antwort mit Bestätigung und Zusage für unsere Tour. Es war sehr schon. I requested a tour and an answer came quickly with confirmation and commitment for our tour. It was very nice, thank you.
Great tour - friendly, knowledgable guide and the castle and fortress were really interesting and beautiful to see.
We had a good experience in the hut in the middle of the forest. The entire family love the stories of our guide. He was fantastic! He had a lot of info about bears and wild animals. The kids enjoyed the activity of watching quietly the wild animals in nature.
I had an enjoyable time on this tour! The trees were mystifying and the Clearing was an atmospheric place to visit. Thanks Alex!
Alex was an amazing guide! The personal touch that he added to the tour made me feel as if we had been lifelong friends and were just touring his homeland of Romania on a family excursion.
Romanian Friend helped me book an excellent mountain guide, Bogdan from Marian's team, for my one-day hike up to and then along the razorback ridge of the Piatra Craiului National Park. Having a guide was essential to finding my way, as the trails were not well marked. Bogdan also showed excellent judgment in adjusting our itinerary due to impending rain--a safety issue because the trails down become slippery when wet. The ridge, which is spectacular, requires relying on fixed cables for help in clambering up the steeper parts. The views are worth it!
I had a wonderful tour with Elena. She was very knowledgeable and pursued a route which included old and new districts with tasty stops along the way. Fabulous farmers’ market — be prepared to shop if you can! We finished with a lunch sampling of typical Romanian specialties. Good balance of food stops to not become overwhelming while walking. I recommend this tour for local insight.
The trip was great, couldnt be better... except for the weather, maybe :)
This tour was absolutly excellent and the best thing on my Romania trip so far! I had a great time and learned a lot about local beer but also the city. Lots of fun, highly recommend!
Florin was a super interesting guy and a wealth of knowledge. The sites, food, and stay were all top notch. It was an excellent tour that I would not hesitate to book again. A great way to explore the region on limited time.
We had a really good time with Marius as our guide. Nice trails, nice views, professional equipment and carrying attitude. Very recommended.
Adela was a great guide and this tour was an excellent way to learn about Romanian history. I enjoyed getting to know her and she was very helpful.
Booking this tour was an excellent option and exactly what I was looking for. Adela was accommodating and flexible and helped me see other interesting churches since I had previously been to Sighisoara. I definitely would recommend.
Alex was wonderful. He was flexible and very attentive. He gave us a great tour of the city and taught us many things about the city. Even though my wife is actually from there, she even learned some about her own history. This was a very good company and Alex was a very good guide. I am looking at Romanian Friend for other tours while we are staying in this country
it's very good and memorable tour, with beautiful scenes and warm reception. recommend!
This tour was just about what I wanted. Tiberiu created a space where I felt comfortable asking questions, which is how I learn, so a thank you to him. Saw a lot of interesting things too!
Very nice forest and especially the guide, Alex. Everything was interesting to see and also to hear stories about legends was a plus. Great experience!
The tour was excellent! Such a brilliant introduction to Transylvanian history and culture. The villages were really pretty and Sighisoara was fascinating. Florin was a really interesting and knowledgeable guide.
We loved the day trip! It was fascinating learning about Romanian history, the castle was beautiful and Alba Iulia really interesting. Florin was a very engaging, knowledgeable and personable guide and he really brought history to life for us.
We had a wonderful and challenging hike through the Apuseni mountains with our guide, Radu. He is a very nice guy and a pleasure to go hiking with.
We enjoyed out tour of three locations: Dacian ruins in the mountains, Corvin Castle, and Alba Iulia. Adela, our guide and driver, spoke excellent English and told us about the history, politics, and culture of Romania for 2000 years as we visited the 3 sites. Our tour lasted about 10 hours. Adela had a comfortable large car with air conditioning and was a safe driver. She wears many hats as a mother of an 8 year old and as a tourist representative for Sibiu developing tourism for the city. Thank you!
The tour with Radu was excellent. We did a mix of climbing in the mountains, but adapted to explore some local villages and rural culture. Radu is a great guy, and interesting, relaxed company for three days. The trip included overnight stays in a very comfortable guesthouse with tasty home-cooked food.
The tour with Florin was great. His car was very comfortable and Florin was very knowledgeable and personable. We highly recommend him.
We had a wonderful visit to the Apuseni mountains. Iancu was very professional and most helpful especially as our luggage went astray on the air flight. As older hikers he adjusted the walking so we could cope and really enjoy our experiences. The family run guest house was excellent. Thank you!
My partner and I were thrilled to see a magnificent (and handsome !) big male bear come swaggering up to the place in the forest where he could enjoy a healthy snack. We could observe him for about 10 minutes or so, full of admiration for his quiet strength. Another smaller (male ?) dropped by about 45 minutes later, once the first bear had left, so the coast was clear for this second bear to (more cautiously) enjoy a snack. What a treat is was to see them in their own environment ! The binoculars that Alex the guide passed around were a great idea. Fantastic tour!
We had some really nice days in the mountains - weather was perfect, tours where adjusted to our level, we meet nice people and had a good time where we got to see parts we would not have explored on our own.
I have only great things to say about our experience with Romanian Friend! The bear watching trip we booked was amazing. Simona, our guide, was absolutely lovely and went out of her way to make sure that we had a great time. The booking process was super easy and communication was great. Everything went very smoothly and we saw 4 bears at the hide, which was amazing!
I cannot recommend going on a hike through Romanian Friend enough. We were lucky to get to spend a day hiking through Piatra Craiului with Marian and it was absolutely fantastic. Romanian Friend helped us in selecting which national park in the area would be the best to hike based on the snow conditions - and not only were we safe in navigating the winter terrain, we were lucky to see Piatra in such beautiful conditions on a fun trail. Marian also offered to show us some traditional Romanian villages and have the opportunity to have a cheese tasting at an eco-house, which was an incredible local experience to add onto our hike (and the snack after a long walk was perfect!). Thank you and we hope to be back to hike again with Marian again in the future!
We had booked a day trip to hike to Piatra Craiului National Park in early March. The communication beforehand with Marius from Romanian Friend and Marian, our guide, was exceptional - we communicated right after booking and then the few days leading up to the trip to make sure we were prepared, gear-wise, and determined our pick up location. Unfortunately my husband hurt his knee and we were unable to do the trip so this feedback is more about their customer service. We got an immediate refund even if we canceled only 2 days before the tour. We are disappointed to not have done the hike and will definitely rebook with them if we revisit Romania!
Super easy to book and our guide Alex was very communicative at the time of booking and then as we got closer. The tour itself was so unique and way above our expectations. Alex was extremely knowledgable, engaging and authentic and we'd recommend this to anyone who visits Romania!
My visit to Apuseni mountains was certainly a memorable one! I had a wonderful time hiking in the mountains together with Iancu. He was very attentive and considerate throughout the journey. Definitely a good company with a great sense of humour :D Highly recommend the trip and Iancu as your guide!
Nous étions deux amies pour ce tour avec Alex et nous avons passé un super moment ! Alex est rassurant, très à l'écoute et il a mille anecdotes à raconter sur la forêt. Nous avons pu parler biologie, histoire, folklore et légendes et nous sommes rentrées ravies de notre expérience ! Merci encore d'avoir partagé tes connaissances et ta passion avec nous ! Claire et Justine
Great tour, definitely a must if visiting Timisoara. He went out of his way to make sure I had a good time as well as see the sights and sounds of his city. This your is highly recommended!
Booking the trip was simple and communication around pick ups et. was very good. Guide was punctual and very informative around the subject and also about points of interest in Bucharest and Romanian life in general.
Wonderful day trip with Adela!! Beautiful Transylvania sites and learned a ton about Romania. Long drive, but great conversation along the way. I highly recommend a tour with her!
One of the best days in Romania. Our guide was friendly, was easy to talk with and took us exactly where we wanted and stopped to allow me to take plenty of pictures as we drove along the countryside.
Great trip, well organised with a fantastic, friendly guide. Highly recommend, thanks!
The tour was all I wanted...to familiarize myself with biking opportunities and safety protocols in Timisoara, along with very good local history. Easy booking and great guide, thank you!
Our tour was great! We had a fantastic guide, very engaged, and we had a lovely stroll through the city while getting a history lesson, and hearing accounts of what it was like to live in Bucharest during different time periods. The tour felt personal, and I never felt rushed. I can absolutely recommend it to anyone, and a perfect way to get to know Bucharest.
Fantastic tour, I cannot say anything negative about it! Florin was full of knowledge and was completely engaging throughout. The scenery was stunning and you got a real feel for the history of the two locations. I managed to take lots of excellent and memorable photos from the day and had a lot to tell my friends about after. Would strongly recommend taking this tour. Sophie
Had a great private tour with Romanian Friend! Our guide Bogdan picked us up at the hotel and drove us to Rupea, Viscri and Sighisoara. On the way back he offered us a detour to Emerald lake and a Volcano crater. Bogdan told us a lot about live in Romania and brought us in Sighisoara to a traditional restaurant for a great lunch. Thanks!
The tour was good and the views were amazing. Booking was easy and communication was smooth. Our guide brought us to the transfagarasan highway early and we manage to avoid the crowds! Recommended.
The booking was simple. Marian followed up to warn us many places are closed on Mondays and we rescheduled. Our guide was his colleague Bogdan. He was extremely knowledgeable. His English was easy to understand.
Excellent tour, Iancu was very friendly and knowledgeable. Amazing views and we met some villagers too. Hiking not too difficult, more like a walk in nature. Highly recommend!
We booked our trip at very short notice (at 10 am on the day!) but Marius managed to squeeze us in. Everything was well organized and our guide Alex was very knowledgeable. We liked the bear watching trip very much. We saw 2 beats from the hideout and a fox. On our way back we also saw some deer.
We really enjoyed Liviu! He was very personable, energetic and enthusiastic. Nera NP is not to be missed. It was an easy “hike” (more like a pleasant walk in the woods) and the “eye” is something you should not miss seeing if you’re in Romania. It’s like something out of a fairytale!
Mark-Alex (Alex) was our guide, and he is pure gold! We enjoyed the experience immensely. He was flexible, easy-going, attentive, funny and really went the extra mile. It actually didn’t feel like we were on a typical tour at all, but rather like we were meeting up with an old friend and sharing a wonderful adventure together. I would highly recommend it!
Florin was absolutely lovely! We planned to go to the citadel and Corvin Castle, and when we met up he suggested that we visit the Turda Salt Mines first. Admittedly I was on the fence a bit because there is an amusement park in it, but I’m so glad we followed his advice! The mines are not to be missed! We had a wonderful time. He is such a fantastic person with so much knowledge about the area. He made learning fun and I would definitely recommend this tour!
Loved our day with Radu! Safety conscious, supportive and fun. We learned about Romania and experienced a beautiful day in the Turda gorge and Ferrata route. Also stopped at the salt mine. More interesting that expected. Would definitely book a longer trip next time. We saved lots of time & hassles traveling with a local guide.
We did the 3-day tour and also added on an additional day to visit Sibiu, which I would recommend because it would be a shame to miss that vibrant little city. Bogdan was very helpful and provided us with a lot of wonderful information early on to assist us in our Romanian adventure. His colleague, Gelu, was our actual guide and was absolutely delightful! He was funny, flexible and a font of information. We learned so much about Romanian history during our time with him. It was a fascinating tour. I would definitely recommend it!
This was a great tour. It was nice to see and learn more of the back streets in Bucharest. The food tastings were all great and fun. Our guide was wonderful and customized the tour to our preferences. I would highly recommend this tour.
The guide was more than excellent, the tour was very interesting. The explanations given were very good, understandable and helpful. I would sincerely recommend the guide and the tour.
It was great to see bears in the wild even if they are lured by food. One bear was there when we arrived and then after watching foxes playing for a hour or so, three more bears arrived within ten minutes. The guide was very professional and the timings were good. He doesn't smile much and leaves long pauses before answering questions but is polite, helpful and knowledgeable. I recommend this tour to anyone who is visiting Brasov, an excellent experience and I would do it again.
Tour was very good! Our guide was wonderful - very knowledgeable and patient .... and this was so much fun!
What an amazing tour! We visited Holbav, which is stunningly beautiful. And Vlad is just great - he answered my million questions about Romania with intelligence and compassion for the country. It is beautiful to see how he connected with the villagers we met, so going with him you will learn a lot and, most importantly, not feel as an intruder to their lives. Thank you so much Vlad and Romanian friend, because creating this kind of tourism is precious. Next time in Romania we will surely contact you again!
Great tour! My guide was very knowledgeable and I was amazed at some of the history covered. Very interesting places and history. Otherwise I would just look at stuff. Thanks!
Immer sehr pünktlich, wirklich gebildete Guides, kein 08/50 gelaier. Preisleistung past. Eine Buchung hier lohnt. Danke!
The tour was fantastic even more fantastic with Simona as a guide, she's very experienced in wildlife and gave us a lot of info. We saw 14 bears including cubs with their mama bear, very lucky. Very good service from Romanian Friend.
We had a great 2 day hiking trip with Radu. He is a very knowledgeable guide and took us on two hikes with beautiful scenery. You should try it! Marius from Romanian Friend made a great recommendation with this tour, quick responses and very good service.
Easy to book, the tour was enjoyable, the guide was friendly and informative. Thumbs up from me
We booked this 2-day trip for our family with kids on pretty short notice through Romanian Friend. Marius was very helpful to understand our needs and made an excellent recommendation with this tour. Our guide was Marian and he was extremely flexible and adjusted the route to the weather and our wishes and needs. We learned a lot about the nature and history of this beautiful country from him and the planning and accommodation was excellent. Besides this, he is a really nice guy. The nature varies a lot and you will enjoy forest, meadows, saddels, canyons, dramatic ridges and magnificent views. It is really wild nature and most of the time we were actually alone. Fantastic experience!
We loved our stay in the Fagaras Mountain Cabin. Andrei, our guide, was a really nice guy to hang out with. He talked with passion about wildlife in the Fagaras Mountains and the work that is done by their non-profit organisation and life in general in Romania. We were lucky to see a mama bear with her cub in the evening, hanging around in front of the cabin. The European bizons were around several times. We booked this tour for 2020 but Romanian Friend was very flexible with us changing dates and other details, I highly recommend their service!
Fantastic tour that made us fall in love with Romania. Bogdan was really professional and promptly provided us with all the information we needed for our trip and more! His colleague Gelu was our guide, really knowledgeable and friendly. He went the extra mile to accommodate all of our needs and answer our many questions. He made the tour unforgettable. Transylvania is simply stunning: the landscape, the history, the food and the people are something else. I looked at many tours like this but I'm glad I found this one on Romanian Friend - I would really recommend it and hope to come back soon for another one myself ;)
My boyfriend (a first timer hiker) and I had a wonderful hike with our guide Mihai. He was really good at adapting the tour along to way to our abilities and wishes, and both my boyfriend and I got an experience for life hiking Piatra Mică. He was also easy to talk with especially about nature, hiking and Romania in general, and is a very experienced climber and hiker - so you are safe in his hands. The tour itself can be somewhat adapted to your skills and abilities, and the first part of the way from Zarnesti Gorge to Curmătura Chalet is manageable for families and children. However, it is recommended to have good footwear and have a basis of physical form, both if you wish to go further up the mountain (there's gravel, rocks, possibility of actual climbing) and for the way down, which is strenuous and you are better of with at a good foothold. The nature along the way is simply gorgeous, and you'll get to see farm animals and possibly birds or other wild animals along the way together with streams, flowers and fantastic views. All in all: if you wish to experience Romanian mountains Piatra Crailului National Park is the place to go, and with a guide you are both safe and will experience the national park in ways you'd never be able to, unless you are a local who have fared the park for years. Highly recommend this tour!
Great trip, lot of bears and we had a lot of explanations. Simona is very efficient to deal with problems too!
The seven ladders canyon tour was amazing. The scenery was amazing and incredibly beautiful. Marian the guide is very friendly and had excellent knowledge of the area and its history. This tour is not to be missed.
It was a great tour with our excelent guide Alex. The communication and reservation was very easy and uncomplicated with a very friendly team, thank you Simona! We saw 4 bears, it was a great exprience for our whole family, thank you very much!!
I booked this hike recommended by Marius of Romanian Friend and it appeared to be an excellent choice. Personally tailored, with a lot of love and passion to Romanian beauty. Marian is a wonderful guide full of knowledge and interesting facts and stories. I definitely will come back to travel with Marian and highly recommend to others!
Simona was very informative regarding booking updates and schedule. A friendly service with a good attitude. The bear watching experience is incredible, with nature the beauty is you don‘t know what to expect. A dream was made true by Simona and her team allowing us to see fascinating wild bears. Alex was our guide, intelligent guy and willing to answer any questions! He threw in some great trivia too.
Florian brought a personal touch to our tour, driving us around UNESCO world heritage sites while recounting the history of a people as beautiful as their region, Maramures, albeit without overloading us with information. Although we were surprised by the expensive restaurants, we enjoyed delicious traditional Romanian food with lush green views of rural Romania. In addition to engaging in intellectual interesting conversations, Florian's kind, clam and pondered personality shines through, so you will have no difficulties connecting with him as you tour Maramures. The highlight of our trip was undoubtedly the Memorial to the Victims of Communism and of the Resistance. Mulțumesc, Florian!
The 3 day private trip through Transylvania with Bogdan was fantastic. He is so passionate about his country and loves to share it with others. He knows the history well and makes it fun to hear about Romania. The accommodations and food were fantastic. Many thanks to Marius from Romanian Friend for his recommendations and assistance, made my trip so much easier!
Great and speedy communication while booking a bear watch trip. Perfect support until trip completion. Fantastic bear viewing from a bear hide with a very competent, enthusiastic and knowledgable guide in the remote and wild forests northwest of Braşov. I definetly recommend to book with Romanian Friend!
It is wonderful experience, totally recommended to go there and enjoy the beautiful Romanian nature. The tour guide Radu is an excellent person, you will enjoy the activity and talking with him. Romanian Friend was supportive with my questions and booking, totally recommend!
We really enjoyed our time with Anita, it combined my 2 favorite things, history and food. Anita was very generous with her time and made stops based on our interests. We had wonderful conversations and I'd highly recommend this tour. It allowed us to see sides of Bucharest tourists would not likely encounter on their own.
Adela is an excellent tour guide! Her scheduling was flexible for scheduling my tour. She was full of information about Sibiu's history and we visited many more places than I expected - perhaps because we are both fairly fast walkers. It was great to take the tour early in my visit to Sibiu - it helped me to decide which other places I wanted to visit later. I strongly recommend - Adela is the best!
It was amazing. I loved the beautiful nature. Our tour guide Marian was awesome. He was flexible, funny and amazing, thank you. We enjoyed the trip a lot. I would love to comeback again and recommend to all my friends hikers and everyone. Hope coronavirus will fade away...
We loved our bike tour of Timişoara with Liviu. He told us interesting stories and showed us some places we would not have found ourselves. Recommend!
Our guide Florin was great; very professional, easy going and extremely knowledgable. We learned a lot about local culture and history. Highly recommended!
We had such a great adventure with Alex exploring this creepy forest at night. Hoia Baciu Is such a unique forest, even more so at night. Luckily Alex knows the forest like the back of his hand. We highly recommend this tour! If your lucky enough to go on this adventure with Alex, ask him about the alien. 5/5, we're glad we found this on Romanian Friend!
Excellent tours! Adela was extremely knowledgeable about not only the sights but also the surrounding towns and Romanian history overall. (We also enjoyed her wry sense of humor.) Highly recommended.
Florin was an absolutely amazing guide, couldn't recommend him more! Super friendly, super informative, super not-boring! Romanian Friend was an easy-to-use service and was very quick to setup.
We really enjoyed our tour. Communication with Alex was very good and all the information provided was really interesting. The Hoia Baciu forest is truly a special place. I will definitely recommend it to my friends who are interested in this sort of places.
Both days I spent hiking in the mountains with Vlad were once in a lifetime experiences. Vlad was a very knowledgeable, kind, sincere guide and I thoroughly enjoyed our time together. I was able to shoot some incredible photos and met some amazingly authentic locals. Although the weather on the first day wasn’t favourable, we made the most of it and Vlad’s passion for his homeland shone through regardless. I highly recommend any tours Vlad takes.
Wonderful! Florin is the best tour guide and we recognized without reservation. Maramureş was beautiful and we loved our tour. ♥️
The tour was great - exactly what we were looking for. The tour guide was unbelievable - great knowledge and a good sense of humor. Highly recommended!
Florin is a great tour guide. He explained very well the history of Romania. We enjoyed the trip very much.
Excellent, professional guide. Very flexible. Highly recommended!
We really enjoyed this experience. From the moment of getting in touch with Romanian Friend we felt we were in very professional, passionate and honest hands. Seeing the bears is a magical experience and a real privilege. The bears and their environment was highly respected..
We had an excellent tour of Corvin castle and Alba Citadail. Florin was an amazing guide who talked us through the history of Romania. I strongly recommend Romanian Friend to those who not only want to discover the beauty of Romania but also want to learn more about history and culture.
We absolutely loved our tour guide Mihai. He was very kind, friendly and knowledgeable. The food was great and we were so happy to eat locally grown organic foods prepared by local people. The organ concert was also a really nice surprise!
This was our second tour with Florin and he is exceptional. We drove through the beautiful Transylvanian countryside to World Heritage Sighisoara and another nearby fortified city. Florin carefully explained hidden details that gave us insight into the life and times of those who built, lived and worshiped in the cities. It was a beautiful and memorable day!
Apuseni park was beautiful in Autumn, I'm so glad I did this tour. Radu was an excellent guide, who allowed me to set the pace for the hike and customised the day based on my fitness and what I wanted to see. Definitely would recommend this tour and Romanian Friend website to others!
We thoroughly enjoyed our tour with Adela, our Romanian Friend. The tour was easy to book online, communication using email was excellent and Adela was right on time to pick us up at our apartment. We were a family with two children, and our tour was organized to accommodate us all. We visited Bran Castle and had a pleasant walk through pretty Brasov City center. I loved seeing the autumn leaves in the Carpathian mountains and hearing about the history of the region. Adela was knowledgeable about so many interesting things. I appreciated her stories and her interest in helping me better understanding my family history. Thank you to our Romanian Friend!
Our two day trip in Maramures with Florin was fantastic. Florin is such a nice and smart guide. As a history major, there was hardly a question he could not answer. We learned about historical and current Transylvania along with religious observations and customs of those who worshipped in the World Heritage wooden churches. The drive through Transylvania during the fall was spectacular! The stops for coffee and delicious traditional lunches were especially tasty! We spent the night at a guest house on a farm with mostly farm grown and all homemade food and drinks for dinner and breakfast. The next morning we explored the farm and neighborhood after breakfast. The stops at the Merry Cemetery and the Communism Prison Museum were memorable. We looked at other tours for Maramures but this one was definitely the best!
This was a very good tour of the authentic Bucharest. While it was supposed to be a Food Tour, it was actually a walking tour with a couple of food stops. Perhaps this is what street food means but we didn't know as we're a bunch of retirees! Anyway, our guide was lovely and very informative. Enjoyed it a lot!
This tour was excellent! It started with a Romanian pretzel, then a mid-morning drink and snack, and then lots of walking and talking about history and architecture. Our guide Rucsan provided insight into how Bucharest neighborhoods were affected by their mishmash of influences. We ended up at a market where Rucsan bought a large assortment of breads, meats, cheeses, vegetables, fruits and she then lead us to what appeared to be a food truck serving mici, the romanian sausage. We took our table and started our appetizers and beers while she jumped the long line of locals and bought plates of mici for us. It was a glorious feast - and we were the only tourists there, as far as I could see. Once back to our room, Rucsan sent a followup email with more information about where we visited and suggested for other place to see. I highly recommend this tour - we're so glad we booked!
I had such an amazing hike through the gorge and up to the top of the limestone ridge at Piatra Craiuli Park. Mihai was a great guide and showed not only great knowledge about the area, but cared deeply for the park too. Would definitely come back!
It was perfect! Booking through Romanian Friend was easy, confirmed very quickly & my guide; Radu was great, very friendly & supportive.
Booking through Romanian Friend was easy and confirmed very quickly. Nice guide and experience!
Booking through Romanian Friend was easy and confirmed very quickly. My guide was very friendly, helpful & supportive and this trip very cool!
My trip to Nera-Beusnita National Park was a great day. My guide Liviu was passionate and knowledgeable about Timisoara and the Banat region. The booking process was easy as. I will definitely use Romanian Friend again.
Bogdan is a true professional. He is professional yet so personable. All of the sites and experiences were excellent. This is one of the best tours I've ever taken and I'm lucky I found it on Romanian Friend! It had the perfect mix of driving, outdoor activities, history and fun. Romania is a beautiful and interesting country and Bogdan is an expert in the history and has just wonderful anecdotes and jokes. He has a great relationship with the proprietors of the beautiful accommodations and the experiences he set up for us. The best for me were the meals at the homes of local families. The Romanians are so warm and welcoming. I felt like family before I left. I'm already planning to return again soon.
It was an enjoyable trip with a friendly guide. It was in the hunted forest and from the stories that kept streeming from our guid Alex, we lost very quickly the griff in reality and God knows now what was a real story and what was fiction. Above all it was a pleasent morning in a lovely forest. Oh... and be aware from the alien in the tree!
We made contact with our guide Adela by e-mail a couple of weeks before visiting Sibiu, and firmed up the arrangements for meeting a day or so before we arrived. We found her knowledge and enthusiasm to be excellent, and learned a great deal about Romanian history and culture. My wife and I really enjoyed the time we spent with her.
The tour went perfect, our guide Peter was on time, very friendly and knowledgeable. He showed us some more spots on the Transfagarasan Highway which was great! I highly recommend booking a tour with Romanian Friend, everything was organised well, and communication was easy.
Our tour guide was very informative. He was always willing to entertain questions and passionate in explaining the history and details of the sites. Beautiful sights and interesting facts about the places we've visited.
We had a wonderful day trip in the Bucegi Mountains. He picked us up right on time at our hotel in Bucharest and took us over the beautiful Transbucegi road to the trail. Our guide was a fun hiking companion and adjusted his long legs to our pace! The hike started with an uphill climb then went across a scenic plateau with stunning views. It was a nice break from the city and a great day of scenic adventure.
This was an amazing day with Alex, we climbed the mountain to admire the beautiful scenery and enjoy a simple but very enjoyable picnic lunch that Alex had prepared for us including homemade relish from his mother. Alex was a well mannered gentleman who made our journey a memorable day. We would recommend this tour to anyone who had a good level of fitness and agility.
The Danube Delta was beautiful and our accommodation was perfect. We saw many birds and our guide was very knowledgeable. Our booking through Romanian friend was an easy process and we loved meeting Romanians.
My husband and I did the Transfagarasan Highway Tour. It was amazing! I was really worried as it was the only day that wasn't clear and sunny and as we started up the road there was very little visability due to the fog and clouds. But once we were a little over halfway up we got above the clouds and could see the road from the view point as well as the clouds as they crept up the mountain. It was a very cool sight, my husband especially loved it. It was clear at the top as well as on the other side. The whole day was great, getting to see the Abbey and Clay Castle were bonuses. Lunch was fantastic and our guide, Peter, was friendly and charming. Highly recommend.
It was a great trip to the nature reserve for seeing the european brown bear. The trip totaly changed my view about bears, i was afraid of them before then i personally withnessed how shy and harmless animals they are. The guide was passioned of nature and have a wide knowledge about local wildlife. I strongly recommend this trip to everyone who really wants to see the wild part of europe!
We spent 3 1/2 weeks in Romania and we were doing tours everyday. If we were asked what our most memorable moment was in our holiday we would say this tour with Vlad. This tour is one of those life long memories that will always remind us of the true Romania. We hiked through the mountains meeting local Romanian people experiencing the real Romania. I took many photo's of the stunning scenery and their way of life but this tour is much more than a photography opportunity it is an experience of a life time. Vlad was an amazing guide, he was passionate about Romania and his culture and he was one really special person. He made our day a truly memorable one.
We had a wonderful time with Iancu on this trip. The mountain scenery on the hike was amazing, and the overnight stay and ice cave were both really good. Iancu was a great guide, very friendly and had lots of good stories from his adventures.
Fantastic trip and very well run/led. Very ethically managed which was pleasing and seeing six bears was amazing including a mother and two cubs :)
Elena was savvy and enthusiastic about learning and sharing Romanian communist history. Tour was a super interesting intro to Bucharest.
Bogdan was terrific. Very knowledgeable about the neighborhoods and about Romanian history. It was a pleasure to have him as our guide. At the public market he let us shop with him for fresh produce and then he made us a wonderful picnic out of the purchases. The day with him was a very unusual tour and was the highlight of our visit to Romania. Plus, booking was easy, the directions were excellent and we had no problem finding our starting point and guide.
Charlie was very knowledgeable, polite, and fun. He's also a very safe driver! We highly recommend.
Alex was really great. The night time tour of the forest was not only filled with interesting stories, but also had the eerie/spooky element I was expecting. Alex is really friendly, and clearly has a passion for guiding, so I'm glad I found him here!
Amazing time - very knowledgable guide and we were lucky to see so many wild bears- great experience.
Thank you for the wonderful trip to Alba Iulia and Corvin Castle. Despite our late inquiry they managed to arrange our trip. A special thank to Peter who was very friendly, knowledgeable and a very good driver.
A great hike with an excellent guide. Despite the rain Marian kept us going with his humour and educational narrative. The rain lifted and the rest of the hike was even better with the mountain cabin showing us a very interesting part of Romanian life and food!
We enjoyed our tour with our guide, George - who took us around the Castles around the region.
Florin is a lovely and great guide. We really enjoyed our tour around Sighisoara and Salina. Florin's insight about these destinations are so valuable that I've come to love Transylvania. Highly recommend this tour!!!
Excellent. Tot tal com ho expliquen. Més de 10 óssos tota l'estona. Una experiència única. El personal molt amable. Totalment recomenable.
Wow! Quelle belle expérience pour nous. Nous recommandons fortement ce tour. Nous avons fait la route transfagarasan, vu le lac et avons fait une magnifique randonnée. Adèle, do. Conjoint et Marius ont été très généreux. Ce fut la meilleure journée de notre voyage en Roumanie!
We really enjoyed the day in the countryside with our guide Oana. She accommodated our special requests and worked hard to make sure we enjoyed the day. One of the best wine tastings we have experienced anywhere in the world - a passionate host, great wine and good food! All in all, a highly recommended day.
Best tour ever. Super scenic and guide was passionate and kind. Really highly recommended if you want to see the true beauty of Romania.
Adela was a great guide, informative and pleasant , someone who makes your trip very enjoyable and knowledgeable.
Highly recommended. Our guide Alex was excellent. He was very knowledgeable and enthusiastic in talking about the history of Timisoara. We enjoyed the walk through Timisoara's past!
It's an informative and rewarding trip with a helpful and friendly guide, thank you!
The trip was a long drive, but we saw the beautiful country scenery, corn fields, potato fields and green lawns. To be honest, it was a wonderful trip. We also learned a lot about Transylvenia culture and history. Adela is an informative and friendly guide. She introduced the scenic spots and the history in details. We all enjoyed the time spending with her. If I have a chance to visit your country again, I will contact Romanian Friend again!
Alexandru was a great guide! We enjoyed his enthusiasm, and especially the knowledge and perspective he brought to the tour of the city from his architecture background. We would highly recommend him and the walking tour.
A beautiful hike with a great guide - thanks!
We had a great two days riding with Marius. He tailored the ride to our ability, even providing a special gel seat for my added comfort on the man bike. All around, an excellent guide and a great ride through beautiful countryside.
A wonderful experience! The guides were great - knowledgeable and helpful. It was very special to be able to see bears in the wild. Loved it!
Absolutely fantastic! Vlad is a brilliant advocate for his country and thanks to his knowledge of the area and people, we had a truly amazing experience. This was the highlight of our trip to Romania - thank you Vlad and Romanian Friend for a wonderful experience.
Beautiful places and very knowledgeable, professional and friendly guide. Thanks Adela for a great day exploring the country around Sibiu!
Our guide had fabulous passion and knowledge. We learned so much from Tavi about the history, culture and architecture of Brasov. We would highly recommend joining his tour.
Had a really great experience on this trip and would highly recommend it. Florin is an excellent guide with deep knowledge in history and politics.
Our day hike in Piatra Craiului was really great! Our guide arrived on time and was really welcoming! We couldn’t have a better time if it wasn’t for Bogdan and his knowledge of the mountains! He helped us having the hike we wanted and more. I recommend the tour to anyone who wants a great time in the Romanian mountains!
Our time at the hide with Vlad was absolutely brilliant. We can’t help but feel very lucky to have seen boar, bear and deer up close and personal all in one evening! The views from the mountain top were breathtaking and we saw lots of tracks on our hike. Thank you Romanian Friend for a wonderful experience - we will never forget it!
Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and informative about the local culture and historical sites. Great experience, thanks!
Unfortunately I can't remember the name of my guide but he was "" THE BEST "" I have difficulties to decide which was more impressive: his knowledge of history and the sights we visited or his singing !!! and the place he took us for our lunch was amazing, their food and the view of the castle ( bran ). I was truly happy with this tour, thanks romanias friends !!!
Alex was an awesome tour guide! Very knowledgeable and friendly. His English was very good and he answered all the questions we had to the best of his ability. I would highly recommend this tour to anyone who likes hiking and scary stuff!
We were looking for a private tour and a comfortable experience for ourselves as we came across many tours like this but weren't convinced of their quality. This trip was perfect: a very knowledgeable and friendly guide with a spacious and modern car told us A LOT about Romanian history and gave us enough context to understand what we're seeing. Didn't rush us and gave us space to explore on our own which was great. A long day but very good value for money, thanks!
We loved our tour with Florin. He was so knowledgable and friendly. Couldn’t recommend him highly enough!
great trip through the wild mountains, we learned a lot about animals and Romanian nature, the kids were thrilled. Saw some small animals and plenty of tracks, our wildlife guide was an expert. Also thanks to Romanian Friend team for setting this up!
a long but very interesting day, we learned so much about Romanian history and culture. our guide was great and very knowledgeable, also gave us time to explore and experience on our own. a lot of driving but it was worth it and great value for money. thank you!
After much searching and useless discussions trying to find a horse ranch in Romania, we came across this trip. the team at Romanian Friend quickly answered our questions and we booked. Though getting to the ranch is not easy, it was worth it because the location is amazing: great views, hills and mountains in the distance, and very friendly staff and horses! We did guided trips over the hills and our horses were easy to maneuver as they knew their teritorry. We learned about local life, saw beautiful views, ate delicious food and rested comfortably. Thank you very much for this experience, we plan on coming again!
We would like to thank romanian friend for this service and help with planning. Our three day trip to Transylvania was a very nice one. We had the opportunity to learn so many stories and history about Romania. Our guide, Bogdan, was for sure, one of the highlights of this wonderful trip. Once more thanks and highly recommend!
interesting and fun tour with a great local guide native of Bucharest. not your usual touristy experience. highly recommend!
Great in one word! Saw a lot of bears, beautiful nature. The guide Simona was very, very knowledgeable, and was in 1 word: fantastic. I recommend this tour to everyone!
Adela is a fun and knowledgeable guide who shared many stories and info with us! although it was a long day, we saw and heard a lot of things on this tour which on our own we couldn't, so we're glad we found this trip on Romanian Friend!
Lovely day visiting these two sights. Good amount of activity for one day. Adela was not available, but her husband Peter took us. Peter was super nice, very professional, and obviously knowledgeable. All in all, I would recommend this trip!
Romania and Romanian Friend are both amazing. I am so glad that I was able to travel with Adela. She is a wealth of knowledge.
a great guide who adapted our tour and route on the spot. beautiful views and not too difficult. it was a great day, thanks
Romania's most beautiful and tallest mountains - it was a great experience, thank you! Our guide was fun and made sure we were comfortable and ok on the trails. We saw some amazing views and plan on coming back. Thanks Romanian Friend for recommending this!
Very nice and interesting experience, lots of folkstories and weird stuff!
We stayed for 3 nights at the Wildlife Hide. It was a wonderful experience feeling this far away from the world. Our guide took a lot of effort showing us the area around and he delighted us with some Romanian cuisine. The hike up to the cabin is quite challenging (not far, but steep). If you visit the Carpathians, this is definately a recommendation to stay! There are hides near Brasov that you can visit in mornings and evenings and they will show you more wildlife, but this trip is a different experience all-together: complete wilderness and nature! Thanks to Romanian Friend for assistance with our questions and booking!
Very nice tour with great views and unique perspectives and photo opps! Vlad knows the area, locals and where to go to get great shots, and everything was perfect. Thank you!
We had day trip with Florin, where we visited the Turda Salt Mine in the morning. In the afternoon we returned to Cluj where he told us about the history and culture of Cluj and Transylvania. It was a very interesting and enjoyable day for us as a family. The Salt Mine is realy impressive. Florin is a friendly young man and he has a profound knowledge about his country. During the afternoon he told us so much interesting and profound information about Cluj and it's exciting history and people. I can warmly recommend the Romanian Friend offerings.
If you love nature, this is worth a trip. Very skilled guides who were very flexible. The cabin has nice comfort standards for the mountains but still retained the primitive look / experience we were looking for. We were all very impressed by the nature and the wildlife around the cabin. Thank you!
We enjoyed an amazing day tour with Alex. What a skilled and thoughtful, knowledgeable guide Alex is! He gives much information, is very personable and at all times you know that he loves the forest and his profession as a tour guide. The information and insight Alex gave us exceeded our expectations by far and we would most highly recommend Alex to anyone wanting to visit the Hoia Baciu forest. Thank you Alex! Have a wonderful season with nice people! Vanessa and Roland from Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
We had a wonderful time out in pastures of Cobor! We met shepherds and a rare breed of cattle. Beautiful landscape. The accommodation was extremely cosy and comfortable! The food was delicious. A very memorable experience!
My children and I had a wonderful, memorable experience on this hike! Radu, our guide, was fantastic. He showed us (once again!) how warm and friendly the Romanian People are. Our hike was simply breathtaking. When I didn´t think we could be more moved by a stunning landscape, Radu brought us to a monastery situated in the Carpathian mountains where we were fortunate enough to visit a beautiful UNESCO wooden church. My children and I ahd the opportunity to meet once of the most spiritual people we have met in quite a while: an orthodox nun! We all came out of the mountains on a much higher spiritual level than we went in. The mountains in Romania are simply awe-inspiring. We are definitely going back. I only wish we had spent more time in the mountains. Excellent experience, excellent guide. I can´t recommend it enough.
It was an amazing tour! The nature was so beautiful and it was so much fun hiking in the forest. Liviu could always tell us interesting facts and knew a lot about the area. I will definitely go back again to the waterfalls!
It was an interesting historical tour. We learned much about Romanian history starting from ancient times to the end of medieval ages while travelling in the Romanian countryside and seeing some interesting sights!
great and informative- highly recommended
My daughter and I really enjoyed this tour! Ioana took us to a local restaurant, where we had a three course meal (featuring lots of garlic of course) while she shared interesting stories about Romanian food, culture and history. A true local experience, thank you!
This activity was amazing, Simona was incredibly friendly, knowledgeable and we had a wonderful time - despite being early in season we saw 13 bears approx (5 females, 3 males and 5 cubs). A brilliant experience all around and great valley for money. Simona was very responsive by email and we would certainly do this again if we were in the area in the future.
Unfortunately the Parliament was closed to visitors but the visit to Ceausescu's home was incredible! Alina is. Wonderful guide and her command of english is remarkable. We will be heading back to Bucharest and may book another adventure through Romanian Friend! Thanks, Denis
Our tour was perfect and Florin was amazing! We loved it, thank you Romanian Friend!
The tour was easy to book and Alex was very prompt to get in touch, answer our questions and arrange pick-up. Alex was incredibly knowledgeable and the sights from the train and especially Bigar Waterfall and surrounding areas were stunning. We really appreciated the day being catered to our needs and had a fantastic time. Highly recommended!
The tour was very straightforward to book and everything was confirmed very quickly. We immediately received contact from our guide to explain the schedule and arrange pick up points. We had a wonderful day with Benjamin and learnt so much as he was very knowledgeable about the area and sensitive to what we preferred to do on the day, which was much appreciated. Excellent tour!
Florin was a superb guide, punctual and very knowledgeable and proud of his country's history. We spent a fantastic day with Florin and would have no hesitation in recommending his services and Romanian Friend. First class.
Adela is a wonderful guide and the tour was a great day around old Saxon towns and villages. I would highly recommend this tour as a great introduction to the area with a guide who really cares about the history of Transylvania and Romania!
Our experience using Romanian Friend to locate a guide in Romania was fantastic! We found Adela who was such a knowledgeable, interesting, and fun guide, she made our trip totally more than we ever expected! My brother and I spent about 8 days in Romania, 3 1/2 days on tours with Adela, researching our Saxon heritage, and she far exceeded our expectations! We hope to return to Romania next year. We will certainly recommend Romanian Friend to anyone else interested in travelling there! Thank you so much! Karen Konnerth
Alex is a sincere and experienced tourguide that you will feel peaceful while walking with him in forest. We are lucky that the weather is really nice, full moon with no clouds, only the mysterious round area has snow, just amazing scene, very beautiful. If you come to Cluj, make sure not to miss this.
Excellent tour! Florin has been a friendly and knowledgeable guide, took us to very interesting places. Turda salt mine was majestic and stopping in the countryside of Cluj for a short walk in uncontaminated nature was great as well.
A very nice experience. Radu was amazing, we couldn’t have had a better guide :)
Wonderful experience with and experienced knowledgeable guide. He knew all about Romanian history as well as Europe. Highly recommended!
The tour is great. Turda Salt Mines was a highlight but I also really enjoyed the Alba Iulia citadel and driving through the Carpathian mountains. Florin was a fantastic tour guide - extremely knowledgeable and friendly. Definitely book his tour.
Amazing tour! Totally recommend it! Turda salt mine is a must-see place for everyone who will visit Cluj. Florin was the best guide. Knowledgeable, professional and friendly. He has a way of making a tour with strangers seem like a carpool with friends :)
The whole trip was well organised and very easy to arrange. Whatever your views on the paranormal, the woods are a beautiful place to visit at night and it would not be possible without a local guide. I would recommend anyone visiting Cluj to give it a go!
Florin was just fantastic: his love for Romania was shown from the very first minute we met. Two wonderful days in the Maramures region where in spite of the winter season we manage to see the wonders of this lovely part of Romania. We highly recommend this tour to anyone wanting to see the wooden churches and everything else Maramures has to offer!
Everything was just great! The guide was very knowledgeable, helpful (I was travelling with my 80 years old mum) and he was just fantastic, friendly. We highly recommend this tour to everyone! And many thanks to Romanian Friend for help with planning our trip!
I did the "Tour of Transylvania's Countryside" with Florin in the beginning of November. We visited the salt mine in Turda, the fortified church of Biertan and Sighisoara Citadel. Florin picked me up at my accommodation in Cluj in the morning and dropped me off there in the evening. It was a wonderful, informative day, and thanks to Florin's broad historical knowledge, I learned a lot and saw many beautiful buildings and sights. Florin also gave me many interesting anecdotes about the country and the people of Romania and had an answer to all of my questions. Of course, you can visit all those places on your own, but the background information, which I received on the tour with Florin, are invaluable and probably not retrievable in a travel book. Since I was travelling alone, I was a bit worried before the ride – will we have something to talk about in these 10 hours? Will it be awkward to sit in a car with a complete stranger? But these concerns were totally unfounded! I recommend the tour without restrictions; it was definitively the highlight of my whole trip!
I can highly recommend this tour with Adela. Adela is extremely knowledgeable and I learnt a lot about the importance of Alba Iulia. Corvin Castle is a must see to visit. Romanian Friend is a brilliant service and I will definitely use it again when I return to Romania.
Florin was a fantastic guide! Our tour felt very much like hanging out with a very knowledgeable friend. We had wonderful conversations and learned so much about Transylvanian history on the way. We highly recommend Romanian Friend. I'm sure any of their tours will be just as great!
Alex is a very funny and friendly guide. I really enjoyed my tour of the forest and chatting with him about Romania and the legends of the forest. If I come back I would like to do a night tour next time.
We really loved our time on this trip. It was absolutely magical to be up in the mountains, hiking in the wild, and staying in this beautiful cabin. Cristian was our guide. The man knows everything! He answered every question we had about the foundation, the park, Romania's history, our surroundings. We were stunned. He was so friendly, sorted my girlfriend out with some vegan nibbles, and wine for us upon arrival, and checked in with us every step of the way, giving us an amazing hike that was both manageable and comfortably challenging, for two hiking novices. He was able to tell us about the paw prints in the snow, the trees, the call of the birds, a genuinely lovely man. The cabin itself is very cool, surrounded by a most dramatic background of mountains, lakes and forest. It snowed all day before we had arrived, so be warned the cabin can be very cold when you arrive, or when you're leaving, but heats up so so quickly and it's the cosiest place once it does -despite the flies, who also seem to love the heat! We were also really grateful to be picked up and dropped off so conveniently, and the entire experience was an adventure we were delighted to have tried. Certainly hoping to try something similar in future. Many thanks to Romanian Friend for answering our questions before booking and making sure everything goes smooth. A highly recommended experience!
Another great adventure with Romanian Friend! Our experience has always been that you feel as though you are out with a long time friend. Bogdan knew so much about the area and its history, things that you just don't find in any guide book. We experienced three seasons in one day. The Transfagarasan is just spectacular.
This was a wonderful day trip, one of our best experiences during our two-week visit. Sergiu was helpful to communicate with us in advance for making plans and letting us know what to expect. He was accommodating and thoughtful, able to craft our day as we went along based on our fitness and energy levels (even accommodating the two different energy levels between my mom and me with a tweak to a hike). We fit two smaller hikes into the day and both were just gorgeous -- one to a fairytale-like mossy waterfall in the middle of the forest, one to a hilltop with an awesome 360-view of the beautiful valleys below and herds of sheep. His backpack was well provisioned with fruits, chocolates, and water to keep us going strong. He also took some photos of us that we really appreciated having. Most importantly, Sergiu was a delight to talk to, just sharing and comparing aspects of our lives in different countries, experiences in nature, and so on. I would also trust Sergiu completely for longer or more physically demanding trips.
We enjoyed our tour that included Bigar Waterfall and the steam train ride. Our guide, Alex, was excellent and very attentive to our needs. We learned much about Romania and enjoyed the Romanian Countryside. Thank you!
Romanian Friend was excellent to deal with and very good at communicating with me with regards to my booking. The guides were good to talk with and knowledgable about all wildlife in Romania, they were punctual and friendly. We saw 3 bears including a cub which was brilliant and the walk though the forest to reach the hide was also very pleasurable. Highly recommend this service.
We took the bear watching tour and that was the highlight of our stay in Romania. Tour was well organized with guides that had lots of experience with wildlife. Both guides spoke good English, so it was easy to follow their information on Romanian wildlife. We were fortunate to see 8 bears on the spot, with three being cubs. I would highly recommend this tour to any wildlife lover!
This was a spectacular hike! We were not very fast but our guide Charlie was patient and knowledgeable. Thank you!
Wonderful tour, not to be missed! I am an avid trip-preparer, buying guidebooks, doing research, Googling driving distances, etc., but honestly the best thing I did for this trip was to find Romanian Friend and put ourselves into the able hands of Marius and his guides (in all, we spent four days with guides). You visit some main attractions of Transylvania on this day trip, and it's great to have a friendly and knowledgable guide along. Aside from the fascinating information we got from him, it was a pleasure not having to navigate the logistics ourselves (like figuring out where to park to visit a historical citadel). Our favorite parts were seeing the beautiful cemetery-in-a-forest atop Sighisoara and walking inside the clock tower. We traveled in autumn, beautiful foliage too. Alex, who filled in for Florin, was really knowledgeable and competent, but his style is informal. We enjoyed that. Alex had the special touch of a great tour guide -- providing us with background info, answering the hundreds of questions we threw at him, but also knowing when to take a back seat and let the sites speak for themselves. I was traveling with my mother and we loved hanging out with Alex but also felt that we had quality time with each other!
This was a restful break in our 3-week trip. Our guide Iulia was a wealth of information. The highlight of this was the 3-hour horse cart ride through rolling hills and forests. We didn't want it to end. I also appreciated that the organization that owns the farm believes in operating a sustainable farm and acting as a role model. Early morning walk through the village, a visit to the local fortified church and cemetery, seeing the horses running and playing in the large pasture, meeting the heritage Hungarian gray cattle herd, playing with the resident cat and dogs, the list of small delights goes on. A great experience, thank you!
Our guide was very knowledgeable about all three of the sites that we visited. The sites were all so different. Peles-ornate, over-the-top, Bran-much more simple but decorated for Halloween, and Rasnov-ruins with a great hilltop view. Our guide knew several spots from which to take some pretty cool photos and drove us down side streets to find these spots. Just be aware that you need to pay extra to take pictures inside of Peles. We bought postcards instead!
Marius from Romanian Friends was very helpful and prompt in replies to me. I also managed to get my refund (due to a change in my booking) very promptly. My tour guides, Laur and his colleague Oana were great! They ensured that I was able to keep up (though I was rather slow) and gave all sorts of interesting facts about the nature around us. The hike was more tiring then I had expected but definitely enjoyable. Laur and Oana packed lunch and it was lovely having a picnic at the top. I especially appreciated the tracking that Laur did using his watch to show our route.
We loved this tour. Florin wasn't available but he connected us with his colleague Alex who made the trip into a great combination of seeing "The Sites" (wooden churches, the Merry Cemetery), which we loved, and low-key road-trip exploration (stopping at some small farmer's markets, staying in a rural pension where the only other tourists were domestic, marveling over a walnut tree and stopping right in the middle of parking lot to eat the fresh nuts), which we also loved. There was an off-itinerary museum that we really wanted to see along the way, and Alex was happy to comply and suggest the necessary changes in our itinerary to fit it in. Alex was really knowledgable and easy to talk to. We took the two-day tour, but would recommend extending it if you can; we wished we could have spent longer exploring Maramures. There's plenty of driving time in this tour, but lots to look at and talk about (and naps to take in the back seat). We were stitching this trip together with time in Bucharest and time in Transylvania, and emailed with Marius (of Romanian Friend) in advance to get his advice about how to order our trip. That was really helpful. What we did is fly into Cluj-Napoca from Bucharest and have Alex meet us at the airport, which worked well!
Our guide was an environmental physisct by education, which made this trip so awesome! He explained the explainable in logical terms and told us about the unexplainable! He was amazing! We had a fantastic time and caught a lot more paranormal photos than I ever expected! Such a great tour, I love when science meets metaphysics, Hoia Baciu is the perfect storm!
The walk through the forest to the hide was great. Our guide, Simona was very knowledgeable and speaks English well. We were delighted to see three adult bears and three cubs! Thanks for a wonderful tour! Multumesc!
The trip was wonderful! The mountains were beautiful, the cabin stunning and well-equipped, Iulia our guide was well-informed and great fun, and Romanian Friend was flexible and communicative with our booking and questions. Would highly recommend this experience. Best of all, the money spent goes to support conservation works in this beautiful area!
We had an awesome day exploring the countryside with Adela and her husband Petru. They took Connie and I for an nice walk up the hillside with some great conversation along the way. The view was awesome with a real peaceful feeling about it. Petru went ahead and made a very tasty meal with lots of variety for all of us to enjoy after a morning hike. On the way back to Sibiu, Adela took us to another few interesting attractions. We really enjoyed Adela's company. She likes to speak about the history and culture of the area. I would definitely recommend this tour for those people that like to experience a real part of Romania with great conversation along the way. Didn't find it anywhere else, so thanks Romanian Friend!
I enjoyed seeing and learning about the different architectural styles in Bucharest. The food stops were great and the donut dessert at the end was a nice way to end the tour. Overall it was an informative and pleasant tour, thanks for the recommendation!
We were very impressed with the knowledge of Adela. She was able to answer any questions we had about Sibiu, Transylvania or Romania. She was very proud of the city and you can tell. Great tour!
The guide was very personable anf spoke wonderful English. He was passionate about the forest and its history. Would highly recommend. Without Romanian Friend I wouldn't have found this tour so I'm glad I booked, thanks!!
Professional, funny and timely services!
Vlad gave a very enjoyable tour of a rural village. He was easy to talk with and very knowledgable about the area and the people. It was a nice experience to visit an elderly lady's home and have coffee and cheese with her. The scenery was truly breath taking on this tour.
Adela is a professional and friendly tour guide. I enjoy her services very much!
We did this trip of Romania with Bogdan which we extended with 1 day to also include Sibiu. We of course toured Brasov, Sighisoara and Sibiu and also did a 1-day hike in the Carpathian Mountains. Bogdan exceeded our expectations - he is knowledgeable, passionate, honest and enthusiastic - a rare combination in this business. We enjoyed every moment and we look forward to coming back to this beautiful country and tour the delta-region with Bogdan in the near future. Thanks to Romanian Friend for recommending this trip and assisting with our booking!
The bear watching tour we booked on Romanian Friend was very interesting and the best experience on our journey in Romania. It was professionally held by our guide who was very nice but also had a lot of knowledge about the bears. We had such a good time and will remember the experience for a long time. Special thanks for taking so good care of my 84-year-old mother who really loved the tour.
The tour was fantastic and a great way to start my holiday in Romania. Florin was extremely knowledgeable about the area we visited (Alba Iulia, Turda Salina and Rimetea) and was never short of fascinating stories, anecdotes, and history. Was very good company and helped me gain a good understanding of the areas we visited. There was never any awkwardness or pressure to move on, and the pace was absolutely perfect. Would definitely recommend. As an aside, I absolutely loved Romania as a whole and will definitely return. Fantastic places, and people - thanks Romanian Friend!
I went on a ride with Iancu. He was super friendly and had lots of knowledge about the Carpathians and Romania. We did a slightly longer mountain bike ride because I had previous mountain bike experience. I would highly recommend this tour!
We had a lovely time watching bears from the hide. I recommend this tour to anyone interested in seeing wildlife.
My son is a keen photographer - I’m more interested in people and places and the culture. Both of us thought this was the best few hours we’d spent in a long, long time. We walked for hours through breathtaking scenery, meeting local people and getting a feel for life in the Romanian countryside. Vlad is a wonderful host and the trip is absolutely the best thing we did on our trip. Don’t miss it - and go ahead and book if you are even vaguely considering it. Places are scarce and Vlad takes only small numbers each time. Thank you again Vlad for a simply wonderful afternoon and to Romanian Friend for recommending this trip based on our interests!
Everything was very well organized and adjusted to our needs. We had safe ride and nice conversation during that time. All the views were amazing and it was definitely worth going there. Our guide was helpful and really took care about us. I can highly recommend this tour on Romanian Friend with Adela :)
The trip was simply amazing. We saw bears almost immediately (males, females and cuddles) and thus we totally enjoyed the three hours of bear-watching. Simona, the guide, explained us everything about what the bears were doing in front of our eyes, so it was really like a living documentary. She also showed us bear footprints in the forest and the signs they leave on trees. I would recommend this tour to anyone in Brasov, thanks!
Our tour with Florin was great. Thanks to Florin we saw not only the most famous sites in Maramures region, but also a few of the rare, off-the-beaten-path places on the tour. Florin is very knowledgeable about many subjects, including history, architecture, linguistics and so he proved to be a great source of information on the tour. He also is a very good and thoughtful organizer and he made sure we were exposed to various aspects of life in Romania. We met wonderful people and ate great local food. We stayed at a village guest house in an old wooden house which featured many traditional elements, yet was very comfortable. The car ride, despite being relatively long, was pleasant and safe. Thanks for everything and to Romanian Friend for recommending this trip!
This was another wonderful tour I booked at the recommendation of Romanian Friend and I highly recommend it to anyone who likes to experience local life, get off of the beaten tourist path, or has a specific interest in photography. Vlad was a really kind and interesting guy to spend time with, and he clearly has a very strong connection to the rural village that we visited. Even though the weather was less than ideal, we enjoyed some nice views, met many of the friendly locals, and chatted about Romanian life as we trekked together. Vlad takes stunning photos and was happy to share tips with me, which helped me to get some nice images too! Overall I would highly recommend this tour, and Vlad as a guide!
This was my favorite of the daytrips from Brasov! I loved being able to spend time in nature, completely away from other people and tourists. We saw tracks of bear, deer and boar during the trek, which the guide pointed out to me and explained. The guide Iulia was the highlight of the day - she was wonderful company, very passionate about nature and conservation, and tailored the trekking route to my needs. I feel that I learned a lot about animal tracking, and about the important conservation work that is taking place in the Romanian Carpathian mountains - this was one of my goals, so I am very satisfied. To top eveything off we then saw a brown bear from the wildlife-viewing lodge at dusk. I would highly recommend this tour, and especially Iulia who made the day truly exceptional for me - she is a fantastic ambassador for Romania tourism!
We had an amazing tour with Florin! He showed us around and had so much interesting information to share and soon he felt more like a Romanian friend than a tourguide! He was very thoughtful, friendly and open. We just had an amazing tour with him!
A very enjoyable trip, and doing it with a guide and transport certainly makes life easier to include these 3 sites into just one day. I enjoyed all 3 of the castles, but Peles was my favourite - it is extremely beautiful inside, and has interesting history behind it. Bran of course a must-visit in Transylvania, and despite being very touristy and busy I would say it was enjoyable. Rasnov contrasted well with the other castles, it is a very different style built by the Saxons.
Our tour with Szabolcs was fantastic. Actually there were two guides – Szabolcs and Tomas. Both of them were great to talk to and they organized the trip, so it went flawlessly. While Tomas accompanied and guided us on the bike trail and into the gorge, Szabolcs prepared delicious lunch, provided car transport form one point to the next along the way and gave us the tour of the Salt Mine. Both sites were mind blowing, the views – magnificent, and conversations were heartfelt and interesting. Szabolcs is a great organizer, as well as an entertainer. We never felt rushed or bored in his and Tomas's company. While we were treated like VIPs, we felt at ease every step of the way. Thank you, Szabolcs for the wonderful experience you've given us. When we think of Romania, we'll sure think of this tour and the two Romanian Friends we have made – Szabolcs and Tomas, thanks to all!
We had a wonderful and informative tour through Vacaresti Park with Carmen. She was an enthusiastic guide and clearly loves the area and appreciates the natural world as much as we do. We very much enjoyed looking at the plants and wildlife and hearing about the park's rich history. It was also lovely to visit this part of Bucharest that's off the beaten tourist path with a knowledgeable and friendly Romanian guide. Definitely recommended!
It was epic! Thanks to this tour we spotted 5 wild Bears, 1 fox and 2 wild boars. Thank you very much guys, it was one of the best experiences in Transylvania!
We have taken this two-day bike tour with Marius and we couldn't have been happier! Marius is very knowledgeable about the region and gave us very good pointers along the way. He was a pleasure to talk with during the breaks on various subjects, from Romanian culture and history to biking and other outdoor sports. Both my husband and I had no prior mountain biking experience but Marius was willing to make adjustments, never losing the positive attitude and cheering us up along the way. He gave us many tips that we found useful even for casual road bikers like us. On our ride we enjoyed breathtaking views of the valleys and forests and visited fortified churches, including the ones off the beaten path which Marius arranged to be unlocked for viewing just for us. We stayed in a guesthouse which was a renovated old homestead where the room and amenities were clean and comfortable and provided a great rest. The food prepared from local ingredients was excellent. Overall an amazing experience, much better than we'd expected. We will certainly recommend Marius as a guide and a biking instructor to all our friends. And special thanks to Romanian Friend - we planned our trip in Romania with them and booked 4 amazing tours!
Myself and my two children enjoyed the bear watching immensely! It was the higlight of our holiday and we would recommend it to everyone visiting the area. We saw about six bears, a huge wild boar and a fox. We also enjoyed hearing all about bears and the stories about various bear encounters.
Florin is such a wonderful guide!! He is super knowledgeable about the history and culture of Romania, and is friendly and accommodating. I highly recommend any tour with Florin! Thank you so much for a lovely day! :) And Marius from Romanian Friend was very responsive and helpful to book a tour for the following day, after our initial request was declined. Such a helpful website - would highly recommend!
It was fantastic! Florin was very helpful, friendly, open-minded and funny. He is very intelligent and knows a lot about Romanian History. He also took us to an amazing place to have lunch, with a typical Romanian dish, and it was vegan by chance (pretty important to us because we are vegan, we felt ourselves special, because he really took care about it). We picked us up at our airbnb in Cluj and he dropped us at the airport. And we asked for a little tour in Cluj-Napoca (because we did not see the city) before going to the Turda Salt Mine, and he answered promptly "yes" to us, he woke up 2 hours earlier just to do this for us. And he asked no more money for that. He is really amazing. We learned a lot with him, including seeing a lot of "ABCs", lol. It was a time travel. A great investiment for life. If you have any doubts about booking this tour on Romanian Friend, I hope after reading our review they vanished! Highly recommended! Greetings from Austria/Brazil :)
We worked with Romanian Friend to organize a private tour of the Danube Delta, which we really enjoyed. What we liked about Romanian Friend is their role as a curator of interesting, high-quality Romania-related experiences as well as the brokering with the right tour companies. The tour itself was well organized. We were able to see beautiful wildlife as well as explore the inhabited parts of the Delta, and we were well taken care of throughout. Highly recommend!
Really awesome trip and the guide was super nice. The whole logistics went super smooth and our guide really took care to make sure everything was taken care of. Highly recommended and would love to do it again! Also thanks to Romanian Friend for advising & helping me book this trip!
This tour was absolutely fantastic! Our guide was really caring and took notice of requirements of all in the group. Made the whole journey memorable and ensured that we were fed well during and after the trip which was a very welcome surprise. Thank you!
Tour was great. Relaxing. Easy enough and informative. Florin was amazingly helpful with whatever we needed. Even pointing out to us some amazing swimming zones and lakes. Romanian Friend helped us plan the trip for our group even with short notice., thanks! Will be back to Romania ;)
Booking anything online for the first time can involve some element of risk, but when I saw this photography tour with Vlad on Romanian Friend I thought it sounded interesting and decided to send an email requesting a booking. Vlad our guide picked us up in Brasov and transported to a village where I felt I was traveling back in time. Vlad is a very easy guy to get along with and his passion for photography and Romania is very apparent. I have already written a blog about my experience and if I posted a link on here it would ruin the surprises that await you. Fran & I really enjoyed the experience, so if you were looking to see and photograph the real beauty of Romania, I personally would highly recommend the Photography Tour of Romania: Traditional Villages & Local Life. Thank you! Fletcher & Fran Leeds, UK
Lovely food, delightful company and great views. My husband and children were impressed with the quality of the horses and how responsive they were. We are planning a second trip already. Thank you!
Fantastic day and great value for money! The road trip would have been enough on its own, but the visit to Carta monastery and the clay house were icing on the cake. Our guide Adela was friendly, chatty and knowledgable. She took us at a pace we felt comfortable with and gave us a real tour. Highly recommend!
It was a great experience and well organized. We saw two mother bears with each three young. Also six other bears. Easy and fast booking, thank you!
We loved everything about this tour! After a two hour ascent we reached the top of the mountain with a breathtaking view over the Carpathians and the village. The path can become quite steep and challenging at certain spots, so make sure to bring appropriate shoes with you. Our guide Iancu was very friendly and had a huge knowledge about Romania and everything we asked him. The trip was easily booked through Romanian Friend, perfectly organised and we felt comfortable throughout the whole day. After descending back to the starting point we enjoyed a well deverved beer with some delicious dessert from the local village with our guide, which was a great finish before driving back to Cluj. Thanks!
Flavia wasn't available but her colleagues, Ilie and Diana, were great guides: friendly, knowledgeable & enthusiastic. I saw some really great views and completely isolated villages that I still don't understand how they survive!! The home-cooked lunch was very delicious too. A really great trip, off-the-beaten tourist path and something completely different. Thanks Romanian Friend!
I really enjoyed my whole day with my driver/guide Chip, Bogdan's colleague. He was very accommodating to my special wish, which was to also go to the Village Museum. He also suggested a wonderful monastery tomb visit along the way. He was polite, an excellent guide, and very knowledgeable. He was also open to giving me just the right amount of information about each site, without information overload. Snacks and some beverages were also provided during the day. I enjoyed this tour tremendously and would highly recommend it to others!
Our tour of the Medieval castles of Transylvania was worth every Lei! We were picked up at our hotel and spent almost 9 hours with our guide. He continually provided us with history about the area and the site we were visiting. He was very passionate about Romania and we learned a lot! He obtained tickets to the sites with no effort by us and was well known in the area by people who were always happy to see him. The tour is something anyone visiting this area should experience. We were able to see two castles, one palace and a fortress in one day - and enjoy a nice lunch with local food in a non-touristy restaurant. He also shared stories about the mountains and Romanian Orthodox churches. The distance between the sights would not be easy for someone not familiar with the area - so thanks for the tour Romanian Friend!
Best activity we did while we were visiting Romania. Florin was a great tour guide he really knows his Romanian history. We would recommend this day tour to anyone interested in understanding Romanian history. Thanks!
We booked the tour last minute and was not sure someone could be arranged so quickly, but Romanian Friend found us an excellent guide! Adela's colleague, Csaba was very professional and he made sure we had a good time. He picked us up on time and we spent 8 hours with him touring the Corvin Castle and Alba Iulia Citadel. He was very knowledgeable and was willing to answer any of our questions about Romania (not just the tour sites). He also engaged my niece who is 15 by asking her fun questions. He took the time to tell us about each site and to ensure we had a good time. Booking this tour was very easy and the response time from Romanian Friend website was very quick - thank you!
Excellent Tour Guide, Excellent Tour. Florin is a very competent, enthusiastic guide who obviously loves his work and he's a really nice, personable guy. It was my pleasure spending the day with him visiting, Mediaş, Biertan and Sighişoara and I appreciate that he talked me into visiting the Turda Salt Mine because it was spectacular! You really couldn't ask for a better guide. Thanks Florin and Romanian Friend!
We had a fantastic trip with Iulian, Flavia's colleague, as he was a great guide. He put a lot of effort into tailoring the itinerary to suit our interests. Importantly, he is a very good driver and we never felt unsafe in the crazy Romanian traffic with him, unlike with several other drivers. We met some fascinating people, had some wonderful experiences and learnt heaps about the Romanian people, history and culture. All this in the picture perfect Romanian countryside! Also many thanks to Romanian Friend for helping us decide to book this trip on short notice, answering all our questions in a timely manner and making sure our experience will be tailored to our needs!
Missed a tour dinner to have this amazing experience. Just finishing looking at photo's and video record of our visit. Two mature females, two adolescents and three new cubs. Excellent viewing point. The silent stroll through the walk to the hide was enchanting and we would have loved it. It was a delight - thank you!
A very enjoyable tour, taking in the UNESCO sights, and the lovely landscapes of rural Transylvania. Our guide, Adela, was very informative, well organised, and most fluent in English. Thank you!
I spent a very enjoyable day with Florin seeing an interesting selection of places in Transylvania. The guide was on time, spoke excellent English and was knowledgeable about all things Romanian, particularly the history and politics of the country. He was a careful driver who made sure the trip took in any particular needs and requests. Five stars out of five - grateful I chose to book through Romanian Friend!
It may have started out as a walking tour with a guide but ended up as a stroll with a friend! My tour of the main attractions and streets with Tudor was superb. We started in the main square and meandered around the beautiful medieval town visiting historical sites within the city walls but also outside in the winding streets of the Romanian sector. I enjoyed every moment and Tudor was an enthusiastic and knowledgeable guide. I particularly enjoyed learning about the colourful history of the town and the views of the town from the hills. Touring with locals is the way to go - they are passionate about their own towns and want you to love them as much as they do. It was a little hilly at times so a basic degree of fitness is required but Tudor is very considerate and will take it at your pace. Very glad I booked this tour through Romanian Friend!
This trip was fantastic! Simona and the ranger were very knowledgeable about their bears and we were incredibly lucky to see 12 bears during the time we were watching! Thank you very much!
We loved this experience! The house stayed in was what we imagine heaven feels like - peace, quiet, nature, green all over. Istvan’s sister was with us throughout the experience and she was a lovely host. The cheese making experience was as authentic as one can desire and we had tons of fun participating! Cund is a lovingly remote and peaceful village and our only regret is that we didn’t stay longer. We will definitely be coming back - thanks Romanian Friend!
Using Romanian Friend to book this Danube Delta tour was easy and the accommodation at Mila 23 and itinerary of this tour was very good! The Delta is a magical place and we saw parts we couldn't have on our own. The guide was a real local and he had very good knowledge of all the birds and wildlife in the area which we saw on all our boat trips. Very good tour, would highly recommend!
Florin was very knowledgeable and really made the tour to Turda, Alba Iulia, and Rimetea memorable. It was a great day trip from Cluj and I'm glad I booked this tour through Romanian Friend!
Adela was informative , attentive and she added greatly to my experience of this part of Romania. This tour was excellent - thank you Adela and Romanian Friend.
Interesting tour with great value for money, would recommend it. Guide friendly and informative. Booking process on Romanian Friend efficient and communication very good. Thanks!
Trip was quite and nice and interesting. Florin is a great guide, he has shared a lot of interesting information with us, suggested many places and was super hospitable. Totally recommend Florin as a guide, very positive person. Marius from Romanian Friend was very helpful with setting up the tour and making suggestions for our visit - many thanks!
Superb tour with a fabulous guide, Tavi. Highly recommend this experience and this was the fourth tour I booked with Romanian Friend -- all of them fantastic!
Great guide and very flexible with our requests and bike pace. This is a very good tour to visit the most important sites and attractions in Bucharest in a couple of hours. Biking is easy and safe.
The tour was great. Alex had incredible knowledge about his hometown of Timisoara and delivered in it a fun and easy to understand way. He kept it interesting with little fun bits of information and you could really tell he loves his job. Two hours was barely enough. Also thanks to Romanian Friend for setting up the tour in very little time - on the evening for next morning!
My tour with Florin was brilliant and I was the only passenger. Florin has a history degree from Cluj University. He is very knowledgeable about Romania and its history and speaks excellent English. Our drive from Cluj to lovely Sighisoara took 2 hours 30. We stopped to see the fortified Saxon church at Biertan, where we also had a coffee. Lunch in the open air in Sighisoara. I found Florin really good company and he is also the safest of drivers. I would unconditionally recommend him to anyone who wants to book a tour from Cluj - thank you Romanian Friend for making my trip so easy to plan!
The tour was great with many stories besides eating and the guide Lala was outstanding with so much passion for what she does and Bucharest. What a great experience!
The whole experience from booking stage to the tour itself was immensely satisfying. Marius at Romanian Friend immediately replied to all questions and concerns and the tour options he recommended were amazing. Out tour guide, Florin, is described on the RF website as “passionate, optimistic, dedicated and passionate about Romanian culture”. This is absolutely true. He was punctual, very fluent in English and very polite. At all times during the day he stayed aware of our needs and wishes and was very flexible to accommodate us. We felt very comfortable, safe and well-cared for at all times of the day. It was evident that he had planned all the small details and despite the hours of driving, he never looked tired. It was impressive that he never even used his mobile. Very difficult to find a better and more professional tour guide! I highly recommend Romanian Fried for all types of tourists of all ages, and look forward to other tours with them in the future! And all of this in addition to the beauty of the places visited in Romania!
Adela was great and very knowledgeable! We learned so much and had a great day! With help from Romanian Friend we were able to do this tour through a last minute booking. We definitely recommend Adela and Romanian Friend when visiting Romania!
I had a very interesting day with Adela visiting villages around Sibiu! She is like an encyclopedia with lots of interesting things to tell me about old and recent history of the area, and could answer all my (many!) questions. Romanian Friend is a very useful site, with lots of info and helpful staff on the chat! A great asset in planning a trip to beautiful Romania!
My wife and I had a fantastic time on the bear watching tour from Brasov. We were really pleased to get to see the bears. In the end I think we saw about 7 in total. Simona was a fantastic guide. She is very knowledgeable about the local wildlife and provided us with a lot of information about the local area as well. Romanian Friend made planning our trip much easier and all the more enjoyable, so thank you!
Adela was a wonderful guide! She was punctual and was waiting at my hotel lobby before the scheduled time. She is friendly, knowledgeable and very professional throughout the tour. She gave a detailed tour of Corvin Castle and during our ride she also answered a lot of my questions about Romanian history. I enjoyed my trip very much and highly recommend her! Also thanks to Romanian Friend for helping me plan my trip, answering my questions and connecting me with such a great guide!
Lovely tour with Romanian Friend and Simona. We saw bears and many wild boars and the tour guide and ranger were very informative and friendly. Highly recommend!
I very much enjoyed my day tour to Turda Salt Mines, Rimetea Village and Albu Iulia. I would definitely recommend Florin as a tour guide. He was very friendly and knowledgeable and made the trip flexible and convenient by picking me up from the airport and dropping me back at my hostel. Marius from Romanian Friend was very helpful and responded to my emails about the tour promptly.
Romanian Friend was very responsive with answers to our questions and and helpful with our booking. The Food Tasting tour was great. We stopped at 2 rural homes, 1 for dinner and 1 for cheese and wine. Food was very good and it was obvious the cooks were proud of their work. A great experience!
Adela was a super guide with tremendous knowledge of Sibiu area and ability to help us understand the history of Transylvania, its architecture and the current economic conditions in Romania. Thank you!
Appetising mix of local food and nice city stories! We did the Local food tour on a snowy winter morning. Our guide Emma was telling some lightly digestible history about the city, it's about politics and, of course, food. After a nice mixed platter of local delicacies we tried some beer and mici. During the walk we saw some nice hidden gems of Bucharest. Warm wine in a cosy bar made us forget the cold temperatures outside! The Covrigi's (pretzels) filled with chocolate, vanilla or jam were the sweet seal to our fantastic city tour with Emma. A great tour - thanks Romanian Friend!
We went on the Turda Salt mine, Biertan Fortified Church and Sighisoara tour with our guide Florin. Florin is a passionate historian with a background in mountain rescue. You can tell he truly loves what he does and this shows through in his work. We had a great time and would highly recommend. Romania is a beautiful country with friendly people and I'm very glad we discovered Romanian Friend!
I decided to visit Magura village, and wanted to hire a guide for the day to maximize my chances of getting good images. While doing research for my travels, I came across Romanian Friend where local photographer Vlad offered a photography tour around Brasov. I'm very happy I decided to hire him as he is not just an excellent guide but also a very genuine and easy going person. I had a great time, went to places I wouldn't have found on my own and took some great shots! I highly recommend booking Vlad via Romanian Friend if you're looking for a great time in Transylvania. / Fredrik from Sweden
We very much enjoyed our tour with Florin - he was very nice and well-informed. We not only learnt a lot about the history of the Salt Mine and the Alba Iulia Citadel, but also on Transylvania and its people. I would recommend this tour to everyone who visits Cluj-Napoca. It was a very nice way to learn more about Romania and we also enjoyed to see the countryside. And Romanian Friend website helped me a lot to plan our trip. It gives a nice overview of the most important sights in the region, tours and guides, and we would love to return in the summer, e.g. to go hiking in the Apuseni mountains.
The trip in Maramures was highly enjoyable and Florin was a great guide! He was very helpful and always went a step further for us, which we are grateful of. He was also very knowledgeable, not just about Romania but also the region and other worldly affairs. We loved conversing with him. I also appreciate the quick responses from Romanian Friend and help with linking us up. Thanks for everything!
Marius - thanks for all your help. Your website was very professional, clear and easy to navigate. You responded to my email quickly and accurately. We loved our Corvin Castle tour and our guide Florin was amazing, fun and very knowledgeable. He arrived on time, energetic and ready to go, being a history major at university, he was a wealth of information about everything. He made us feel comfortable and answered all our questions and had a great sense of humor. He gave ample time to see everything and took us to a great place for lunch with a cool Romanian atmosphere. We would highly recommend Romanian Friend to anyone traveling to Romania or Cluj-Napoca!!!
Our trip to Sighisoara citadel and Turda Salt mine was a great adventure. Florin’s knowledge of history was the highlight of this tour. For a couple of gals from London who love history and facts, he kept us truly entertained. None of this is in the guidebooks. We really did feel we got a true local experience and we are very happy to recommend Romanian Friend tours to anyone wanting a local experience in Romania. And thank you Marius for all the help and suggestions!
Sergiu was fabulous. And to think this picturesque hiking tour in Apuseni was our second choice! We are really happy that we chose this trip (albeit a little hesitant at the beginning). This was really the experience we were looking for. Away from the hustle and bustle of London. Clean air and a truly local experience. We would never have found this area on our own. The guide was wonderful and tailored the trip to suit us and although he's a true mountaineer, that was never intimidating. We had a lot of laughs and Annette absolutely loved the mud! He even thought of everything including a perfect snack pack. We are very happy to recommend Romanian Friend to anyone wanting a local experience in Romania. I also want to thank you for all the information and help you gave before we left for our trip. And for encouraging us to go hiking in the mountains. Cheers!
Without doubt the most interesting part of my visit to Romania was taking a guided walking tour of Timisoara, and I would strongly recommend Romanian Friend’s tour. Marius from Romanian Friend was incredibly helpful overall with planning my trip to Romania, and also in connecting me with the historical encyclopaedia that is Mark-Alex, a local resident and tour guide. During his walking tour I learnt so much about not only Timisoara and Romania, but also Europe’s history; and how the city played such a crucial part in that. This extensive and fascinating tour taught me more about European history than I ever learnt in school and Mark-Alex’s knowledge and enthusiasm for his home city was just staggering!
We had a day long tour with Ilona, Florin's colleague, who took us on a guided tour of Cluj-Napoca and then to Turda Salt Mine. Her knowledge of the history of Cluj was very impressive, she was great company and we got much more value out of our day in Cluj thanks to her! We would definitely recommend Romanian Friend, all is very professionally handled and we got fast responses to our questions and requests. This was the first time we have had a personal guide, and after this being such a good experience we will use them again, should we return to Romania.
I have traveled around Romania twice (once as a single woman and now married) and have never felt as welcome as when I was with Vlad on the photography tour. While I am not a professional photographer by any stretch of the imagination, I truly enjoy seeing the more real side of small town life. And Marius from Romanian Friend replied to my request IMMEDIATELY upon receiving it and within the hour on the SAME DAY I was on a private tour of the most beautiful villages with the most real and generous people, the guide included! If you are looking for a way to get beyond the basic tourist attraction, Romanian Friend is the way to go!
We had a great day driving with Bogdan on a tour to see Transfagarasan Highway. The mountain scenery was spectacular in the autumn colours. Bogdan was an excellent guide during the whole day. Very friendly and knowledgeable, with a good sense of humour and a keen eye for Romanian landscape and photo opportunities. Thanks to Bogdan we came back a lot wiser on Romanian history as well. We can wholeheartedly recommend taking this ride and we will definitely contact Romanian Friend again next time we visit Romania!
We really enjoyed this tour! It was incredible to see wild bears up so close. We saw 2 grown females and a grown female with her 3 cubs. Simona was really helpful and informative and was able to answer all of our questions. It was an invaluable experience and Romanian Friend were a great company to work with. They were able to accommodate us on very short notice and it was great value for money! Would recommend to anyone! Thanks guys!
We had a brilliant time Bear Watching, thank you very much. Simona was excellent and did a really good job. We were delighted to actually see five bears and the whole process was done very professionally. Our group of six all felt the same and it was the highlight of our week in Romania. Thank you once for your input and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend you to anyone!
We had a great day with Adela who was helpful, enthusiastic and really awesome as a guide. Everything went well and as planned and we found out a lot about Sibiu area and Transfagarasan, which was the highlight of our trip. Thanks Romanian Friend!
Great resource for anyone planning to visit Romania! I found it very easy to book through Romanian Friend and the communication was excellent prior to, during and after our trip. The blog post for first-time visitors and Cluj city guide Marius sent us were a nice touch, and we found both very helpful! And the hiking tour with Radu - excellent, beautiful and a unique experience in Romania's Carpathians, also seeing local village life. Would absolutely recommend these guys. Well done!
I had a really great hiking tour with Radu – he was very good company and I greatly enjoyed not only the tour itself but also our conversations. What’s more, he’s very passionate about the outdoors, and was always encouraging yet not pushing during our hike. It was nice to enjoy views from the mountains in remote areas, a welcome change from the cities indeed. In addition, communication with the people from Romanian Friend and Radu was excellent, and I was able to do the trip on very short notice. Definitely can only recommend and thanks for setting it up so easy!
The horse ridding trip in the Romanian countryside was one of the the highlights of our 10 days in Romania trip. After putting our bag aside, we helped prepare fresh food. Peppers, tomatoes home-grown and home made cheese, some meat and other fresh delicious snacks were served on the big wooden table outside. After that we went for a horse ride for the first time. Mariuka, the host, knew exactly which horse matches our character/personality best and showed us from the beginning how to say hi and make first approaches to build a relationship with the horse. The first ride was amazing in the forest in the middle of the nature! On the second day we had the best coffee brewed with fresh warm milk from the cows. Rares, Mariuka's boyfriend, who was also taking great care of us, joked around with the horses and it was a very nice atmosphere and absolutely stress-less. If you go there in expectation of a hourly time schedule, you will be see that you have to be flexible - it is all more or less spontaneous. But in any case it was a wonderful experience and I would go there anytime again!
I really thank you, my Romanian Friend! You have made my stay in Romania special memory. Romania has impressively beautiful nature and villages. I wanted to see real Romania and Iulia granted my wish :) Even horse ride came true while staying at a rural farm in Transylvania! I came from Tokyo- crowded, sleepless, the largest city in Japan. The life felt very different when visiting traditional Romanian villages. It felt calm, delightful, simple, traditional, happy.... :) that's what I wanted to see long time! Without you, my trip to Romania wouldn't be very different from the trip to other European countries. I fell in love with authentic Romania and will be back for sure. Murtumescu!
We really enjoyed the bear watching experience in Brasov! Simona was a knowledgeable and friendly guide, the short walk to the bear hide was really beautiful and we had a really great view of the bears from the cabin. We would definitely recommend this tour to others visiting the Brasov area! We also found the Romanian Friend website really helpful in general for our trip to Romania, particularly the city travel guides which gave us lots of useful tips on what to see and where to go.
From Timisoara we went on two beautiful hikes off the beaten path with Flavia: on one day trip we visited Danube Gorges and King Decebal Statue and on the second we went on a hiking tour to Valea Cernei National Park. Among many highlights we can mention walking through a cave filled with bats, drinking homemade plumb liquor with locals and walking through the gorges. Flavia is very knowledgeable about the whole area, and she was able to change plans and customize the tour on the spot to match our preferences. Moreover, Flavia is a really cool person and we had a lot of fun doing the hikes with her. Thanks to Romanian Friend for setting up a nice and easy to use website and providing the right contact, and thank you Flavia for an amazing experience!
I can honestly say that this was one of the best day trips I have taken so far. My guide Bogdan was very knowledgeable, polite and easy to get along with. I had a lot of fun, learned a lot about Romania and saw a lot of great things. I can't complain about anything. Still can't decide which is more beautiful: Transfagarasan or Vidraru Lake. I'd like to visit more of your beautiful country in the future, thank you Romanian Friend :)
Romanian Friend made it possible to book a tour in Bukarest for me and my two oscillating kids with only a few hours short notice! So we had a great time with our guide Elena to the important points of Communist Walking Tour of Bucharest in Bukarest! She shared all her accumulated background knowledge about the revolution in 1989 and the former communistic regime and answered patiently all our questions. Our tour through Bukarest was much longer than planned because of the interesting facts she told us. Thanks for supporting us in such an uncomplicated way!
The Bucharest Street Food Tour in Local Markets was very nice and I enjoy it a lot!! I have to say it would be difficult for people not to enjoy this tour because you the food is great and with lots of alcohol. And the first beer started at 11:30!! The guide was also very nice and after we finished he sent us an email about all suggestions and tips we asked. Not only that people in the group were also very nice. Thank you!!
My recent 2-day tour visiting Maramures region with Florin was spectacular. Florin's knowledge is boundless, his enthusiasm contagious and his well-planned itinerary excellent. The Maramures region is packed with wonderful scenery, wondrous wooden churches and a center for maintaining century's old traditional lifestyles. The staff at Romanian Friend couldn't have been more helpful or courteous. The entire experience was A+ and I can highly recommend joining Florin for a trip through Maramures.
We had a fantastic day with Florin - he is an ideal guide, super friendly and welcoming, very knowledgeable, and passionate about Transylvania and its history! The salt mine is really something else. We had been looking forward to the installations inside but the really amazing thing is the mine itself. Alba Iulia is an extraordinary piece of work, and Florin could point out to us a multitude of details. All topped off by a drive back to Cluj through beautiful scenery. We hope to be back in Romania again and use Romanian Friend to find another great trip and guide!
