Sighisoara

Romania: A Journey through With Gillian Craig 16th – 22nd September 2016

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Romania: A Journey through Transylvania With Gillian Craig 16th – 22nd September 2016 Contact Flora Scott-Williams Direct Line 020 7386 4643 Telephone 020 7386 4620 Fax 020 7386 8652 Email [email protected]

Gillian Craig Gillian’s family and professional life has led to worldwide travel. Born in Rome and educated in Italy, Switzerland and England, Gillian is bilingual in Italian, fluent in French and speaks some Spanish. As the Director of the BADA Antiques & Fine Art Fair London, Gillian now lives between London and Italy. She is also fascinated with Eastern Europe and has organised and led tours to Macedonia, St. Petersburg, Dresden, Georgia, Bulgaria, Romania, Morocco, and Italy. As well as studying the history, art and architecture, she enjoys exploring the culture, traditions and local life and getting to know the character of a country.

Detailed Itinerary

This captivating tour of Transylvania is the perfect introduction to one of Romania’s least known and largely unspoiled regions. Enjoy special private visits with an expert local guide, stay in charming well located hotels throughout, and taste a variety of regional dishes and wines from Copse Mare, the most important wine region of Transylvania.

This tour focuses on the magnificent scenery and timeless medieval towns and villages including restoration projects by the Mihai Eminescu Trust. The Trust is dedicated to the conservation and regeneration of villages and communities in Transylvania, the Patron of which is HRH Prince Charles, and this tour includes a £50 per person donation to The Trust.

Our journey begins in Sibiu, the largest and wealthiest of the seven walled citadels built in the 12th century by German settlers known as Transylvanian Saxons. We visit Alma Vii where the Mihai Eminescu Trust has restored houses and trained local people in traditional building skills. We also visit Biertan, seat of the Bishops of Transylvania, Richis and Copsa Mare, and once centres of wine making.

We drive east to the beautifully preserved Medieval town of Sighisoara, with its ancient crooked houses and alleyways dominated by a magnificent fortress, and the ancient German Saxon village of Viscri with its imposing fortified church where we will visit a converted Saxon village home and explore the countryside and traditions largely unchanged by the march of time.

On our way to we visit the royal of Pelisore and Peles driving through Brasov founded in the 12th century and Sinaia, a country resort frequented by the Romanian aristocracy. Our journey ends in Bucharest, once known as ‘Little Paris’ for its charming fin de siècle buildings and boulevards, where we explore the city and see Ceaucescu’s Parliament .

Old Town, Sibiu Alma Vill

Day 1: Friday, 16th September London / Bucharest / Sibiu Morning departure from London Heathrow on a British Airways flight to Bucharest Airport.

On arrival mid-afternoon, transfer to Sibiu (journey time approximately 3.5 hours), and check in to the boutique Am Ring Hotel, a four-star hotel ideally located in the old city centre and where two nights are spent. Dinner at the hotel.

Day 2: Saturday, 17th September Sibiu Morning walking tour of the town including the Upper Town with its Big and Small square, the Old Town Hall Tower, and the Citadel to see the impressive old fortifications.

Lunch at a local restaurant. Continue to the Brukenthal Museum, which opened in 1817, and is one of the most charming art galleries in Romania. Its collection comprises of 15th – 20th century European paintings, prints and sculptures. Visit the Astra Museum, an open-air museum featuring 340 buildings in over 100 hectares of parkland. Return to the hotel. Dinner at a local restaurant.

Fortified Church, Biertan Apafi Manor

Day 3: Sunday, 18th September Sibiu / Alma Vii / Richis / Mosna / Sighisoara Depart for the old Saxon village of Alma Vii (with luggage) where the Mihai Eminescu Trust is restoring many of its buildings including the fortified church and citadel. Meet project manager, Michaela Türk, who is overseeing the restoration projects, particularly of the fortified church. Continue to the remote village of Richis to visit its beautiful Gothic church, unique in Romania for its stone carvings of “green men”. The last remaining Saxon Transylvanian in the village will guide us in the church.

Lunch at a beautiful restored Saxon House owned by Lucy Abel Smith. Continue to Mosna to see an impressive fortified church and the Schuster family organic farm which produces fresh milk, cream cheeses, herbs, fruit and teas, where we will be shown around by Willy Schuster. Continue to Sighisoara, birthplace of Vlad the Impaler and a designated UNESCO World Heritage site, and check into the boutique Fronius Residence hotel (or similar), situated in the historical district, close to the Clock Tower and the Sighisoara Citadel, and where three nights are spent. The untouched Old Town is a huddle of ancient crooked houses and alleyways, dominated by the 14th century medieval Clock Tower and the looming battlements and spires of the fortress, which is considered to be ‘the most beautiful inhabited fortress in Europe’ and ‘the most beautiful and complete site of Medieval architecture in Romania’. Dinner at a local restaurant.

Day 4: Monday, 19th September Sighisoara, Malancrav, Copsa Mare & Biertan Morning at leisure in Sighisoara. Transfer (at 11.00 hrs) to the village of Malancrev, which has retained more Saxons than any other Saxon village in Transylvania. Visit the Lutheran fortified church to see its rare and impressive 14th and 15th century frescoes and 16th century altarpiece – the oldest entire piece of its sort still in its original location in Transylvania. Visit the two local weavers, Maria Nistor and Elena Neagu, who will show their weaving skills using a loom to make curtains, carpets and traditional embroideries. Maria and Elena made all the embroideries and cloths which adorn Apafi Manor, where we will be having lunch. Apafi Manor, restored by the Mihai Eminescu Trust as a private house, was originally built by the Hungarian princely family, Apafi, probably in the 15th century. Meet Caroline Fernolend (TBC), director of the Mihai Eminescu Trust, who will give a short presentation on the Trust and the house.

There will be a short optional horse and cart ride in the village before continuing to the village of Biertan, where its impressive fortified church Saxon church is perched on a hill and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The eastern bastion of the church was not only used for defence but it was also a prison for men and women who wanted a divorce. They were kept in prison with only bread and water until they had changed their minds. It is said that in 300 years only one divorce was ever recorded. Continue to the neighbouring village of Copsa Mare, an unspoiled Saxon village which owned the largest vineyards in the "Tara Vinului" (Wine Land), the most important wine region of Transylvania. The economic growth helped people to initiate the building of a fortified church to compete with the one in Biertan, the most famous one across the region. Visit the church before dinner in a beautifully restored Saxon Transylvanian house. Transfer back to the hotel.

Prince Charles’ house,Viscri Alma Vii

Day 5: Tuesday 20th September Sighisoara & Viscri Morning walking tour of Sighisoara and visit the Vlad Dracul House where Prince Vlad Dracul, father of Vlad the Impaler, lived in the 15th century, the 17th century stair passage and the massive Church on the hill, which dates from 1345 with beautiful Gothic style decorative sculptures and unique 15th-century wall paintings.

Drive south to Viscri village for lunch with Caroline Fernolend. Walking tour of the village, renowned for its traditional Saxon architecture which has been preserved by the few Saxons who remain here. With the help of the Mihai Eminescu Trust, several of Viscri’s traditional houses have been restored and, following a visit by Prince Charles in 1997, the village was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1999. Visit Prince Charles’ house and the white fortified church. The central church dates back to 1100, and the encircling fortifications of sturdy walls and watch-towers were added around 1525. Return to Sighisoara Dinner at a local restaurant.

Day 6: Wednesday, 21st September Sighisoara / Sinaia / Bucharest Morning departure to Bucharest. Drive through the old town of Brasov (also called Kronstadt), at the foot of Mount Tampa, one of the seven cities founded by the Saxons in Transylvania in the 12th century. See Brasov’s famous Council Square, one of the most beautiful squares in Romania, and the Black Church, Brasov’s most important landmark and allegedly the largest church between Vienna and Istanbul. Towering over the Council Square and the old town, it was named the Black Church after a big fire blackened its walls in 1689. Continue to Sinaia, known as ‘The Pearl of the Carpathians’, set amidst superb mountain scenery, and once a resort frequented by the Romanian aristocracy. Visit both Pelisor and Peles Castle, which were built in the late 19th century by King Carol I and are largely decorated by his famous wife Elisabeta who wrote novels under the name of Carmen Sylva.

Lunch at a local restaurant in the grounds of the Royal Palaces of Pelisor and Peles. After lunch continue to Bucharest and visit the outside of the Palace of Parliament, built by Ceaucescu, a frightening example of his megalomania and a must to see. A monstrous building, second only in size to the Pentagon, it took 20,000 people, working three shifts a day, five years to complete. Nine square kilometres of the city were flattened and 40,000 people had their homes flattened to accommodate it. Transfer to the 4-star Residence Domenii Plaza Hotel where one night is spent. Dinner at a local restaurant.

Peles Castle Parliament Palace

Day 7: Thursday, 22nd September Bucharest / London Morning tour of Bucharest. Visit the National Art Museum, located in the former royal palace in Revolution Square. It features notable collections of medieval and modern Romanian art, as well as the international collection assembled by the Romanian royal family. Continue to the Revolution Square and see the beautiful 18th century red brick Kretzulescu church, one of the oldest churches in Bucharest. Stop at the wonderful shop in the Museum of Romanian Peasants where you can buy everything from painted eggs to rugs before walking to lunch along the Calea Victoriei Boulevard and the beautiful Lipscani district with its smart cafes, antique shops and silversmiths.

Lunch at a local restaurant. Transfer to Bucharest Airport for a British Airways late afternoon flight to London, arriving London Heathrow early evening.

Tour Price

COST PER PERSON: £2,395 Single supplement: £200 A fee of £95 per person will be charged for those who would like to travel out or back separately from the main group.

The tour cost includes:  economy class scheduled flights  air passenger duty, passenger service charge, airline security charges, airport taxes and fuel surcharges where applicable – currently £59.61 (based on 2015 rates and liable to change without notice)  accommodation throughout as shown in the itinerary  all meals  a limited amount of wine with meals  all visits and excursions as per the itinerary  a £50 per person donation to the Mihai Eminescu Trust  all transportation as detailed in the itinerary  all entrance fees  local English-speaking guide  the services of your tour leader  gratuities to guide  gratuities to driver  gratuities in restaurants  porterage

The tour cost does NOT include:  travel insurance  items of personal expenditure (e.g. telephone calls / laundry etc.)  horse and cart ride in Malancrav  government levies or taxes introduced after costing and publication of this programme on 26.06.15

Fitness to travel Whilst we do not impose any age limitations on joining a tour, participants must be reasonably fit. The very nature of the sightseeing involved in our tours (and the difficulties of direct access by coach in various places) means that a considerable amount of walking and standing is unavoidable on almost all tours. We regret that our tours are not suitable for people who have difficulty in walking, may require wheelchair assistance at any time, or are unable to keep pace with the group. If you are in any doubt as to the suitability of a tour, please make this known to us before you book and we will advise you accordingly. The Ultimate Travel Company reserves the right to decline a reservation without necessarily giving a reason. Your tour leader may also decline to take participants on particular excursions if they feel that the rest of the group will be held up.

Changes to the Itinerary Please note, that certain elements of this itinerary, and/or the order of events, may well be subject to alteration due to circumstances beyond our control.

Airline Tickets As a tour operator we have access to special airfares. While these offer good value, they do carry certain restrictions applied by the airline. Please ask us for details.

Note: If you are thinking about using air miles to upgrade to a premium cabin on the flights, please check with us first as fare restrictions might not permit this.

Health Requirements There are no mandatory health requirements for visitors to Romania, and no inoculations are required. We would advise you to get a free European Health Insurance Card before leaving the UK. The EHIC isn’t a substitute for medical and travel insurance, but it entitles you to state provided medical treatment that may become necessary during your trip. Any treatment provided is on the same terms as Romanian nationals. If you don’t have your EHIC with you or you’ve lost it, you can call the Department of Health Overseas Healthcare Team (+44 191 218 1999) to get a Provisional Replacement Certificate. The EHIC won’t cover medical repatriation, ongoing medical treatment or non-urgent treatment, so you should make sure you have adequate travel insurance and accessible funds to cover the cost of any medical treatment and repatriation.

Passport and Visa Information Passengers should hold a full passport. British passport holders do not require a visa to visit Romania for stays less than 3 months. Nationals of other countries should consult their local Romanian Consulate. Please ensure that your passport is valid for the proposed duration of your stay; you do not need any additional period of validity on your passport beyond this.

FCO Advice

Travel advice issued by the Foreign & Commonwealth Office can be viewed at www.gov.uk/knowbeforeyougo.