Romania's transport infrastructure is different from Western Europe — not worse, but different, and requiring different expectations. This guide tells you what to expect, what works well, what is slow, and how to make the most of a country where the journey is often as good as the destination.
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Romania Soul Tours designs custom journeys. Max 12 people. Local guides born in the regions they show you.
Flying Into Romania: Your Options
Bucharest Henri Coanda (OTP) is the main international airport — direct from London Luton, Stansted and Gatwick with Wizz Air, Ryanair and TAROM. Cluj (CLJ) is the northern gateway, served by Wizz Air from Luton. Sibiu (SBZ) has a Wizz Air service from Luton — excellent for the Fagaras region.
Open jaw routing is particularly useful in Romania. Fly into Bucharest and home from Cluj, or vice versa. The country is 650km from north to south and having different arrival and departure points makes a genuine difference to a 7–12 night itinerary. See our airports and transport guide.
Open jaw routing is particularly useful in Romania. Fly into Bucharest and home from Cluj, or vice versa. The country is 650km from north to south and having different arrival and departure points makes a genuine difference to a 7–12 night itinerary. See our airports and transport guide.
Driving in Romania
Romania has a good motorway network connecting the main cities, and reasonable regional roads. The mountain roads — particularly in the Carpathians — can be slow, winding and occasionally poorly surfaced. This is not a problem; it is part of the experience. A drive through the Bicaz gorge at 30km/h with the limestone walls 100m above you is considerably better than it would be at 90km/h.
Romanian drivers can be fast, impatient and creative about overtaking. If you are driving yourself, the main rule is: expect the unexpected. If you are in one of our vehicles, you have professional drivers who have driven these roads hundreds of times.
Romanian drivers can be fast, impatient and creative about overtaking. If you are driving yourself, the main rule is: expect the unexpected. If you are in one of our vehicles, you have professional drivers who have driven these roads hundreds of times.
Trains: Slow, Scenic, Atmospheric
Romanian trains are reliable in the sense that they go where they say they will go, but they are not quick by Western European standards. Bucharest to Brasov takes approximately 2.5 hours by the faster intercity service. Bucharest to Cluj takes 6–8 hours depending on the service.
The scenery on many routes is excellent — the Prahova valley, the Bicaz gorge approach, the line through the Mures valley. Trains are clean, inexpensive and used by Romanians rather than tourists, which gives them an entirely different atmosphere from tourist transport.
The scenery on many routes is excellent — the Prahova valley, the Bicaz gorge approach, the line through the Mures valley. Trains are clean, inexpensive and used by Romanians rather than tourists, which gives them an entirely different atmosphere from tourist transport.
Guided vs Independent: The Honest Assessment
Independent travel in Romania is entirely possible. The country is safe, increasingly signposted in English and has good digital infrastructure. But it requires considerably more preparation than France or Italy, because: the language barrier is more significant in rural areas; the best experiences — family homes, working farms, village life — are not booked on platforms; and the knowledge of which unmarked road leads to which extraordinary view is genuinely held by local guides.
A guided tour does not mean a bus tour. Our maximum group size is 12. Our vehicles are comfortable and go exactly where your guide says. You eat where the guide knows the owner.
A guided tour does not mean a bus tour. Our maximum group size is 12. Our vehicles are comfortable and go exactly where your guide says. You eat where the guide knows the owner.
Our Approach: Everything Included
Every Romania Soul Tours journey includes airport pickup and return transfer, all in-country travel in a Mercedes Vito, and a guide who knows the roads, the routes and the people along them.
The price difference between a guided tour and organising the same journey independently is smaller than people expect — particularly when you factor in the time value of researching accommodation, transport and activities in a country where most of the best options are not on booking platforms.
See all tours or build a custom journey.
The price difference between a guided tour and organising the same journey independently is smaller than people expect — particularly when you factor in the time value of researching accommodation, transport and activities in a country where most of the best options are not on booking platforms.
See all tours or build a custom journey.
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Plan Your Romania Journey with Us
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Want to Visit These Places with a Local Guide?
Romania Soul Tours designs custom journeys. Max 12 people. Local guides born in the regions they show you.
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What Our Travellers Say
★★★★★4.9 / 5· 500+ reviews
★★★★★
"Romania Soul Tours showed us a Romania that does not exist in guidebooks. The village stays were extraordinary."
Margaret & David T. Edinburgh · Maramures 7 Nights 2025
★★★★★
"I came for the hiking and left in love with a whole country. The Carpathians were completely empty and breathtaking."
James R. Bristol · Active Romania 9 Nights 2025
★★★★★
"Personal service from first WhatsApp to final transfer was outstanding. We are already planning our return."
Patricia O. Dublin · Danube Delta 7 Nights 2025
Free Itinerary in 24 Hours
Want to Experience Romania with a Local Guide?
Tell us your dates. A Romania specialist designs a personal itinerary within 24 hours. Free. No obligation. No automated responses.
✓ Tours from £395✓ 30% deposit✓ PTS protected✓ Free cancellation✓ 3–30 nights✓ Max 12 people
Secure Booking — 30% Deposit
Your payment goes into a PTS-protected trust account. Zero risk. Fully refundable.
🔒 Book & Pay Securely via PTS →What Our Travellers Say
★★★★★4.9 / 5· 500+ reviews
★★★★★
"Romania Soul Tours showed us a Romania that does not exist in guidebooks. The village stays were extraordinary."
Margaret & David T. Edinburgh · Maramures 7 Nights 2025
★★★★★
"I came for the hiking and left in love with a whole country. The Carpathians were completely empty and breathtaking."
James R. Bristol · Active Romania 9 Nights 2025
★★★★★
"Personal service from first WhatsApp to final transfer was outstanding. We are already planning our return."
Patricia O. Dublin · Danube Delta 7 Nights 2025
Free Itinerary in 24 Hours
Want to Experience Romania with a Local Guide?
Tell us your dates. A Romania specialist designs a personal itinerary within 24 hours. Free. No obligation. No automated responses.
✓ Tours from £395✓ 30% deposit✓ PTS protected✓ Free cancellation✓ 3–30 nights✓ Max 12 people
Secure Booking — 30% Deposit
Your payment goes into a PTS-protected trust account. Zero risk. Fully refundable.
🔒 Book & Pay Securely via PTS →