On Dracula's Trail CEE2602
Our first riding day took us from Vienna into Hungary, where we crossed a border that was once part of the Iron Curtain. At the memorial marking its former location, we paused to remember a time when this frontier divided Europe and reflected on the events that changed history forever. From there, we continued to the charming town of Sopron, one of Hungary's oldest and most picturesque cities. A great lunchspot at the river boat in Györ and then straight to Budapest. A very warm and sunny first riding day.
After our first riding day, it was time to enjoy the first rest day of the tour in Budapest. A rest day may come early in the itinerary, but Budapest is a city that truly deserves a full day. Many explored the historic old town, visited the impressive Buda Castle, admired the iconic Hungarian Parliament Building, and sampled delicious Hungarian specialities. For those eager to keep riding, an optional tour to Lake Balaton offered scenic roads and beautiful lakeside views.
Good Morning Budapest. We woke up another time this morning in our hotel close to the Danube. After enjoying the rich breakfast buffet we met in the lobby for our dayli briefing. The day sounds pretty interesting as we will face two very different landscapes of Hungary. First the so called Hungarian alps, the Matra and Bükk mountains are the highest of Hungary. And after that we will ride through the puszta, a very flap piece of the country. Excited for the day we got on the bikes and started our today’s journey. Our first coffee stop was already up in the mountains from where we had a beautiful view on the area which is known as the Hungarian alps. Some very nice winding roads brought us up and down and up again. In the middle of this corner-heaven we suddenly stopped on the side of the road. Our Guide in the support van prepared a very nice picninc for us which we enjoyed a lot. The best was that we still had quite some curves coming up after this lunch break. But a s promised this morning the where getting less and less and we arrived in the Puszta. Some very straight roads brought us to our Hotel in Debrecen. Some enjoyed the wellness area a bit before we all met again for our dinner. It was a trying day and so all went to bed early, trying to get some energy for the next day.
Riding from Debrecen to Deva, we enjoyed scenic roads during the last miles riding in Hungary towards the Romanian border. Crossing was easy, we waved at the custom officers and were allowed to pass without stopping. Oradea was for sure a big surprise. We continued our way south, the road leading us through rural Romanian landscapes, small fields patched up on the rolling hills, seperated by tree lines and bushes. A great twisty section in the Apuseni Mountains before reaching Hotel Conacul Archia, were beautiful horses and a nice pool greeted us.
The last evening was getting a little cold here in Deva and so is the morning as we woke up. But the breakfast outside sitting in the sun was really great. We met in the lobby for our dayli briefing. It’s gonna be another long day but therefor with riding wise one of the highlights of Romania. The Transalpina or „Kings Road“ is right in front of us and so we are not wasting any time but get on the bikes to move in that direction. After our morning coffee stop we continued and suddenly the whole nature changed as we entered the mountains. Some small rivers and lots of green plants on the side of the road was a very welcome change from all that dry fields of the last days. And finally we arrived at the intersection where the Transalpina begun for us. Countless curves, right/left; tight/long sweepers; switchbacks. Everything what we dreamed of was there and we had lots of fun to ride this amazing road. We ate some lunch on the way and than the fun just goes on. Almost until we arrived in Sibiu.
There is only one way to describe the Transfăgărășan: simply awesome. Every kilometre is packed with sweeping curves, dramatic scenery, and unforgettable riding. After a relaxing coffee break at the summit, we continued through the famous tunnel beneath the main mountain ridge. On the southern side, the road opened up to breathtaking views over the valley below. We followed the road for another half hour before turning around and enjoying the entire experience once again on the ride back to Sibiu.
We started the morning after our rest day quiet relaxed but still according to our normal schedule. The highlight for today was set: The visit of Draculas Castle in Bran. But first we took some beautiful backcountry roads which gave us the opportunity to look a little closer to the live on the Romanian countryside. Beautiful villages along the way combined with some twisty roads brought us to Fagaras. From far away we could see already what we where heading for: The Cathedral of John the Baptist. The golden roof was shining majestically in the sun. We head a look inside, walked around and could have some coffee. Also the Citadel right next to it was impressive enough to take some pictures. Time to move on to get to Bran where we enjoyed a nice lunch and went to Draculas castle afterwards. We met at the bikes and took some twisty roads to Brasov where we arrived at the hotel ready for a shower and some fresh drinks. Later we had dinner in the hotel restaurant all together before we went happy to bed, looking forward to the next day.
Our first stop was the impressive Prejmer Fortified Church, one of the best-preserved fortified churches in Transylvania and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Behind its mighty defensive walls, some of us explored the maze of storage rooms and learned how entire communities once sought refuge here during times of invasion. The route then led us to the spectacular Rupea Fortress, perched high above the surrounding countryside. After a photo of the beautifully restored fortress, we were rewarded with breathtaking views across the rolling hills of Transylvania. Narrow, winding country roads carried us through picturesque villages where life still follows a slower rhythm. Horse-drawn carts shared the road with motorcycles, colourful homes lined the streets, and everyday village life unfolded before our eyes. Passing through several Romani communities offered another glimpse into the rich cultural diversity of rural Romania, making this part of the journey as fascinating as the scenery itself. By lunchtime, we rolled into the medieval citadel of Sighișoara, one of the best-preserved medieval towns in Europe. Its colourful streets and centuries-old atmosphere provided the perfect ending to another memorable day on two wheels.
We slept a very bit longer this morning to enjoy the wonderful breakfast buffet. During the dayli briefing we decided to arrive early in Bistrita to enjoy the city a bit. So we picked a nice but not so long route and started in direction of our first stop. The fortified church in Biertan stands majestically over the village. We walked around to get some good pictures and that worked like a appetizer to see more of the impressive building. That’s why we decided to wait a bit until the church would open, a coffee in the bar nearby helped us killing the waiting time. We got in and didn’t regret that at all. Such a beautiful architecture is really worth seeing it. And we where so lucky that we got a short but unbelievable detailed tour. After we saw everything we left the church behind and kept on going towards our next stop. Due to our prolonged stay in the church we decided to change plans. Early arrival was cancelled and we went to a pretty place in Ludus for our lunch. Well energised we moved on and arrived still quiet early in Bistrita. We had a shower and afterwards some of us decided to get some beers in town. For the dinner we met all again in the hotel restaurant and had amazing food. We shared some things which happened during the day, talked about this and that and shared some thoughts about what’s coming tomorrow.
Today's ride was all about discovering one of Romania's most authentic and rewarding motorcycle regions. Leaving Bistrița behind, we followed an unforgettable route along winding country roads through the rolling hills of Maramureș, where every bend revealed another spectacular view. Far away from busy highways, we enjoyed quiet back roads linking traditional Romanian villages, where horse-drawn carts still share the road with motorcycles and everyday life moves at its own relaxed pace. It was a ride that perfectly captured the charm of rural Romania. One of the day's most memorable stops was at the beautiful wooden church in Rogoz. The route continued over scenic hills and ridges, rewarding us with breathtaking panoramas across forests, meadows and picturesque valleys. Every viewpoint invited us to stop, take a deep breath and appreciate the untouched beauty of northern Romania. As the afternoon drew to a close, we made our way to Satu Mare after a day filled with fantastic riding, stunning scenery and unforgettable encounters. It was another perfect reminder that some of the best motorcycle experiences are found on the small roads that rarely appear on the typical tourist map.
From Hotel Hugo in Satu Mare, we rode west to cross the border into Hungary. After a coffee stop in a cute little village, we carried on towards the river Theiss. We had a great picnic there before we went to Tokaj, where the famous sweet, heavy white wine known as Tokaji originates from. We continued north, until we reached the village of Füzer in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén county, where Füzer castle sits on a hill top, overlooking the surrounding lands. Our journey soon brought us smoothly into Slovakia, on backroads meandring through forests and farmland, and none of us actually noticed the border-crossing. Kosice is a small, charming city with a long main square in it's center, surrounded by old buildings, two or three storeys high, restaurant tables and people enjoying their evening. Our hotels' front entrace, part of the ensamble, alowed us to walk right into this lovely scene, after enjoying a beautiful dinner, being served excellant food.
Another sunny morning where we woke up on our trip today. It feels pretty much like a normal morning routine already, getting up, breakfast, luggage to the chase-van, dayli briefing. But even though, and even the faces getting a bit more tired every day, everyone is still excited for the coming days. And so we started our today’s adventure and left Kosice behind us. Riding on Amal an twisty backcountry roads through the Slovakian paradise, up the ore mountains and towards our first stop of today. Since we caught up some time we had a short coffeestop in a tiny village and where still on time when we arrived for the visit of the famous Ochtina cave which we entered and got to see some beautiful aragonite formations. We continued our journey on nice roads and eventually had a stop over to get some pizza for lunch. We decided to go afterwards to the hotel in Bojnice without another stop in order to save some time; Some wanted to visit the Castle in Bojnice, and that’s what they did after the arrival. A very beautiful castle. And another very beautiful day, some even said it was the best day of the trip during our dinner in the hotel. We spoke a little bit about the day and also the days before but everyone seemed to be tired and we went to bed early.
Getting up this morning felt a little more difficult than the last days. Probably because this is the last riding day of our amazing tour. But since we expecting another perfect day we made it to the breakfast and got ready for the ride. The dayli briefing took place in the sun in front of our bikes and as soon as that was done we where ready to ride. First stop was already after a few minutes right in front of the beautiful fairy tale castle in Bojnice to take a group picture. We quickly moved on to a little village up in the mountains for some coffee and to look at these beautiful painted houses. Going down from there where as amazing as going up. Twisty and narrow roads through some forest’s are fun guaranteed always. To catch the amazing landscape of Slovakias mountains in some pictures we made our way on similar curvy roads to the next mountain top. Pretty windy up here but really nice views. And down again, it’s time to get to a restaurant for lunch though. The Basilica of Mary’s seven sorrows was visible already miles ahead but first we ate some lunch to get the energy for another church visit. Time to get to Vienna, unfortunately. But we have to return our bikes and of course want to take a shower before we go to the dinner. We went out to a restaurant for our Fairwell dinner had once again delicious menus and talked about all our experiences of the past two weeks. Sharing highlights and memories from the trip felt really good. And so our journey found a very happy ending. See you all soon!