Ukraine - getting to Romania

[Harriyamman]

Just got back from a tour of Ukraine and thought the following information would be useful for anyone travelling from east to west. We followed the coast from Odesa to Bilorad Dnistrosv'kyj using the railway/road bridge to cross the Dinster. The road is no worse than many of the western Ukraine roads (Liviv/Vinnitsyia/Uman for example). This way you avoid the hassle of crossing the Moldova border then coming back into to Ukraine using the E87.

From Bilorad we picked up the E87 to Bolhrad, Izmail was the other option, we just decided on Bolhrad. We ended up on a "very" rural road (usual potholes, broken concrete) which turned to a dirt/sand effort for a mile or 2 and good gravel for a few more. Ok for us, dry day - the sandy bit could be a bit slimy in the wet. The road closely followed the west side of the lake and had very little traffic (2 cars). We were two-up on a FJR1300, so any solo rider shouldn't have a problem.

Eventually ended up in Reni for the border crossings. You leave Ukraine and enter Moldova. Postings we read on various websites made the Moldovans sound like thugs, quite the contrary. They were polite, bemused by our appearance and made every effort to get our entry process over as painlessly as possible and wished us good luck. We then rode the 1km across Moldova to exit (more paperwork), cross the bridge over the Danube and enter Romania (more paperwork).

The snag in all this is we are stuck with our Ukranian money as there wasn't anywhere to change at the border. If you use this route, go into Reni and try your luck there before attempting the border crossing. No one wants Ukranian money, will try our luck at the airport later this month.

We left Odesa at 8:30 am and arrived in Galati, Romania about 3:30 pm. Recommend the Hotel Magnus (Hotel Magnus - Prima Pagina) if you are feeling flush. The hotel has free secure bike parking (all night guard, locked gates), free minibar, free internet and laptops in the lobby, beautiful room and cracking breakfast for £46.36 for a double. Luxury.