Balkans tour by a newby
 

Hello everyone! I’m here to interrogate your vast collective knowledge! :helpsmilie:
I’ve booked flights and bike hire in Bucharest for 17 days around the Balkans.
Many of my questions are likely to be on the stupid side so I beg forgiveness before I start doh
I expect I will have a ton of questions but I’m going to start with my draft itinerary and questions
Day 1 Bucharest to pick up the bikes
Does anyone know an hotel near the old city with safe parking for the bikes?
Day 2 is Bucharest to Brasov today I’d like to ride the cheia pass
Day 3 is Brasov to Sibiu via the transfagarasan. On maps it looks like there’s a tarmac road, DN7C is the entire road tarmac? Anyone got any hints or tips? Is Sibiu a good place to stay?
Day 4 Sibiu to Drobeta-Turnu

I hope it’s ok to ask, we’ve never done a self guide tour, he’s 70 and I’m 60 it’s a big adventure! Thanks in advance for any help

I was there 3 years ago. TA is wonderful, TF is with not so good tarmac, but OK. About Sibiu, yes, definitely spend at least one night there, go to the old town.
Safe trip.
Petre

If you're doing the Transfagarasan south-to-north, then from Brasov you'll be going down past Bran, where Dracula's Castle is. (Not really Dracula's, but a very pretty castle and worth a stopover.)

DN7C, the Transfagarasan, is indeed tarmac all the way. It's also all tourist traffic. The Transalpina is also nice, a bit less stunning, and an actual main road used by lots of local traffic.

The one thing I'd recommend to anyone in Romania is the Turda Salt Mine. Astonishing experience. They turned the entire complex into a fantasy theme park.

If you want great riding roads with much less traffic, check out the southwest of the country, Semenic/Cheile National Parks. Aim for Bigar Cascade Falls, and just explore. I loved DN58 particularly.

Love Sibiu, the old town centre area is nice to spend a free day wondering around chilling out. Enjoy.

You didn't mention in you post WHEN you want to go to Romania. The high pass roads (Transfagarasan and Transalpina) are colsed well into Mai at least, sometimes even June! I was unlucky last year: while winter closure was over, severe thunderstorms dumped so much water on Romania that Transfagarsan was closed due to a landslide. So you need to have a route B!