Forget Count
Dracula and Nicolae
Ceausescu; from now on when you
think of Romania, fill your mind with images
of pristine mountains, the glistening, clear
rivers from the Danube Delta flowing to the Black
Sea, and charming villages.
Through our friends
and colleagues at the Romanian
Ecotourism Association, Off the Radar
brings you two excellent adventure outfitters in
based Brasov County, Transylvania, Romania.
If you've never heard
of the Carpathian
Mountains, you're in for a treat. With
an appearance and climate similar to what you would
find in the Middle Region of the Alps, the Carpathians
provide an excellent playground for trekkers, mountain
bikers, horseback riders, skiers and climbers of
all levels.
We recommend getting
to know the fine people at Daksa who
can take you hiking, caving, climbing or horseback
riding through these beautiful and untrammeled mountains.
Along the way you might find yourself staying in
forester cabins, local homes, or tents. We got sucked
into their website's image galleries - to get a sense
of what awaits, take a couple minutes to let these
images load - image #20 from the Horseback Riding
set of pictures is beautiful.
Another company we like
is owner-operated Carpatour,
founded by Izabela Cotinescu. Ask about their mountain
biking trip. One of the highlights
is the ride through the Piatra
Craiului (King's Rock) Nature Reserve,
whose forests are home to a variety of wildlife -
bears, wolves and lynx - and a high diversity of
plants.
We tell all our friends
who aren't complete do-it-yourselfers to book their
trips through Solimar,
and this is no exception. Call Solimar to book a
trip with the Romanian operators featured here, or
let them pitch you on some of their other destinations - especially
Costa Rica and Jamaica . Their exceptional itineraries
and knack for scoping out the best deals and unusual
experiences recently earned them the notice of National
Geographic Adventure magazine.
Romania is one
of three countries in the world to have signed
National Geographic's Geotourism Charter. In May,
National Geographic Society's Center
for Sustainable Destinations visited
Brasov County to teach tourism businesses the
importance of maintaining Romania 's unique sense
of place - environment, culture and residents
- that ultimately attract travelers to the country.
Photo: Gil Mull
Where
Is This?
The mountaineers among you should have no trouble naming the world famous peak
in the picture above. To submit your guess or a photo for a future contest, send
an email to info@xola consulting.com.
The first person to answer correctly earns bragging rights and will enjoy seeing
his/her name in print in our next issue. |
