I'm already planning my next vacation in next May or late August/early September. I'm planning to visit the Southeastern part of Europe. Im especially interested in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia. The time limit is 4 to 6 weeks. I´m interested in tips that are worth a visit, especially cities and natural sights, so that I can plan a great tour.
5 Answers
If hiking interests you, I'd recommend the Rhodope mountains in Bulgaria -- there are a lot of popular tourist trails between the mountain refuges. The mountain is virtually uninhabited (there are a few large-ish towns and small villages), so if you are tired of civilization, this might be something to consider.
Depending on your interests, you can choose between historical sites (such as Perperikon, which I highly recommend), natural wonders (Trigrad Gorge, Marvelous Bridges, etc.), spa centers/mineral water resorts (for example, Velingrad and its surrounds), ski resorts (e.g. Pamporovo), caves (Devil's throat) or Christian monasteries (Bachkovo Monastery).
Following most of the trails could take between 2-3 days up to a week or more, depending on your time constraints, and you'd probably still miss some places of interest. The best time to travel is from late spring to mid-summer, when the temperatures will be high enough to travel without too much equipment.
Drop a note if you need some further pointers, I'd be happy to help.
Disclaimer: Being Bulgarian, I'm obviously biased, so take this with a grain of salt.
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Hi thanks for the suggestions! I'm really interested in hiking since I'm living in the Alps and I'm going to hike, snowshoeing or climb everytime when possible. Sep 12, 2011 at 15:45
In Montenegro: UNESCO-protected Kotor Old Town, Ostrog Monastery, Cetinje (Historical Capital), Skadar Lake. If you have enough time, it would be nice to see some mountains too: Zabljak, Durmitor, as well as Biogradska gora.
If you'd like to take part in night life than Budva is very good and while you're there, you could visit Budva Old Town. Also Maximus is located in Kotor and it is the biggest night club in Montenegro.
In Bosnia, must sees are Sarajevo (2/3 days should be enough), and Mostar (1 day).
Well I can recommend the Transylvanian mountains in Romania. Bucharest you'll likely go through (the capital) but I found it a bit dull and oppressive. Head out to Brasov in the mountains, a fantastic town, and with lots to do in the mountains all around, from Bran Castle (marketed as Dracula's castle), a mountain fortress and more. And if you're lucky, you'll see some bears as well!
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Thanks, so I know at least what do to in Romania ;) Do you also have some recommendations concerning the roadtrip... I mean: are the roads driveable for a non-local? ;) Aug 28, 2011 at 18:17
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Dracula's Castle is a tourist trap in my opinion. A nice enough castle in a nice enough setting but it doesn't have much connection to Vlad the Impaler, it's just well marketed and there will be heaps of tourists there. (I went last year and am back in Romania now) Aug 28, 2011 at 20:10
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4The roads in Romania are not terrible generally. We drove across the country a year ago. If you specifically want a great drive did you know that Top Gear's official "world's best road" is the Transfăgărășan that goes right over the Carpathians? We drove it west to east but I think it would've been even better east to west. It was mid summer and there were still remnants of snow. Aug 28, 2011 at 20:14
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@hippietrail Dracula is a fiction of Bram Stoker. There is no associated tradition in Romania, especially not in Transylavia. As a native of Transylvania, I learned about Dracula from American media.– SzabolcsNov 16, 2011 at 11:39
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@Szabolcs: I know but they call it Dracula's Castle. It's a nice castle but as an attraction it's pretty tacky. Dracula souvenirs everywhere of both the historical and fictional persons. Plus it has a presentation on Dracula in an upstairs room. Of course they're pretty sure even Vlad never stayed in Bran Castle anyway. I'm going to edit Marks' answer a bit. Mark feel free to revert if you feel I'm putting words into your mouth! Nov 16, 2011 at 11:47
In Bosnia, besides Sarajevo and Mostar, there is Pocitelj, Kravice waterall, Hutovo Blato, even Stolac (all Herzegovina is very lovely).
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Please add some information about cities you've mentioned - only list is not enough.– VMAtmApr 6, 2012 at 7:13