Wildlife Encounters: Carpathian Culture And Wildlife of Romania

Our Clients’ Reviews

Here at Exodus we thrive on feedback from our customers. It's the only way we can ensure our trips continue to be the best they can be. So, for the real tales, twists and turns of the trip you're interested in, look no further than the reviews from our previous travellers. Any feedback collected (Good or bad) from Exodus clients is posted straight onto our website - totally unedited. Read more...

Average Review Rating: from 46 reviews.

hefina sunderland

CARPATHIAN CULTURE AND WILDLIFE

Written October 2011
Generally a good holiday, but definitely biased towards the walking and wildlife aspects of the trip.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
Romania is a beautiful country and we will definitely be returning to explore more of its countryside and cultures.
What did you think of your group leader?
Cosmin was a very knowledgable and enthusiastic leader, keen to share his his knowledge of Romanian wildlife. He also interacted well with the group and was interested to learn from us as well as the other way around. Katarina's tour of Libearty was very interesting and touching - her personal involvement in the project made the trip special.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
Take good quality binoculars for the bear hide trip and river trip. Take duct tape to mask the red light on your camera as the red light disturbs the bears at the hide. The bears also dislike bright colours - so dark clothing is required.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Try to extend your trip at beginning or end with a long weekend in Bucharest - it is a lovely historic city with a cafe-society atmosphere. Ignore the post-Communist guidebooks!
Hayley Percival

CARPATHIAN CULTURE AND WILDLIFE

Written September 2011
An excellent trip covering everything i wanted to see and do whilst visiting Romania, at a pace to suit all!
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
To me meeting the Bears in the WSPA sanctuary was incredibly emotional as a supporter of the charity this part of the trip was very special to me and having the oppotunity to see 7 Bears in the wild including 3 cubs was outstanding and a moment i will never forget!!! Nature is always a source of inspriation to me where ever i go and Romania was no different.
What did you think of your group leader?
Cosmin the guide is very knowledgeable, polite and truly passionate about Romania and its incredible wildlife, with good reason. He must be so proud to show people his country and all it has to offer. I learnt a lot from him during my time there and he was able to answer all my questions. Thank You Cosmin :) I would like to mention Katarina & Herman who run the guest house also, what remarkable people thank goodness there are people out there who care so much about the natural world, and who do all they can to protect it. Well Done and what a beautiful, well run guest house.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
As a huge animal lover i find it hard to understand anyone who doesnt like Dogs but if you have a fear of dogs be warned there are dogs everywhere!! although all the dogs are all very very friendly, well looked after and love to be in your company, i enjoyed this. I went at the begining of September and the weather was hot and sunny - Take sun cream.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
The trip ran smoothly and Nature didn't fail me (although it never does!) Romania is a truly BEAUTIFUL place of mountains, landscapes, wilderness and wildlife, every inch is a photograph. I love photography and take my camera everywhere but you dont need to be an expert to get a good photo here! This was my first trip with Exodus and as a solo traveller and i would do both again without hesitation. The group was a mix of solo travellers and couples of various ages. The guest house was beautiful, well run, the food served was lovely and the views are outstanding. Cosmin the guide was friendly and knowledgeable and ensured the whole tour ran at a pace to suit everyone. You do need to be a certain level of fitness as you are in the mountains so a lot of up hill, but its worth it. I am vegetarian and this was very well catered for. Romania is a wonderful place and the people are friendly - I could live there and i would recommend a trip to anyone! :)
Ruth Richardson

CARPATHIAN CULTURE AND WILDLIFE

Written September 2011
A good mixture of wildlife, walking and culture.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
When a mother bear and three cubs appeared at the bear hide and happily started eating and playing.
What did you think of your group leader?
Cosmin was great. He retained an air of quiet confidence throughout the week, whilst working hard to ensure our trip ran smoothly.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
Please note that about half the week is walking. Some of us had failed to spot this and had chosen the trip due to the focus on wildlife. However this said, the scenary on the walks was fantastic and the exercise did us all good!
I didn't need as much money as I thought I would, but then the optional forest walk and bird watching trip didn't even get a mention. There was opportunity to change money on a couple of occasions during the trip when needed.
Don't drink too much schnaps, it goes to your head really quickly!
The guest house is everything you could want. Clean rooms, delicious dinners and great hospitality. Be prepared for plenty of cheese sandwiches for packed lunches though!
Is there anything else you would like to add?
If you're looking for just a week away then this trip is worth taking.
Sally Bowler

CARPATHIAN CULTURE AND WILDLIFE

Written September 2011
A hidden gem of Europe.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
Wow our hostess Katerina was a pretty inspirational woman, speaks 3 languages, runs a guest house in a national park, and has been at the forefront of animal (particularly European Brown Bear) protection and conservation in the Carpathian region.
What did you think of your group leader?
Cosmin Dan was a great leader, with imense knowledge and love for his surroundings.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
You will be going up and down Mountains, so definately a reasonable level of fitness needed however Cosmin was very good at breaking often and making sure everyone caught up. If I did this trip again I would take just Romanian Lei with me and not bother with ATMs or taking Euro's as you dont need an awful lot money, unless you are a serial souvenier hunter!!
Is there anything else you would like to add?
I think most people would be pleasantly surprised with Romania, it is truly an up and coming country with some stunning countryside.
Catherine Sheldrake

CARPATHIAN CULTURE AND WILDLIFE

Written August 2011
The trip was a lovely relaxing trip with great food, a very knowledgeable guide, and it was taken at a great pace. I really enjoyed myself.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
The most inspirational moment was the opportunity to go to the bear hide, that was wonderful to see such majestic creatures in their own environment; one of the last wildernesses in Europe!!
What did you think of your group leader?
The group leader was incredibly knowledgeable, although did not push too much information onto us.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
Beware, and prepared, it can RAIN!!!! We got soaked one day!
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Really enjoyed the trip!
Phillip Burrows

CARPATHIAN CULTURE AND WILDLIFE

Written August 2011
What an experience! The scenery in Transylvania is spectacular with wildflower meadows, steep valleys and hills, gorges and fields being traditionally worked by farmers who still use a scythe to cut the hay. Also seeing fortified churches and gothic looking castles adds to the whole transylvania feel as well as sampling the delights of the shepherds by devouring their cheeses and yoghurt in their simple huts.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
"If you go down to the woods today you're sure of a big surprise" - Well we certanly had a surprise. We saw close-up in their natural habitat, a Mother bear and her three cubs and then a Male bear appeared, all this watched in a hide.
In the bear conservation sanctuary we also saw a number of rescued bears including one from Tibet-all had a story to tell. We also witnesed a altercation between a pack of wolves.
So experiencing closeup bears, wolves, birds and the ocassional dragon fly(to keep David happy!) was the highlights for me.
What did you think of your group leader?
The experience was made all the better by Cosmin, our guide, who was very enthusiastic and compassionate about animal conservation. He was able to share his knowledge with us. Just wish he wouldn't keep stopping for every bloody bird he met (feathered kind I mean)
Katrina, was our accomodating host at the guest house. She equally shared Cosmin's passion for wildlife and always around if we had any questions. Katrina gave us a guided tour around the bear conservation sanctuary.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
The accomodation was excellent. We stayed in a swiss style guest house in Magura in a beautiful valley surrounded by the Carpathian mountains. I had a balcony view which overlooked fields and meadows and the local church. The food was out of this world and every evening after each days trekking or sight seeing a different traditional transylvanian three course meal was laid on. There was free beer and wine, courtessy of the help yourself drinks refridgerator, well so it seemed until we added our tallies up on the last day and even then the bill was incredibly cheap.
Finally, I met a great bunch of fellow travellers from around the UK and U.S.A who were all very interesting and supportive to one another and who I will endeavour to keep in touch. And congatulations to everyone on the final gorge walk for completing it - in the words of Edmund Hillary "We knocked the bastard off"
Anthony Turner

CARPATHIAN CULTURE AND WILDLIFE

Written August 2011
A great mix of walking & sight seeing in a relatively untouched part of Europe with the added bonus of a lovely hotel.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
The walking was great, especially as we were really lucky with the weather (7 days of sunshine!). Wonderful views throughout and a nice mix of woodland and mountain pastures. The two main walking days were certainly my highlight.
What did you think of your group leader?
Cosmin was great, one of the best Exodus leaders I have had. Extremely knowledgable and it was really nice to have a local guide who grew up in the area.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
Try to read Bram Stocker's Dracula before you go and stock up on tasteful Dracula souvenirs at Bran Castle!