RV Roadtrip – Romania Part 1

Our route, part 1.

Ah Romania, the legendary land of vampires, Transylvania and of course Count Dracula. A land of castles and medieval towns, with modern infrastructure and a party destination on the Black Sea. And it’s still a place where horse and buggy rumble up and down the streets sharing the road with mini buses, big rigs and BMW’s. (And the occasional RV!)

Share the Road.

After the Black Sea on the Bulgaria side we were interested in seeing what, if anything would be different on the Romania side. So our first stop was some sea side camping on a little spit of land called Mamaia. (A note to fellow travelers, if you are driving you need a Vignette for the roads which usually is available at the border.  Unfortunately, the border agent was having computer problems so directed us to buy it at a service station.  They apparently are only available at certain service stations  if you cross the border where we did. We ended up learning this the hard way!)

Stop at the Petrom station just over the border.

Wow what a difference! This spot was primed for the summer tourist, though we were still a bit early, and quite a few things still weren’t open yet. New massive nightclubs were being built on the sand for summer music festivals featuring top DJ’s and based on the number of beach clubs and stacked sun loungers we could see just how heaving with people the place was going to be in a few short weeks.

We just overnighted at the camping with a plan to return in a few days after Shani got in some bird watching in the far north region on the Danube. I was told it’s one of the must do things in Romania. And so the rig was pointed in that direction and away we went to Camping Lac Murighiol. One of the things that we noticed on our drive north was that most of the villages seemed to have a pride of ownership. While they may have been poor, everything was well maintained, flowers were planted and people seemed to care about how their little village looked.

Once at Camping Lac Murighiol we met a lovely group of French campers. Outside of France the French RV set is always nice to us (especially the further you get from Western Europe), they assume, like everyone else that we are French after they get a glimpse at our license plate. This group practically adopted Shani. She is not shy about trying to use her French and that usually goes over well. They had organized a bird watching tour with the campsite and made sure she was on the list. They even offered to watch Sebastian so I could go too! (Imagine how that would have went! Ha.)

A lovely spot to camp.

It was an early morning boat tour and Sebastian and I were happy to sleep in and let Shani have all the fun. When the French left they offered us parking at their homes in France should we need it someday and we ran into some of the group later in our Romanian adventures; they were all so nice to us. It was great to feel a little sense of community with them. Viva la France!

Shani and her French friends.

Here’s some of what Shani saw on the Danube –

After Camping Lac Murighiol we were back down to the party town. The camping was called Complex Holiday GPM, the first time we were there it was really chill, not a ton of campers…my what a difference a few days make! We had planned on staying at a campsite just a ways up the road called Camping S but on the drive in it was apparent this might be a problem. The camping and the roads were jam packed with motorcycles and leather and motorcycle club patches. As we rolled past Camping S I could only imagine what mayhem this mini Sturges was getting up to over the weekend.

We thought this must be a fish restaurant?

Fortunately Complex Holiday GPM wasn’t part of the madness but it too had filled up quite a bit. At GPM there aren’t really assigned pitches for you to camp in, more just general areas and it creates a bit of confusion and a visual cacophony of tents, caravans, camping cars and bungalows. Still, it’s a pretty good spot right on the water with a nice beach and pretty good facilities.

The Romanian countryside.

After our weekend with the Romania holiday makers we were off to Camping Argus, a very small campsite near the start of the Transfăgărășan highway, sometimes called the most incredible road in the world with it’s sections of twists and hairpin turns and stunning views. Our host informed us the next day that the road was just opened as of that morning should we want to head that way. Several motorcycle touring groups were very keen as this was the reason they were in this part of Romania. We opted to not take our rig all the way over the Transfăgărășan highway thinking that doing it later in a Porsche might be more fun.

On our way to Camping Dracula.

Instead we ended up at the base of the most tricky part of the Transfăgărășan highway camped up at a small site called… dun dun dun…Camping Dracula! In the very heart of Transylvania! (A quick side note, we had entertained camping at the top of the Transfăgărășan at a lake, and as it turned out a massive storm rolled in closing the highway again. We also got pummeled by the wind, hail and rain as we sat in Camping Dracula.)

Parked up at Camping Dracula.

Here we should maybe give a little information about the historical figure of Vlad Dracula or Vlad the Impaler and his relation to the fiction in Bram Stoker’s Dracula. The short story version, from what I can tell, is that Vlad did impale his enemies, this isn’t really questioned, and he left them around as a warning and threat to those who would oppose him. His reputation for cruelty, ruthlessness and last name may have inspired Stoker, certainly early photos of Bran castle did. You can read the Wikipedia on Vlad here, it’s an interesting tale and he is still a folk hero in Romania. 

At any rate, Camping Dracula sits at the base of one of Vlad’s fortresses and dungeons. It is a pretty steep hike up but it was paved most of the way. Sebastian was also allowed in, that’s always a plus! Once at the top you can see why this spot was a pretty important one for Vlad, there are excellent views into the valley below and any comings or goings could not be missed. The mannequins impaled near the fort are a nice touch!

After a very stormy night we were off to Bran, home of the famous castle and Vampire Camping. On our way over one of the mountain passes there was a granny and her granddaughter selling at a small stall. Curious we decided to stop. A group of motorcyclists also pulled in to take a break and enjoy the view. Shani was the one brave soul to head over to the babushka and have a look at what she was selling. One of the tipples Romania is famous for is the cherry brandy, preferably home brewed. So of course we had to get a liter from granny. We also ended up with some heavily smoked sausages. By the time it was all said and done, the Germans were all also crowded around and granny was having a pretty good day. I thought I might go blind after tasting the brandy but fortunately did not!

Teaching her the family business.

Vampire Camping is a very short walk from the town which made it easy to explore. Unfortunately (depending on how you look at it), Sebastian was not allowed inside Bran Castle. So instead, Sebastian and I walked around the vendor stalls and did some exploring while Shani spent her allowance on admission, a decision she might make differently given the chance. The village is pretty touristy, as one might expect.

Stay tuned as we continue our adventure in Transylvania and the Carpathian mountain range and head to a wonderful spot called Cheile Râșnoavei, visit Brasov, eat some Dracula Fries, get the rig high centered and continue our Romanian adventures.