12+ story-telling places where we can admire autumn in Romania

Autumn in Romania is a splendid time of the year, especially in the second half of October, when we can admire a symphony of colors in the forests, mountains and hills.

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Below are our suggestions of places where we can enjoy the spectacle of nature in autumn.

The villages at the foot of the Piatra Craiului Mountains, Brașov county

The first on the list is Măgura, because it is the closest to the Piatra Craiului massif and is therefore the most spectacular of the series of agro-pastoral localities that form a kind of “Little Switzerland of Romania”.

Find here a detailed article about the ecotourism destination Zărnești – Piatra Craiului, with more pictures from Măgura and the neighboring villages, but also with other places that can be explored in the area.

The road between Zărnești and Plaiul Foii, Brașov county

I have traveled this road several times, but the most beautiful was by bike, at the foot of the Piatra Craiului massif, under the subalpine floors colored in autumn colors and bathed in the honey light of October.

Find here a detailed article about this route and more pictures of charming autumn landscapes.

Pecineagu dam, Argeș county

The Pecineagu dam is located near the towns of Săticul de Jos and Săticul de Sus. These villages are located near the Piatra Craiului mountains, but are less known and popular.

At the dam you can enjoy a special panorama over the colorful autumn forests, with a double view towards 2 mountain ridges: Piatra Craiului and Iezer Păpușa.

Find here a detailed article on how to get to the dam and a full account of our experience there.

Muscel village in the north of Dâmbovița county

Muscel hamlet is an isolated village, located somewhere in the north of Dâmbovița county. There are about 25 homes here, located in a dreamy landscape, on the Subcarpathian hills and hills.

Muscel Village seems like a place frozen in time, with a peaceful and soothing energy. It is one of our favorite places in Dâmbovița county, and if you get there we guarantee that it will become the same for you.

Here find detailed article about Muscel hamlet with all kinds of useful information.

Sinaia and Stâna Regăla trail

Sinaia is a classic, well-known, but attractive and attractive destination. In autumn clothes it is absolutely gorgeous, especially if you are venturing out on mountain trails.

Our route recommendation is Stâna Regală (Poiana Stânii), because it is accessible even for families with small children, regularly frequented by hikers, which reduces the risk of encounters with wild animals.

I was recently on the trail, I admired the forest that had already colored well, and I talked at length about the experience, here.

The forest and the monastery from Vulcana Bai, Dâmbovița county

Vulcana – Băi commune is located in Dâmbovița county, about 100 km from Bucharest, being a wonderful locality located on the subcarpathian hills

The forest we recommend surrounds the Bunea Hermitage, a hilltop monastery that can be visited.

You can park your car at the base of the hill and walk up. The road is quite steep, but paved. The car can also be parked in front of the monastery, but many people choose the per pedes route, which takes around 20-30 minutes.

Make a stop in Poiana Bucuriei, where there are some benches. There you can also enjoy a beautiful panorama towards the Leaota Mountains (the massif seen on the left) and Bucegi.

After the asphalt ends, up at the monastery, a very beautiful road through the forest begins, which you can explore with the children. Find more pictures and details here.

If you want to explore more of the area by car, choose the route Vulcana Băi – Pietrari, until the intersection with road 72A, which leads to Voinești.

Râul Alb, Dâmbovița county

Also in the same area as the Bai Volcano, there is the Râul Alb town, where we go every year to pick sea buckthorn and admire the Leaota Mountains from the perspective.

Alternatively, you can reach Râul Alb on the route Târgoviște – Pucioasa – Fieni. While Râul Alb commune is quite unknown and little known, a popular landmark in the area is the Potcoava Guesthouse in the village of Brebu.

The sculpture camp from Măgura, Buzău county

It is an open-air museum, located in Buzău County, dotted with sculptures made between 1970 and 1985, summer by summer, by artists and students, under the coordination of a sculptor named Gheorghe Coman, with materials extracted from the stone quarries of area (Năeni, Pietroasele, etc.).

What can be done in the area:

• Visit Ciolanu Monasterylocated right next to the camp.
• Do it hike through the forest to Cetătuia Hermitage (30 minutes).
• Explore the forest that starts behind the sculptures (the ones on the right as you come from Berca)

The parks of Bucharest and the Văcărești Natural Park

Although at first glance the parks in Bucharest don’t seem so good for admiring nature in autumn, we assure you that it is not so.

When we lived in Bucharest, we enjoyed the urban explosion of colors every year, and our favorite park was always Carol.

we here a detailed article about Carol Park dressed in autumn clothes. And here an article about the Bucharest Natural Park (with the mention that the last time I was there was a few years ago and we don’t know what state it is in).

The forests around Bucharest

If you live in Bucharest and don’t have time for a longer journey, there is always the more accessible option of the forests around the city.

The surroundings of Bucharest have great potential. There are many beautiful places and ecosystems to explore!

Most of these places are remnants of the ancients Codris of Vlăsiavast forests that once stretched over an enormous region in southern Romania, including the territory where Bucharest is today.

Here find detailed article with a selection of forests that we recommend to discover around Bucharest.

Here are 3 recommendations of areas we’ve only been to in the spring and summer, but they sure look fabulous in the fall.

Harghita County

Harghita is probably the greenest county in the country, with a rich natural and cultural heritage, with dozens of forests or hikes that can be done in the area.

We explored in more depth the micro-region around the city of Odorheiu Secuiesc. I wrote extensively about everything I visited and amassed a whole archive of articles, here.

Craiului Forest, ecotourism destination in Bihor county

The Craiului Forest is an ecotourism destination that we have been discovering for several years, penetrating more and more into the depth of the area, literally and figuratively 😊.

For example, the last time I went to the area, I did speotourism and explored with the help of a guide a superb undeveloped cave, an experience I wrote about extensively here.

The Craiului Forest is a mountain group occupying the northwestern part of the Apuseni Mountains in the Western Carpathians. From an administrative point of view, it belongs to Bihor county.

In this ecotourism destination you have a lot of places to visit: caves, mountain trails (many of which are also accessible to children), waterfalls, karst landscapes, pottery workshops.

At the same time, the Craiului Forest probably represents the ecotourism destination with probably the most diverse offer of experiences and adventure tourism. Here you can practice speotourism, via ferrata climbing, rafting on Crișul Repede, hiking, cycling, horse riding, etc.

Here find our archive of articles about the Craiului Forest. Below we also leave you a video with the beauties of the area.

The hills of Transylvania

Another ecotourism region that we like to discover every year is the one called “The Hills of Transylvania”, where there is an extraordinary cultural and natural heritage.

The place where I had my base each time is Saschiz, a locality not far from Sighisoara.

Apart from being a good base for exploring the area, there’s plenty to explore in Saschiz as well. I have written extensively about this locality and about the places we visited in the Transylvanian Hills, in the article below:

Weekend in Saschiz and the Transylvanian Hills – what we visit and where we stay

Other suggestions

On Kinder Trips we write about:

• Ecotourism and family travel
• Education through travel
• Education in nature

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