Romania - Eastern Europe - page 518

ARRIVAL, ORIENTATION & GETTING AROUND
Bra @ ov has no airport but the city is extremely well served by trains from across the
country; there are almost 20 per day pulling in from Bucharest, only 3 hours away on
an InterCity train. The train station ( & 0268/41-0233 ) is about 3.5km (2 miles)
from the heart of Bra @ ov's old city; a taxi into town should cost around L5 ($1.80/£1).
You can purchase onward tickets from CFR Agen $ ie de Voiaj (Str. Republicii 53;
& 0268/47-0696; Mon-Fri 8am-6pm, Sat 9am-1pm). Once you're in the historic
part of the city, you should manage everything by foot or bus; you can get informa-
tion on bus routes from the tourist office ( & 0268/41-9078; Mon-Sat 9am-5pm),
conveniently located in the former Council House (Casa Sfantului) in the center of
Pia $ a Sfatului. Staff will also supply you with maps and information about the city, as
well as advising on excursions to neighboring attractions, like Bran (just 30km/19
miles from Bra @ ov) and Râ @ nov. A good introduction to the city as well as Romania
itself is found at www.brasov.ro, well worth investigating before you leave home. To
get to Poiana Bra @ ov, take bus no. 20 from the Livada Postei stop; it leaves every half-
hour and is a comfortable 20-minute journey.
Reserve at least 24 hours in advance to join Bra @ ov Walking Tours ( & 0727/38-
1478; www.brasovwalkingtours.com) which has a 2-hour guided exploration of the
city setting off from the tourist office; available in English, the tour costs 5

€

($6.25)

per person, minimum of three people.
WHERE TO STAY
For details of Bra @ ov's brand-new Casa Wagner —situated on Pia $ a Sfatului with just
12 guest rooms—which was due to open by late 2006, visit www.casa-wagner.eu.
Another hotel you may want to investigate is Hotel Aro Palace ( & 0268/47-8800;
www.aro-palace.ro; from 148

€

/$185 double), which was undergoing the final phases
of a major renovation, including a new wellness spa (due to be completed in 2007);
however, what this ugly modern edifice really needs is a total redesign, and no amount
of face-saving refurbishment will change the fact that it lacks the intimacy and per-
sonal touch you'll find at either Bella Muzica or Casa Rozelor.
Bella Muzica Right on Pia $ a Sfantului, in a 400-year-old building, Bella Muz-
ica is everything you want from a small hotel in a medieval town: Atmosphere, charm,
and comfort are all here in equal measure. The designers used soothing earth tones
punctuated by wood-framed watercolor paintings of buildings around Bra @ ov, and
ensured that contemporary comforts are combined seamlessly with the historical

The Bear Necessities
Unfortunately you're unlikely to spot any of the 6,000 or so brown bears that
roam wild in the Carpathians (nor wolves or lynx for that matter). Where bears
do appear, however, are around the dustbins of certain Bra@ov suburbs, where
they've learned to scavenge. This is partly out of laziness, and partly due to past
environmental mismanagement. While the Carpathians can comfortably sup-
port 5,000 to 6,000 bears, during the Ceau@escu regime, the population was
purposefully grown to 10,000—to make the dictator's hunting trips more fruit-
ful. Today, licensed hunting of around 600 bears per year helps keep numbers
in check.