Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Getting There & Away
Maxitaxis leave frequently from the centre for Cluj-Napoca's Piaţa Mihai Viteazul (7 lei,
40 minutes) until 8.30pm or so. Dacos buses leave from the 'Transit Stop' in front of
Leonardo department store. The bus station (Autogara Sens Vest), in Piaţa Romană, 10
minutes' walk south of the tourist office, has buses heading for Alba Iulia (15 to 14 lei,
frequent), Sibiu (27 lei) and Bucharest (65 lei, four daily, eight hours). Buses to Abrud (20
lei, three daily) and Campeni (15 lei, nine daily) in the Arieş Valley, hubs for the Apuseni
Mountains to the south, are less frequent.
Huedin Microregion (Kalotaszeg)
Just off the Cluj-Oradea highway, like a more-accessible Maramureş, this bucolic paradise
near the Apuseni Mountains includes 40 (chiefly) Hungarian villages bundled under the
names 'Huedin Microregion' or Kalotaszeg. With a car there's much to explore, as men in
Austrian-style hats and women in headscarves on horse carts return your waves as you
bounce and weave towards superb mountain hikes and waterfalls.
The Kalotaszeg is much beloved by Hungarian folklorists as a stronghold of pastoral
Transylvanian Magyar culture. In Budapest's Ethnography Museum, there is a huge,
seven-room exhibit devoted entirely to Kalotaszeg. Centuries-old traditions persist here:
staying at a home can open up makeshift tours of horseshoe-makers' workshops, shepherd
huts and wooden churches, plus from May to October you can see how sheep-milk cheese
is made.
You can plan trips with Davincze Tours in Sâncraiu or Green Mountain Holidays.
Restaurants are not to be found in much of the area; plan on eating at Huedin or at your
guesthouse.
ALONG THE HIGHWAY
The area's namesake, Huedin (Bánffyhunyad in Hungarian), 52km west of Cluj- Napoca,
is an unengaging highway town that nevertheless can fill your mobile (cell)phone with
credits, tummy with food and wallet with lei. You're better off heading to Sâncraiu or
Mănăstireni for accommodation, though Hotel Montana, set on a very busy road is OK.
Large rooms have TV, en suites and sleigh beds.
