Transfagarasan Highway, Southern Romania, Romania

5T-SGlobetrotters 5:00 PM Oct 22, 2022

Enjoyable drive
We drove this route on 13th October. If travelling from Curtea De Arges north, the landscape is in two contrasting halves. The first half until you arrive at the long tunnel is forested with deep valleys. Our drive in mid-October saw beautiful autumn colours here and with plenty of areas to stop, there are good photo opportunities all along the route. Of the two halves, we think the first half is the most picturesque although as a drive the second half is perhaps a little more dramatic. The weather was cloudy but dry but amazingly after emerging on the other side of the tunnel we had climbed higher and it was a completely different day, noticeably colder, raining hard and by the time we reached Balea Lake there was plenty of snow on the mountain side. Unfortunately, the weather was not conducive to exploring the lake area. The landscape on this side is much more rugged. The descent is spectacular with multiple hairpin bends. Good idea to take a photo of the road descent from the top point. There are a couple of roadside parking areas which allow this. Road conditions generally were fine, much of the route has been fairly recently resurfaced, so overall, the driving experience was smooth, there were just a few areas when the surface was quite rough and needed care around some potholes. Mid-October a good time to visit as the roads were very quiet.

5Jazzumbo 5:00 PM Jun 25, 2020

A roadtrip to remember
Family roadtrip by car, starting from the Southern side of Fagaras Mountain. We've stopped a few times on the way. First time we've noticed a pile of snow and the kids asked me to stop the car urgently as they can't believe their eyes to see snow in July. After touching it, they eventually admitted that it was really snow. Second time I stopped the car next to a waterfall to drink some water and let the dog get splashed. Then we have stopped at Balea Lake restaurant to eat papanas and drink some coffees and lemonades while admiring the stunning scenery. Some people we met in the restaurant told us that they encountered a bear, quietly crossing the road. Vidraru lake dam is impressive yet the area around the dam needs some investement and improvement. All in all, it was a nice way to hide from summer's heat.