europe

[harrybo1]

hi all planning trip to romainia macidonina albainia montenegro croatia bosnia serbia kosovo,end of june,any advice on routes campsites safety etc would be gratefull many thanks. carl

[martinjeffes]

I'm told that Kosovo is still a bit dodgy to go to, but Macedonia, Albania and Croatia are good. Be very careful with your credit and debit cards in Serbia, they are very good at cloning them. Roads aren't too good in Romania, but lots of good campsites. I recommend De Oude Willj, in the village of Carta, just east of Sibiu. It's run by a really nice dutch woman, and her romanian husband. Also, do a google search for Sakar Hills Camping, and you may decide to include Bulgaria. You'll certainly have a great trip in this part of the world. Enjoy.
Best wishes
Martin Jeffes
Sakar Hills Camping
Bulgaria

[mikeccm]

hi carl.
if you go to the left handside of the HU page scroll down to the orange section community you will find contacts in all the countries your going to visit, so local knowledge should be there, i am there brasov romanian contact. dont belive martin about the roads being dodgy here if you follow the E68 other than one bumpy section just outside Sibiu the roads are perfect. Have friends in slovakia and croatia so no problems there. do you have a set milage per day? and how long do you have before return. what do you want to do just ride or soak up the culture. i have some photos on facebook under Mike Craven or you can email me mcraven2004@yahoo.com and i can start putting you in touch. on june the 11-13 there is a biker meeting which may inertest you. keep in touch mike

[harrybo1]

many thanks guys great info, we are planning a 5 week trip,aim to do avge 200 miles a day an stopping in between, pherphaps hook up with you mike some will be camping some hotels thanks again guys,

[Beej]

Hi there,

we did a 5 weeks trip last year which took in Romania...

We entered Romania through the Oradea border point and then sort of followed a clockwise route. We crossed the border really late and where struggling to find anywhere to camp, we stopped a car to ask and they motioned for us to follow them! After a 45min break neck speed car chase they pulled up at a campsite on the outskirts of Baile Felix. As we pulled into the entrance we saw that the whole family had been ordered out of the car to wave goodbye to us! We came across this sort of generosity many times! It's an amazing country!

Highlights for us was the north of Romania. Sapanta, Prislop Pass, the Carparthian Mountains, the Monastery's and the Transfaggaras Pass.

We found a great place to stay after the Prislop Pass in the Carparthian Mountains. As you come along this road the place is on the right in a village called Ciocanesti. It is run by a very friendly Romanian called Vladimir who speaks very good English and French. He offers both camping (10 lei per person) and B&B (50 lei per room). He also offers food, good food and lots of it! Breakfast (10 lei per person), Dinner (20 lei per person). He also let us use his washing machine and will fill you with Romanian Beer and Palinka and very good coffee! His email is; vladimir_tomoiaga@yahoo.fr


As for the roads... they are poor... my SV shouldn't have been on some of them and I bottomed out a few times... no harm done though! Expect to find lots of pot holes, gravel, horse & carts, cows, horses and even a donkey on each hairpin bend!!!!!!!


You'll have a blast!!!! Let me know if you have any other questions.

Beej

[harrybo1]

hi there thanks for the advice beej,sounds great wonderd where else you went did you make any of the balkans?

[everywherevirtually]

Kosovo is no dodgier than anywhere else. We got a great welcome just north of Prishtina when the Serbs turned us back at the border.

The Roads in Romania are not as bad as you might think. Surprisingly the roads in Western Bulgaria were some of the worst.

Romania has a lot of new EU funded roads. There are a few large scale road building projects going on which can cause disruption in the summer months due to the road freight.

If you want an idea of what you might see out there take a look at the following photos:

Balkans tour

If you don't have a green insurance card also expect to pay on the borders. As of April 2009 the fee was:

Croatia - not required
Bosnia - not required for the transit area on the coast
Montenegro - €10
Albania - I think they forgot or were distracted by the car load of ladies behind us
Greece - EU
Macedonia - €50
Kosovo - €20
Serbia - they wouldn't let us in but I believe it's €70 (somebody confirm)
Bulgaria - EU
Romania - EU

[Beej]

Hi there,

Sorry for delay in getting back to you!

Last year we got the ferry from Newcastle to Amsterdam. We then rode through Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary to get to Romania. After Romania we went back into Hungary and then to Slovenia and Austria before heading back to the ferry!

Twas a good trip! Just need to plan this years!!!

[Andysr6]

Hi. i travelled through most of the countries summer 09 and loved them all. For a 5 week tour you have chosen a great route although i would definately include Bulgaria and the Alps & Dolomites. Worst roads- Albania-Romania-Bulgaria. If you ride a trail type bike try the Transalpino Pass in Romania. My green card covered all these countries except Kosovo. Andy B

[versys]

when do you go, whe go in september.
almost the same trip.
tom

[harrybo1]

many thanks guys for all the info,been very helpfull anymore info on macadonia albainia will be greatly appreicated,

[harrybo1]

hi there sorry about late reply we are leaving begining of june for 5 weeks.