Romania to...?

Im doing the same thing. Im spending 6 weeks in eastern europe. Myself, Im flying into Sofi Bulgaria, spending a couple weeks in bulgaria, then taking train up to Romania and spending a couple weeks there, and then finishing trip in Hungary and flying out of Budapest.

If you plan to visit mostly Transylvania, the obvious choice would be to end your trip by crossing into Hungary.

Can anyone recommend a route and the best way to travel.

You mean a route through Transylvania ? Depends on what you want to see (apart from Brasov and Sighisoara) - if you want to see other historical cities go to Sibiu, if you're interested in traditional rural areas (get to the Maramures region (or/and for something different go see some of the German Saxon villages in southern Transylvania, between Brasov and Sibiu), if you're interested in hiking/wildlife you should focus on the Carpathian mountains etc.

Between main cities the best way to travel is by train (check timetables on infofer.ro) from cities to nearby tourist sites/small towns/villages and through rural areas it's better to travel by bus (check timetables on autogari.ro or preferably by car.

Then after you finish your trip it will be very easy to get to Hungary, because there are trains and buses from nearly all major cities in Transylvania towards it (specifically, towards Budapest).

you did not say-like so many-to where ''home'' is-but for most cases, and certainly In the EU-Bpest also is by far the beter choice to find lowcost flites-these are close to zil from BGrad (also has something magic to do with the EU?!). check sites lke whichbudget or flybudget for that

We spent six weeks in Eastern Europe at the start of this year and absolutely loved Bulgaria. We flew to Bucharest, went up and spent a few days in Brasov and then took the train to Veliko Tarnovo in Bulgaria (from Bucharest). VT was beautiful and we did a few day hikes around the area and my husband went mountain biking. From VT we then took the train from Septemvri to Bansko, reputedly one of the most scenic train rides in the world. It took about five hours and wasn't particulalry comfortable but the scenery was pretty special. From Bansko we made our way to Macedonia and then onwards. I'm not sure what the transport links are like to get you to Sofia and maybe home from there.

We found Bulgaria to be cheaper on our Australian dollar and the food was amazing (I loved the feta cheese and salads and pastries and my husband found enough meat and potato to keep him going).

Alternatively the train ride from Brasov up to Sighet Martmatiei is lovely especialy when you wake up early in the morning and see the people of Maramures getting ready for the day in the fields or going to Market. You usualy wake around Sacel and the rest of the trip through the valleys and along the river that seperates Ukraine and Romania is beautiful. From Sighet you can travel on to Ukraine and maybe the center of Europe or the very nice and relaxing town of Rahiv.A beautiful and untraveled area of Ukraine which offers much in the way of mountain walking.

I'm with number 5 and second the Maramures to Ukraine option. It is truely a beautiful journey and will take you on a much less-travelled route than into Hungary. In addition, you will get the chance to see the heart of the Carpathian mountains and can take a couple of different routes from Rakhiv to L'viv, which has cheap flights with Wizzair to the UK (are you UK-based??). You can travel from Rakhiv to Uzhhorod/Mukachevo and then on to L'viv or alternatively via Ivano-Frankivsk to L'viv. The bus trip from Uzhhorod to L'viv in itself is amazing as you wind your way across the Carpathians. There is an Avtolux coach which leaves Uzhhorod or Mukachevo daily at 16.00 and 16.45 respectively and gets to L'viv at 20.25 - www.avtolux.ua.

Both Maramureş and South Eastern Transylvania (the area around Braşov) are very nice. I subscribe to the previous recommendations. IMO Maramures is more about a traditional lifestyle, while in SE Transylvania you'll more fortified churches, medieval fortresses (I would say more medieval history) and higher mountains (if you like hiking).

all best
Radu

Maramures keeps sounding better and better...

thanks so much for all your advice! Yes i am UK based... will have to look into all the suggestions!x.