More than a journey
More than a journey
Self-guided Tour
7 days
from €0
This self-guided One Week Tour in Maramures is an excellent option for independent travelers who wish to discover the region by themselves and at their own pace. The itinerary is completely customizable depending on your preferences. We can plan it to be more intense or more relaxing, it's up to you.
This tour in Maramures combines an active vacation with a unique cultural experience. Accommodated in one of the most beautiful villages in Maramures, you'll easily discover the authentic lifestyle and cultural heritage that shaped this region as a singular ethnographic space.
Offering a particular perspective over Maramures, this tour combines walking, cycling, hiking, culture, and history.
A region renowned for its artisans and wooden architecture, Maramures is best-known for its tall wooden churches that made it on the list of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites, its unique sculpted gates, and its traditional haystacks landscapes.
Tour also suited for active families. It can also be customized for active seniors.
This tour can be modified according to your time and points of interest.
This itinerary of the self-guided One Week Tour in Maramures can easily be modified to match your time, wishes, and interests. Some parts of the itinerary will be done by car. You can rent a car and drive it yourselves or we can transfer you, depending on your preferences.
Arrival to Cluj-Napoca. If you land in Bucharest, you can take a low-cost flight to Cluj-Napoca. Driving from this city to Maramures is the best option to save time.
Depending on your initial arrival city, we will meet you either in Bucharest or Cluj-Napoca to hand you a detailed travel package with maps, itineraries and all the information you need for the tour.
You will be accommodated at an excellent guest house in Desesti for the rest of the tour.
Driving time: around 3-4 hours Accommodation: guest house in Desesti
You spend the first day relaxing and enjoying the home-cooked delicious dishes of your host and exploring the old and the new in the daily life of locals in Maramures. The best way to do it is to walk from Desesti to nearby Mara village and back.
Back in Desesti, you visit one of the most beautiful wooden churches of the region, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Highlights: walk from Desesti to Mara, the wooden church from Desesti
Accommodation: guest house in Desesti
Go hiking on Creasta Cocosului, one of the most beloved nature symbols of Maramures. With a maximum altitude of 1,450 meters, Creasta Cocosului is formed from lava consolidated millions of years ago. What makes it particular is its aspect similar to a cock’s comb that inspired its name.
Highlights: hiking on Creasta Cocosului
Accommodation: guest house in Desesti
A day of cultural and historical discoveries as you spend the day in Sighetu Marmatiei visiting the open-air Village Museum and the Memorial of the Victims of Communism, a former prison transformed into a museum as a tribute to the political prisoners illegally imprisoned here during the communist regime.
You can also visit the Merry Cemetery from Sapanta, an unusual and authentic meeting point between humor and death, and the wooden church from Peri, the tallest wood construction in the world.
Highlights: the Village Museum, the Victims of Communism Memorial, the Merry Cemetery, Peri Church
Driving time: around 2 hours
Accommodation: guest house in Desesti
Spend the day cycling to discover more villages of Maramures in just one day. You have several marked trails options from Desesti. We suggest doing a circular route, passing through the villages Harnicesti, Sugatag, Manastirea, and Hoteni before arriving back in Desesti.
You'll cycle from village to village, across hills and forests, enjoying the feel of real Maramures, far from crowded attractions and busy roads.
Highlights: cycling route
Accommodation: guest house in Desesti
You have several options for this day, depending on what interests you most.
You can combine a visit to the wooden church of Budesti, part of the UNESCO Heritage Sites, with a visit to the local artisans from Sarbi. Then, you can drive either to Sighet to visit the Elie Wiesel Memorial House and the Jewish Cemetery or to Targu Lapus to visit Rogoz Church and the Florean Museum.
Accommodation: guest house in Desesti
Drive back to Cluj-Napoca or another destination you prefer.
Back to topEasy: Easy short walks on flat terrain.
Moderate: Up to 5 km walking per day or/and optional cycling routes and easy hikes.
Intense: Up to 10 km walking per day with some inclines or/and optional cycling routes and more demanding hikes
Challenge: Hiking on uneven trails at altitudes above 1,000 meters. Longer optional cycling routes. Requires good health and physical condition.
Ultimate: Full day of hikes and/or demanding cycling tours. Requires excellent health and physical condition.
Basic: Limited interaction.
Moderate: At least two or three cultural sights included in the tour.
High: Cultural visits everyday of the tour.
Total: All about culture.
Basic: Limited interaction.
Moderate: At least two or three historical sights included in the tour.
High: Visits at historical monuments everyday of the tour.
Total: All about history.
Basic: Limited interaction.
Moderate: At least two hours per day spent in nature.
High: Most activities take place in nature.
Total: All about nature.
These terms and conditions apply to any travel products and/or services you have booked with or purchased with us and guide the contractual relationship between you, the clients, and us, the tour operator Uncover Romania Tours.
Uncover Romania Tours is managed by SC Uncover the World SRL, CUI 33506269, License Number 40 from 24/10/2018.
The travel products and/or services presented on www.uncover-romania-tours.com or presented by our agents via email are sold by Uncover Romania Tours.
Uncover Romania Tours reserves the right to decline any booking, at its sole discretion.
1.1. To book a tour, you must fill out and sign the contract received from Uncover Romania Tours and pay a deposit.
By booking one of our travel products or services you acknowledge that:
a) You are over 18 years old;
b) You have read, understood, and accepted the contractual terms and conditions;
c) You express your acceptance of these terms and conditions on behalf of all clients named in the booking in case you include more clients besides yourself in the booking;
d) You are authorized by the other clients named in the booking to represent them;
e) You will provide full and accurate information needed for the booking both for You and the other clients named in the booking.
2.1. In order for us to confirm your travel arrangements you must provide the following details: full name as in the passport, date of birth (for multi-day tours), passport number, passport expiry date, contact address, email, and phone number. Your booking cannot be confirmed without these details needed for contractual purposes.
2.2. By booking one of our tours you agree to provide us with this personal information. We will not disclose under any circumstances your personal information to third parties except when asked by state authorities. We will only use the information you provide for contractual purposes.
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2.3. You agree to let us use images of yourself taken during the trip for advertising and promotional purposes in any medium we choose as long as these images do not offend your dignity. You grant us a perpetual, royalty-free, worldwide, irrevocable license to use such images for publicity and promotional purposes. You are entitled to deny the use of these images for this purpose based on the stipulations of the Romanian Law 677/2001.
3.1. A booking is confirmed once we have received a deposit from you. The value of the deposit (30% to 50%) depends on the total cost of the booking, the size of the group, and the time left until the beginning of the tour. If a tour is booked less than 30 days before the date of the tour, the payment will be done in full.
3.2. Uncover Romania Tours will send you at least 7 days before the departure date an invoice for the amount constituting the final payment for the travel products or/and services booked. In case the full payment is not received 3 days at the latest before the departure date, Uncover Romania Tours may change the rate payable for the travel product and/or services booked, or may treat the booking as canceled and shall retain the deposit paid on booking as a cancellation fee.
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3.4. The commission fees associated with the above payment methods, except cash and credit card payments for City Tours and One Day Tours, are not included in the price of the tours listed on www.uncover-romania-tours.com. You are responsible for paying the commission fees associated with the preferred payment method.
3.5. Except for cash payments in RON, a 1% currency conversion fee will be added to the final price of multi-day tours.
4.1. At any time before a booking is confirmed, we reserve the right to increase or decrease the prices of any of our travel products or/and services.
4.2.The price of a tour can be modified by us after signing the contract only in the case of important changes like alterations in the cost of transportation caused by an increase in the fuel price, significant changes in the exchange rate of the currency in which the tour is paid or unforeseen increases in local taxes at the destination. The price cannot increase by more than 8% and cannot be modified under any circumstances in the 30 days before the start of the tour.
4.3. You have the right to ask and receive a price discount if important changes, mentioned at point 5.2., lead to a significant cut of the travel products or/and services costs.
5.1. If you decide to cancel the tour with prior notice of at least 30 days, you will be refunded the deposit, minus the transfer fees and the costs that could not be recovered from third parties, for instance, accommodation and other local services already booked. You will not be reimbursed if you cancel the tour less than 30 days before its start except in cases of major force.
5.2. In the case of unforeseen events that could determine us to cancel the tour before its execution, you will be fully reimbursed in 14 days after the notification of this event. The clients are not entitled to any additional compensations in this case.
6.1. You have the right to cancel this contract partly or entirely at any time. If the reason for canceling is attributable to you, you have the obligation to compensate Uncover Romania Tours for the prejudice caused if the cancellation takes place less than 30 days before the start of the tour. The values of the compensation cannot be more than the value of the deposit paid until that date. If the cancellation takes place more than 30 days before the start of the tour, the stipulations of point 5.1. apply.
6.2. You have the right to transfer the tour package to other parties who wish to participate in your place. In this case, the other party assumes the entire contractual rights and obligations, including a price increase if extra services are needed. The transfer cannot take place less than 7 days before the execution of the tour package.
6.3. You acknowledge that the type of travel products and/or services booked requires a certain flexibility and acknowledge that they will permit reasonable alterations to their booking. You also acknowledge that the routes, itineraries, accommodation, types of transportation, or schedules may be modified without prior notice due to various circumstances or events, such as sickness or mechanical breakdown, extreme natural phenomena in the location where the tour takes place, flight cancellations, strikes and other unpredictable or unforeseeable circumstances which are beyond the control of Uncover Romania Tours.
6.4. You have the rights to ask and receive a price discount if any changes in the execution of the tour have affected the services included in the contract except if the cause of these changes is provoked by your own actions if it's a consequence of unforeseen events and/or of the actions of a third party unrelated to the travel services included in the contract. The price discount cannot be greater than the costs of the services affected by the changes in the execution of the tour.
6.5. You are the only responsible party if you do not follow the tour program, if you lose your official ID documents and belongings or if your actions disrupt the execution of the tour.
6.6. You are responsible for securing travel and health insurance as well as applying and obtaining entrance visas to Romania if necessary.
Citizens of the European Union, European Economic Area, or the United States of America do not need a visa to stay in Romania for a period of maximum of 90 days. Citizens with simple passports from other 58 countries are exempted from the Romanian visa requirement. Check the 58 countries here.
The list of countries whose citizens require a Romanian visa is available here.
The procedures for obtaining the visa are available here.
6.7. You acknowledge that the decisions of the tour guide are final on all aspects likely to affect the safety or well-being of any person participating in the tour. If you fail to comply with a decision made by the tour guide or affect the well-being or mobility of the group, you may be asked to leave the trip immediately, with no right to refund. You must comply with the laws and customs of Romania.
6.8. You acknowledge all tours involve a certain amount of personal risk and that it is also your responsibility to acquaint yourselves with all relevant travel information and the nature of their itinerary.
6.9. You must notify us in writing if the present contract was not fulfilled properly a maximum of 10 days after the end of the tour.
7.1. Uncover Romania Tours is responsible for the proper execution of the travel products/services sold to the clients as detailed in the contract.
7.2. Uncover Romania Tours must provide the clients, in a reasonable time before the start of the tour, all the necessary documents regarding the execution of the tour: invoices, detailed travel itinerary including accommodation and transportation reservations, the contact information of local guides, and relevant service providers.
7.3. If during or before the tour, Uncover Romania Tours acknowledges it is not possible to completely respect the tour itinerary because of major changes that could not be anticipated, it is obligated to inform the clients as soon as possible. If Uncover Romania Tours cannot fix the situation that created the major changes, it has to offer the clients alternative or financial compensations if any fees already paid by them were part of the services not offered. This compensation cannot be greater than the costs of the services affected by the changes.
7.4. Uncover Romania Tours is not obligated to pay any compensation claims for damages, expenses, losses, or changes to the execution of the tour which is attributable to the actions of the clients, the unforeseeable or unavoidable act, or omission of a third party unconnected with the provision of any travel products and/or services or a force major event.
7.5. Uncover Romania Tours will offer immediate assistance if you are affected by unforeseen circumstances during the execution of the tour. We will provide information regarding health services, local authorities, or embassy services if needed, and will assist you in identifying the best services needed. If you are responsible for the circumstances that created the difficulties, Uncover Romania Tours has the right to charge a reasonable commission that cannot be greater than the actual cost of these assistance services.
7.6. Uncover Romania Tours is not responsible for any damages, expenses, losses, or claims which are attributable to the fault of the clients, the unforeseeable or unavoidable act, or omission of a third party unconnected with the provision of any travel products and/or services or a force major event.
7.7. Uncover Romania Tours must respond in 10 days to any notification sent by you regarding the improper execution of the tour package, mentioning the compensations that apply, if the case, and identifying the responsible parties.
7.8. Uncover Romania Tours reserves the right to unilaterally modify this contract after it was signed and agreed by both parties in the event of unforeseen changes that affect the execution of the tour package. The CLIENTS will be informed immediately in this respect.
8.1. The clients are insured against the risk of bankruptcy of the Uncover Romania Tours by the Insurance Policy number 29315 from 10/10/2018 issued by OMNIASIG VIENNA INSURANCE GROUP SA. Address: 51 Aleea Alexandru, Bucharest, Romania. Phone: +40214057420. Email: office@omniasig.ro.
9.1. In the case of major force, both parties are exempted from any responsibility. This refers to any unpredictable events that may occur after the signing of this contract that escape the control of any of the two parties and that make it impossible for any of them to fulfill partially or totally any of their responsibilities. Major force events refer to natural disasters, riots, protests, schedule change of public or private transportation schedule, government decisions that may affect the tourism activity. The party or parties affected by major force are exempted from any responsibility linked to this contract. Both parties agree to limit as much as possible any damages caused. The party invoking major force is obligated to notify in writing the other party at the beginning (maximum 5 days) and end of a situation of force majeure. In the absence of this written notification, the situation of major force cannot be invocated. If this situation lasts for more than 15 days, the contract is canceled.
10.1. The laws of Romania govern the booking conditions and contracts to the fullest extent allowable. Any disputes in connection with it must be initiated in the courts of Romania if the parties haven’t reached an amicable solution.
11.1. Uncover Romania Tours reserves the right to update and/or alter these terms and conditions at any time, and it is the clients' responsibility to be familiar with them. The latest terms and conditions can always be found on www.uncover-romania-tours.com and will supersede any previous versions.
The price depends on the final itinerary and services that will be personalized together with the clients.
Payment methods
Credit card, bank transfer, PayPal, cash (only for certain tours). The fees related to the payment methods are not included in the prices above.
Contact us if you’d like to get a price quotation for larger or smaller groups or a shorter/longer version of this tour.
Cluj-Napoca (or other cities)
Cluj-Napoca (or other cities)
Breakfast every day
Local guest houses
Car
3 UNESCO World Heritage Sites
Landmarks: Sighet Memorial, the Village Museum, the Merry Cemetery, Peri Church, the Florean Museum
Plus: traditional villages and local artisans, Creasta Cocosului Peak
Discount rates for children
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Sighet Memorial is a former communist prison where Romania’s elites were tortured and exterminated during the first years of communism in Romania.
Discover the eight wooden churches built centuries ago in Maramures that are part of the UNESCO World Heritage of Romania.
