Romania: Costs and Impressions

This time, on our last post about Romania, we have combined our costs and impressions. Let’s have a look at the costs first.

We had been able to keep well under budget in Romania until we had to take Dora to hospital.

But let’s be fair to her: we live in her; at times, we have driven her more than 200 kms in one shot; she is not getting any younger, she is fifteen years old! And she has not giving us major problems.

However, driving for three months on Italian, Greek, Bulgarian, and Romanian dodgy roads has been the cataclysm for her. Her shock absorber couldn’t put up with them any longer and it died one day before leaving Romania.

The cost of replacing it was €300. Believe me, this was really good value. Checking out what was wrong with her only costs us €10. So I think we mainly paid for the piece. Labour costs, unfortunately for locals, are really low, compared to the UK.

Where else have we spent the rest of the money?

Travel

Diesel is not cheap in this part of Europe. The price per litre in Romania has worked out around €1.30.

Others

The most significant expense under this category has been on activities. The cruise along the Danube cost us €70. But it was definitely worth it! Gary had a great opportunity to spot birds and I enjoyed my tree spotting, and frog spotting. Other activity costs related to museums we visited in Bucharest, Transylvania and Timisoara.

The other major cost under this category was to do with Gary’s trekking boots, which died climbing Mt Omu. We got cheap ones in Decathlon and the cost is currently showing under Souvenirs.

Where we have we been good?

Camping

Romania is another motorhome friendly country. You can park wherever you like, as long as it is not in someone’s garden. People don’t seem to mind.

Food

We have come well under budget because we missed our meal out in this county. We had it planned in Timisoara, but we had to deal with Dora instead. By the time she was checked out, it was too late to go back to town to eat out. And the next day we left to Serbia.

Laundry

We spent nothing on laundry. We took all dirty clothes all the way up to Moldova and washed them in the apartment we stayed. Excellent!

So overall we have come up to 10% over budget, but more importantly, we are still 15% under budget year to day. It should be noted that if we took the cost of repairing Dora, as it was an exceptional cost fully allocated to this country, we would have been 20% under budget.

And what about our impressions of Romania?

Romania has really impressed us. It is a beautiful country.

The landscape – astonishing

The landscape around the Danube delta is amazing. The scale of the river cannot be described. It is the widest I have seen in my life. Sailing along it was incredibly peaceful.

Driving along perfectly straight, flat, endless roads was relaxing. We could drive on our own for ages without coming across a single car.

However, the highlights have been the Transfăgărășan and the Transalpina highways. They have been unforgettable experiences.

The Romanians – warm

Very helpful, very friendly, very clever. This is a culture that quickly wants to move on and they know they can.

The capital – a must

For good or for bad, Ceausescu has made a significant impact on the capital. His projects might have left Romanians highly indebted for years to come. But it is precisely their grandiosity, stately and magnificence that attract numerous tourists year on year.

Bucharest is the most dynamic, lively and audacious of all East European capitals we have yet to visit.

The villages – long and thin

Romanian villages revolve along the roads. There are no backstreets, no squares, no crossroads. Houses roll down along the main road. And you drive, and drive relentless, until the village finally ends. And then you come across the next one. At the end of the day, it felt like you have been driving along one big, long village for the entire day.

West country – another country

Banat region and its capital, Timisoara, is a different country worth visiting. How can we describe it? Lively, diverse, the land of ‘firsts’. This region has gone through interesting history and they seem to be the pioneers of modern Romania.

SM.