The Via Transilvanica crosses Romania; this guide covers one of its regions, Terra Borza Teutonica: the association's stages 71 to 78, from Archita by Viscri, Cobor and Hălmeag to Bran, Râșnov and the old town of Brașov.
Best season: May to October. May to October suits the trail best, the association's guide says; it does not recommend winter for now, with snow and few places open. Some hosts open only part of the year (one in Archita from April to October), and the guide's accommodation details date from 2025: confirm when you book. Before you go
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Eight stages, the association's own, of 17 to 30 km. Each ends in a village or town where the association's map lists places to stay, mostly village homes and small guesthouses. Choose a plan, or pick your own start, finish and nights below.
Changing where you stay suggests a new number of days: the fewest that keep each day under 8 h of walking and in daylight, where a place to stay allows.
Days end where the route has a stay, a camp or a village.
Stage 1: Stage 71, from the fortified church in Archita to Viscri: 21.26 km, 5 h, 600 m of climb, easy, the association says. Out of Archita it shares the way with the main route's stage 27; on the hill above Bunești, before the path leaves the forest, a signpost splits them: keep left for Viscri. Our line follows the mapped route, which differs from the association's track in places near Viscri; follow the waymarks. There are no springs: carry water.
Viscri Town or village
A village listed by UNESCO, and busy: book well ahead, and expect higher prices than elsewhere on the Via Transilvanica. The association's map lists two guesthouses here, one with a local food point; the official guide adds the Experience Transylvania guesthouses, booked and paid online only. Take water here: the next stage has no springs.
Find your own accommodation; TrailSplits has not checked what is open.
Stage 2: Stage 72, Viscri to Cobor: 24.54 km, 6 h 30, 654 m of climb, easy. There are no springs: fill up in Viscri or Lovnic. Our line follows the mapped route, which differs from the association's track in places near Viscri; follow the waymarks.
Cobor Town or village
A small village. The association's map lists four places to stay, 0.3 to 0.6 km from the stage end: a guesthouse for adults, two homestays and a farm with rooms.
Find your own accommodation; TrailSplits has not checked what is open.
km 0.3–0.6: Not mapped: follow the waymarks.
Stage 3: Stage 73, Cobor to Hălmeag, the longest of the region: 29.93 km, 8 h, 625 m of climb, medium on the association's site (its printed guide says easy). Just after the start in Cobor, about 300 m of the way between two streets are not on OpenStreetMap, so the map draws them dashed: follow the waymarks there. No springs either: carry plenty from the villages; Ticușu has a shop.
Hălmeag Town or village
A village where one local coordinator books about 29 places in several village houses and the parish house, with camping and showers, the official guide says.
Find your own accommodation; TrailSplits has not checked what is open.
Stage 4: Stage 74, Hălmeag to Șinca Nouă: 28.97 km, 7 h 30, 340 m of climb, medium on the association's site (easy in its printed guide). It passes Șercaia, Vad and Șinca Veche, and about 1 km runs along a national road.
Șinca Nouă Town or village
A village with cabins, cottages, a homestay and a caravan site with camping on the association's map; one cabin about 1.5 km off fetches walkers by car on request.
Find your own accommodation; TrailSplits has not checked what is open.
Stage 5: Stage 75, Șinca Nouă to Poiana Mărului: 28.8 km, 8 h, 956 m of climb, graded hard: the toughest day of the region. A guesthouse near Paltin, about 1.6 km off the trail, takes walkers on the way.
Poiana Mărului Town or village
A village at the end of the region's hardest stage. The association's map lists guesthouses (one with a restaurant), cabins and a homestay. The next stage crosses hunting grounds: do not walk into them after sunset.
Find your own accommodation; TrailSplits has not checked what is open.
Stage 6: Stage 76, Poiana Mărului to Bran: 16.7 km, 6 h, 685 m of climb, medium. It crosses hunting grounds and passes Zărnești: walk in company, wear bright clothes, make noise and keep out after sunset.
Bran Town or village
The village of Bran, a busy tourist place with stays for every budget, the official guide says; the association's map lists four places to stay, one of them about 4 km off. Buses link Bran with Brașov through the day.
Find your own accommodation; TrailSplits has not checked what is open.
Stage 7: Stage 77, Bran to Râșnov: 20.16 km, 5 h, 402 m of climb, medium. Expect guard dogs at farms and houses, and cross the national road with care.
Râșnov Town or village
A town with about ten places to stay on the association's map: guesthouses, apartments, hotel rooms with kitchens and a campground with 20 tent sites.
Find your own accommodation; TrailSplits has not checked what is open.
Stage 8: Stage 78, Râșnov to Brașov: 17.67 km, 4 h 30, 704 m of climb, medium. It crosses the road up to Poiana Brașov and ends on Piața Sfatului, the main square of Brașov's old town.
Longest day: day 3, 8 h.
Days end at a stage end with a refuge or a village, or in a village the route passes through. Walking times are the times published by viatransilvanica.com where a stage has one, with the time measured on the mapped line beside it; a day that walks part of a stage gets a share of the stage's time by distance and climb.Outside Switzerland our walking times often run short of the times route operators publish; treat them as optimistic. Running times use 7.5 km/h plus one hour per 700 m of climb: a steady reference, not a prediction. Daylight is sunrise to sunset where the day starts; the time left is for breaks, meals and delays. For villages we count the places to stay OpenStreetMap lists; we have not checked which are open. A plan is not a booking: reserve every night before you commit to these day lengths.
Loading the forecast for low point (427 m) and high point (1,096 m)…
Typical weather on this trail: at the lowest point (427 m) and the highest point (1,096 m). Select a month to see why it is rated as it is.
| Month | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weather | Poor | Poor | Mixed | Mixed | Good | Good | Mixed | Mixed | Good | Good | Mixed | Poor |
| Stages rated good on typical weather | 0/8 | 0/8 | 0/8 | 4/8 | 8/8 | 8/8 | 5/8 | 4/8 | 8/8 | 6/8 | 0/8 | 0/8 |
| High point, day / night | -2°/-9° | 1°/-9° | 5°/-5° | 11°/0° | 16°/5° | 19°/8° | 21°/10° | 22°/10° | 16°/5° | 11°/1° | 5°/-3° | -1°/-7° |
| Low point, day / night | 1°/-8° | 4°/-7° | 10°/-2° | 16°/3° | 21°/8° | 24°/11° | 26°/13° | 27°/12° | 21°/8° | 16°/3° | 9°/-1° | 3°/-6° |
| Rain, mm | 29 | 26 | 37 | 44 | 70 | 83 | 84 | 68 | 48 | 40 | 32 | 30 |
| Snow at high point | Likely | Likely | Possible | Possible | – | – | – | – | – | Possible | Possible | Likely |
| Daylight | 9 h 03 | 10 h 21 | 11 h 50 | 13 h 29 | 14 h 53 | 15 h 41 | 15 h 24 | 14 h 11 | 12 h 37 | 11 h 02 | 9 h 32 | 8 h 43 |
Source: TerraClimate 1991–2020 monthly averages. Averages for the area at each point’s elevation (4 km grid, corrected for height). Not a forecast or a report of current trail conditions. Snow at the high point is estimated with a simple snowpack model from these temperatures and precipitation, not observed; steep islands and high summits can hold more snow than it shows. Daylight is for the 15th of each month. Hut, transport and park seasons are separate: check them for your dates.
Before you go
Arrange your stays, food and travel first, then check conditions again near departure.
There is no central booking. The association's map lists the places to stay along each stage, most of them village homes and small guesthouses booked with the host by phone or WhatsApp; a few book online. Book Viscri well ahead. Beds cost more in this region than elsewhere on the Via Transilvanica. A few hosts fetch walkers from the trail or carry luggage on request.
The association's map lists every place to stay near the trail, with its beds and how to book. Most hosts are private homes. Confirm dates and prices when you book: some open only in season (the association's map, read 13 October 2026).
Via Transilvanica: the trail mapThe association's guide asks for special care in this region: flocks are guarded by dogs, and dogs guard farms and houses too. Carry pepper spray, an ultrasonic repeller or dog treats, and let shepherds know you are there. Keep 50 to 100 m from a flock, do not run, and call 112 if a dog will not let you go (the association's guide, read 13 October 2026).
Via Transilvanica: safety on the trail (Romanian)Stage 76 crosses hunting grounds, and their keepers ask walkers to go in company, wear bright clothes rather than camouflage, make noise and keep out after sunset. The guide suggests bear spray for an aggressive animal within 10 m; keep about 30 m from a bear and back away slowly. In an emergency, call 112 (the association's stage 76 page, read 13 October 2026).
Via Transilvanica: the traveller's guideStages 71 to 73 have no natural springs. Carry water from the villages: Viscri, Lovnic, and the shop in Ticușu (the association's stage pages, read 13 October 2026).
Via Transilvanica: stage 73Our line follows the route mapped on OpenStreetMap. Near Viscri, on stages 71 and 72, it differs from the association's track in places, and in Cobor about 300 m are not mapped. Follow the waymarks there; the association publishes its own track for the region.
Via Transilvanica: Terra Borza TeutonicaThe association publishes no closure notices for this region: the warnings layer of its map was empty on 13 October 2026, and its team posts news in its official Facebook group. Hosts and points at the start and end of each stage stamp the Traveller's Booklet, sold in the association's shop (viatransilvanica.com, checked 13 October 2026).
Via Transilvanica: official Facebook groupClosures and notices last checked 13 October 2026: Via Transilvanica: traveller's guide edition (English) · Via Transilvanica: map warnings (Terra Borza Teutonica) · Via Transilvanica: region GPX version · Via Transilvanica: official stage figures (71 to 78). Check them again before you set out.
Getting there
Choose a stage or journey above to narrow the travel searches.
Google Maps journey searches, not confirmed services. A mountain endpoint may need a booked transfer or an additional walk.
Archita has a halt on the railway (Archita Hm in the CFR timetable), about 1.2 km from the start by the fortified church. Check trains in the CFR timetable; the association's stage pages also link the Autogari bus portal. Archita is the end of the main route's stage 26 too.
Infofer: CFR train timetableBuses run from Brașov to Bran: on 13 October 2026 Transbus left Autogara 1, by Brașov station, every hour from 06:45 to 20:45, about 1 h 10, and other companies run too. Buses from Brașov reach Rupea, the nearest town to Viscri, in about an hour; the association publishes no link on from Rupea. Râșnov, Zărnești and Șercaia have stations in the CFR timetable.
Autogari: Brașov to Bran busesThe region ends on Piața Sfatului in Brașov's old town. Trains leave Brașov station across Romania, and Brașov has an airport.
Infofer: Brașov stationTake your trip with you
Prepare each stage while you still have a connection: between the villages and in the forest the signal can be weak.
Keep your route and maps on your phone for places without a signal. For multi-day trips, prepare them in the installed TrailSplits app.
Saving a bookmark is not a map download. Storage can be cleared by your device; keep a backup map for remote trips.
The Via Transilvanica association gives 188 km for Terra Borza Teutonica, in eight stages (its stages 71 to 78) and about 50 h 30 of walking, in 8 sections on our map. The guide's day planner offers an 8-day plan on the overnight stops, and you can choose your own nights.
May to October. May to October suits the trail best, the association's guide says; it does not recommend winter for now, with snow and few places open.
Archita has a halt on the railway (Archita Hm in the CFR timetable), about 1.2 km from the start by the fortified church. The "Connect your journey" section has the travel details, with 2 more travel notes.
There is no central booking.
Yes: the whole route and every section, free, for a GPS watch or a phone. The guide also saves your plan for offline use in the app.
Closures we know of are shown on the days and sections they affect, in the day planner and on the stage pages. We watch 4 official notice pages (Via Transilvanica: traveller's guide edition (English); Via Transilvanica: map warnings (Terra Borza Teutonica); Via Transilvanica: region GPX version; Via Transilvanica: official stage figures (71 to 78)); the date we last read them is shown with the notices on this page. Check them again before you set off.
Route & sources
The Via Transilvanica crosses Romania from Putna (stage 1) to Drobeta-Turnu Severin (stage 70). This guide covers only its region Terra Borza Teutonica, the first extension of that main route: it leaves the main route at Archita, where stage 26 ends, and runs to Brașov. The association (Asociația Tășuleasa Social) publishes the region as its stages 71 to 78, 188 km in all, with an official stage time for each, shown beside ours on every stage; its printed guide numbers the same stages 1 to 8. The line here is the route on OpenStreetMap (relation 19225143, from the planet of 11 October 2026): 185.4 km, cut at the association's eight stage ends. Our line follows the mapped route, which differs from the association's track in places near Viscri, on stages 71 and 72; follow the waymarks there. In Cobor, at the start of stage 73, 292 m between two streets are not on OpenStreetMap: the map draws them dashed. Our climb is measured on terrain heights, so short steep steps are smoothed out.
Official guidance and mapped-source comparison checked 13 October 2026. Map data is a route reference, not confirmation of today's path, weather or accommodation availability.
Via Transilvanica: Terra Borza TeutonicaMap data © OpenStreetMap contributors · Source relation