ROCK CLIMBING SCHOOL FOR BEGINNERS IN TRANSYLVANIA
 For the perfect Adventure Travel Tour learn to climb in Romania’s Carpathian Mountains, an absolute paradise for both beginners and professional rock climbers alike. The Carpathians remain largely undiscovered, covering approximately one third of Romania’s entire land mass and the mountains are covered by forests with remote villages, plateaus, rivers, streams, thousands of waterfalls and countless fresh water springs.
 Transylvania Lives’ Rock Climbing School offers students professional instruction in some of Europe’s most remarkable natural environments, and the Adventure Travel Tour includes visits to several sites significant to the culture and history of Transylvania. The climbing lessons take place in some of the deepest gorges with huge walls over 200 metres high, spectacular ceilings, deep crevices, and fantastic clear faces. The course is specially designed for beginners with little or no experience, whilst offering a chance to climb in different areas and on different faces that offer new challenges to help you adapt and fine tune your skills.
All transport, guides and meals are inclusive. Our guides are highly experienced climbers and fully qualified climbing instructors. The food provided by the Rock Climbing School is organic and locally grown; a tradition we wish to help preserve. Also, any vegetarians out there will be catered for with REAL alternatives.
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Highlights:
 Climbing in Three Limestone Areas: Turda Gorge (Cheile Turzii), Valisoarei Gorge (Cheile Valisoarei), Ramet Gorge (Cheile Ramet)
Turda Gorge; a true climbing paradise with high limestone walls exceeding 200m and a very beautiful nature reserve with nearly 1000 different varieties of plant species.
Ramet Gorge; one of Romania’s most impressive gorges, it is set in a truly wild part of the Carpathian Mountains.
The Oldest Peasant House in Transylvania, in Rimetea village
The Oldest Wooden Church in Transylvania in Ramet Gorges
Budapest the city of baths
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Day by day itinerary:
 DAY 1 Saturday - Budapest - Cluj Napoca
Arrive in Budapest. From Budapest you will be driven to the ancient Roman city of Cluj Napoca (around 250 miles), a buzzing university / student city. You will stay in a good quality 2* hotel with basic amenities.
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DAY 2 Sunday - Cluj Napoca - Turda - Turda Gorge - Buru
 From Cluj, it is a 30minute drive to Turda, the birth place of the Unitarian religion. In the morning we will visit Turda Salt Mine, one of the oldest and best preserved mines of its kind in Europe, with its long and narrow underground tunnels, ‘frozen’ cascades of salt crystal waterfalls and resounding acoustics chambers. Our next stop is Turda Gorge, one of the best known climbing areas in Romania. Here you will be taught how to use basic climbing equipment, as well as learning and testing out some basic climbing techniques. For the evening you can settle into the 2* Hotel in Buru, situated in the mountains approximately 10 miles from Turda Gorge. All the rooms include en-suite bathrooms and the hotel has its own bar; note that the average price for a half-litre of beer in Romania is approximately 0.39 GBP/0.73 USD/0.57 EURO.
Optional: when returning to the hotel, you can walk part of the route back and take a shower under a stunning, cascading waterfall.
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DAY 3 Monday - Buru - Turda Gorge - Buru
 For the second days’ climbing at Turda Gorge you will learn the two most important techniques used in rock climbing: “belaying” and “abseiling”. “Belaying”, is the technique of securing the other climber using the harness and rope. “Abseiling”, is the technique of lowering yourself down from a rock face. Return to the 2* hotel in Buru for the evening.
Optional: On the way to the cabin, you will again have the option to walk part of the way and shower under the waterfall.
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DAY 4 Tuesday - Buru -Rimetea - Valisoarei Gorge - Buru
 Today you will try another climbing area, the Valisoarei Gorge, which is very popular for Transylvanian climbers and one of the birth places of rock climbing in Romania. On the way there, our first stop is Rimetea, a remote and traditional village with an ethnographic museum relevant to that area. The village is surrounded by mountains and has the oldest peasant house in Transylvania.
 After Rimetea, we will drive to Coltesti village, above which lies the famous Coltesti castle ruins. The castle was built between 1240-1270 for the Thoroczkay noble family, and then, in 1703 it was conquered by an Austrian general, General Tiege. From Coltesti it is a short drive to Valisoarei Gorge. Here you will have the opportunity to climb on a different type of limestone rock-formation to put into practice, reaffirm and fine tune all you have learned up until now. In the evening, drive back to the hotel in Buru.
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DAY 5 Wednesday - Buru - Aiud - Ramet Gorge - Buru
 Again you will have the opportunity to try a new climbing area at Ramet Gorge, one of the wildest and most spectacular gorges of Transylvania. En route towards Ramet Gorge, we will stop at the Town of Aiud to visit the, still intact, medieval citadel. Inside the citadel there stands a protestant church, formerly roman catholic. From Aiud we will drive directly to Ramet Monastery, located at the entrance of the Gorge. After visiting the monastery we will start climbing in the gorge and try some new climbing routes. Tonight, you will return to Buru for the last night.
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DAY 6 Thursday - Buru - Turda Gorge - Cluj Napoca
 On the final day of climbing, you will concentrate on reaffirming and consolidating all the techniques you have learned and experienced on varying rock surfaces. For the course finale, we offer you the opportunity to be assessed; to help evaluate your skills and offer advice on how to improve on your overall climbing capabilities - from fitness to more specialized climbing techniques. The idea is to help prepare you for your next climbing adventure, wherever that may be; after all, practice makes perfect.
Accommodation will be in a 2* hotel in Cluj Napoca, offering you an opportunity to explore the night life in one of Romania’s our most important student cities.
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DAY 7 Friday - Cluj Napoca - Budapest
Depart from Cluj, drive through western Transylvania, and arrive at a 2* hotel in Budapest, a genuine paradise for thermal spas. Budapest, also known as the City of Nine Bridges, lies on the Danube River and boasts a whole host of sites and activities; many buildings of significant historical importance, hundreds of thermal springs, great-value shopping and wonderful vistas from virtually anywhere in the city.
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DAY 8 Saturday Budapest - Home
After breakfast, depart from Budapest.
Price & Departure
Special notes & info
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