RideMore Center

Challenge your inner explorer with a day trip to the Transylvanian countryside to an off-the-beaten-path location where you can meet talented craftsmen, visit locals in their homes, learn about the local lifestyle, then join a bear watching tour in the wild at dusk. Life in the dispersed mountainous village of Varsag is fascinating and harsh in the same time. People still live like 50 years ago, earning a living from subsistence agriculture and forestry. Many houses are scattered in the heart of nature kilometers away from any facility like a school, a shop or a church. Neighboring houses can be separated from each other by a forest or by a field or meadow. The landscape is breathtaking with numerous mineral spings, crystal clear streams rich in trouts, pastures covered by wild flowers, glimmering waterfalls and dense forests rich in game. Step back in time and experience the greatness and simplicity of the locals living in Varsag, then see wild brown bears in their natural habitat from the security of one of the many wildlife hides operating in the area. Highlights of the tour: Explore the dispersed mountainous village of Varsag (79 km from Sighisoara) Get acquainted with the old craft of shingle-roof making and other traditional crafts Ride on a horse-drawn cart to absorb the local atmosphere Visit the picturesque 7 m high Csurgoko waterfall 3-hour close encounter with native wildlife in their natural environment Spot brown bears and possibly other species like deer, wild boar, fox, badger or game birds Enjoy the Carpathian forests silence and the excitement of waiting for bears to come Informative, friendly and professional guide Small group ensures personal service Flexibility to customize your itinerary to your own preferences Meet your guide in Odorheiu Secuiesc (47 km from Sighisoara) and ride almost an hour to one of the most dispersed villages of the Eastern Carpathians, to Varsag, where 60% of the area is woody and the inhabitants live kilometers away from each other. Along the way you will ride through colorful Szekler villages by the Tarnava Mare River, pass by the picturesque Zetea dam lake, then wind through a narrow road leading among dense forests until you arrive to Varsag. Here a horse drawn cart will await you to start your discovery tour. Visit a local pub and spend some time interacting with the locals. This isolated community with its friendly and welcoming locals will fascinate you. Enjoy some snacks and local brandy while they tell you about their daily lives and amuse you with some funny stories. According to local legends, the village covers an area comparable in size to the territory of the Romanian capital with only 1500 inhabitants living there. Ride the cart and visit traditional craftsmen like the blacksmith, the shingle-roof maker and a wood carver, watch them at work and listen to their stories. Taste delicious local produce, visit a 100 year old still-functioning watermill, capture the 7 m high Csurgoko waterfall and climb up on a 3 m high look-out tower which offers panoramic views of the dispersed houses and farms and of the surrounding Carpathian Mountains in the distance. One-hour before dusk an experienced local ranger, will take you with his 4wd car deep into the forests of the Eastern Carpathians which have one of the largest population concentration of brown bears in Romania. Occupy your place in the hide, stay quiet, listen to the forest wildlife sounds and enjoy the excitement of waiting for bears to come. Usually we are successful in seeing bears, but as there are wild animals involved, nothing is guaranteed. If you are lucky, you may observe bears feeding themselves, playing together, courting and mating, and even other species like wild boars, roe deer and red deer, fox, badger and some game birds. After approximately 3 hours watching, head back to the car accompanied by your guide and ride back to Odorheiu Secuiesc. The entire trip takes 9 to 10 hours. Be prepared and wear hiking boots, weatherproof clothing and bring binoculars, camera, extra battery and memory card to record this unique experience.

Learn the secrets of Miercurea Ciuc's beloved brew at this factory tour, 12km south of Miercurea Ciuc, through tastings and traditional Hungarian beer snacks. After a few sips, you too will be singing the praises of the Harghita Mountains' spring water and quality hops. Offer: 1 h | 45 Ron / person  • tour, explanation of the technology used • Csík Chips tasting (100 g) • unlimited beer consumption 2 h | 85 Ron / person  • tour, explanation of the technology used • local cuisine tasting • unlimited beer consumption 2 h | 99 Ron / person  • tour, explanation of the technology used  • oven-baked trotters in handmade bread with horseradish and garlic sauce • unlimited beer consumption Booking: +40755 030 895, latogatokozpont@csikisor.hu IMPORTANT! Registration is considered a definite booking after confirmation by phone or e-mail.   We want your visit to be a lasting memory, so you have the opportunity to purchase souvenirs related to Csíki Beer and Csíki Chips in our gift shop. We offer also: • Visiting and tasting tour at "Csíki Csipsz"

This tour is recommended for those who are interested in the history and battles of World War I and II. Your guide, knowledgeable in the history of the Arpad Line, will show you the remains of the trenches and machine gun mounts in the Ghimes Valley, revive the course of the bloody battles and fights with the help of detailed maps and old photos. At the end of the tour you will visit the warriors tomb where you may show your respect to them. Program duration: 4-5 hours Equipment: hiking boots, layered clothing, camera

We invite you to travel in time in the only European photography studio that works by only using natural light. Ancient cameras, backgrounds, decors and other antique accessories can be seen. You could look inside cameras that are a hundred years old; you could witness the magic of black-and-white film developing in dark rooms.  Visit the Kováts Photography in Odorheiu Secuiesc. Advance reservation: 0746665797

Step back in time and learn about the traditional cheese making in the wonderful world of the Gyimes/Ghimes Hills! Here we discover a typical traditional farm as our host guides us on his subsistence farm. We visit a Kaliba, which is a typical summer shelter up in the pasture and we try cheese making. In a walking tour we visit the ruins of the Rakoczi fortress, and with the help of our host, we can learn about the biodiversity of meadows, herbs and mushrooms. At the fortress we will recall the events from of the First and Second World Wars. Program duration: 4-5 hours

Whether it's winter or rainy summer, take part in a traditional local food tasting. The culinary excursion is organized around Tusnad Bath. Taste the snacks of nature or foods made by different rural farms in the area. Min. persons 4 Price: 30 Ron/pers.

Snowcat tours in Bath Tusnad Min. persons: 5  Max. persons: 8 Duration: 1.5 h  Price: 50 RON/pers. without picnic and 80 RON/pers, with picnic

Welcome to our countryside! GALFFIS chocolate is the first chocolate factory in Transylvania. Visitors to their factory will be shown the secrets of chocolate making. Our showroom can accommodate up to 25 people. Visitors can listen to our chocolate history lecture while enjoying our finest own-brand coffees and teas. Our cosy terrace can accommodate up to 15 people. GALFFIS offers a Family-friendly programme: • we are presenting the history of the chocolate factory from its beginnings to the present day • a demonstration of chocolate making from cocoa bean to bar • a short introduction to coffee roasting • the highlight of the programme is a tasting of chocolate specialities  The duration of the demonstration and tasting is approximately 35-45 minutes. The visitor can purchase in our showroom and taste the chocolate specialities. The maximum number of people per visit is 15-25. Pre-registration is required: 0040 741 652 167 We look forward to welcoming you. https://www.galffis.com/info/viziteaza-fabrica-de-ciocolata-galffis

The pig is usually slaughtered on Christmas Eve or in the frosty days of January, this activity becoming the most popular traditional event. For the city folks, it is a tourist attraction and a possibility to cultivate folk traditions. The event consists in slaughtering the pig raised around the farmer's house, processing the meat, and attending the traditional dinner - where different types of sausages (caltaboși, sângerete, cârnați), stew and soup prepared with pickled cabbage are served. The pig slaughtering begins in the morning with a quick drink, then the fire is lit in the hearth and the water is boiled. The actual work starts with stabbing the pig, where the protagonist is the butcher, who has a special knife to commit the "murder." The aids try to hold the agitated animal. The blood is collected in a saucepan, since it will be the raw material for “sângerete”. Afterwards, the pig is placed in a tube, where the hair is removed by scalding. First, the pig is sprinkled with resin (this makes the hairs stick to each other). Then, the animal's hair is removed with a special tool, by rubbing the pig's skin. After the hair is removed, the pig is burned with straw bundles. After the pig's skin browned beautifully, it is washed and cleaned thoroughly. After another round of drinks and best wishes for the health of those present, the pig is lifted on a table to be cut into pieces. The butcher cuts the hams, removes the intestines, the guts, the pig's head and the lard. The ribs are cut with a hatchet in three equal parts, making sure that the meat is not completely removed, but holds the ribs together, which are then salted and smoked. The bacon is cut in desired sizes, salted and smoked. Processing the scapula is done in two ways: after removing the bone, it is either cut off as ham, or used to prepare the sausages. The ham will be smoked. The intestines are cleaned and readied for the sausage preparation (caltaboși, sângerete, cârnați). After cleaning the skin pieces, some of the skin goes to boil and will be the basic material for “sângerete” and ”tobă” (which is a kind of sausage made from swine’s entrails). The sausages will be made from square bacon pieces without rind, and small pieces of meat. Another part of the bacon will be cut into squares, from which, after melting, a white and tasty pig lard is obtained. Entrails - liver, heart, lungs, spleen, kidneys, tongue - are cooked in 95 ° C water. Boiled meat, cooked rice and the blood of the animal collected at slaughtering are added to the mix. Everything is chopped and stuffed in the intestines, to obtain the “sângerete” and “caltaboș”. Seasoning is done to the taste of each farmer. The unused bits of meat, along with gristle are boiled, to form the stuff for ”tobă”. The sausages are made from minced raw meat, seasoned with paprika, pepper and garlic. The sausages, the bacon, the ham, the ”caltaboși” and ”toba” are smoked. Thus, these products prepared by salting, brining, boiling and smoking are preserved for more than half a year, either in the pantry or in the attic of the house. For details regarding the cost and other details, please call the host of the program at the following phone numbers: Ivó/Izvoare – Botházi András: +40741232744 Tusnádfürdő/Băile Tușnad: +40749066008 Szentegyháza/Vlăhița: +40744680753 Borszék/Borsec: 0266337001 Csíkrákos/Racu: +40745180649 Gyergyócsomafalva/Ciumani: +40746337722