Driedaagse tour door Iasi en UNESCO Painted Monasteries

The tour is an excellent opportunity to understand many aspects of Romania as a nation and the history of the Romanian people, having a very good guide who speaks Italian.

We had a great three days with Rolandia in and around Iasi . On Day One we were met at the airport and then driven to Bucovina to see the Painted Monasteries. They are fabulous and our guide, Otilia, was superb in explaining the history, the paintings themselves and their religious significance. It was a long day but well worth it. Day Two was with Nicu who drove us into Moldova to see Capriana Monastery, Cricova and Old Orhei. My wife loved the wine tasting and my favourite was Old Orhei which is set in a great landscape. It was another super day, with great conversation with Nicu who is an excellent guide and driver. Day Thee was with Mihai, another super guide who teaches at the university and who showed us the vibrant city of Iasi. he then drove us back to the airport. All three guides were exceptional. Not just in their guiding but in the interesting conversations we had while driving, eating or walking. I recommend them! Our trip was originally planned in 2019, then rescheduled three times due to the pandemic, then re-structured when flights were suspended from Chisinau and we had to return to Iasi. So they can be flexible and fitted our trip around what we wanted and were able to do.

We were thrilled with our tour of the beautiful region of Bucovina and surrounding Moldavia. We could not have had a better experience than with the Rolandia guides, Madalina in Iasi and Iulian in Bucovina. They both created an atmosphere of cheerful welcome and a spirit of discovery, as well as being extremely knowledgeable and interested in engaging with us. With only two days to visit four monasteries, one fortress, a castle and two museums, our tour of Bucovina was quite packed, but Iulian organized our time very professionally without making us feel rushed. Iulian was also a great driver and used the time in the car as an opportunity to educate us about a variety of local customs and other facts about the region. The painted monasteries well deserve their UNESCO recognition--they are incredible pieces of art and architecture, totally unique to their place and time. Iulian's explanations of the historical and religious contexts in which the churches were decorated were more than invaluable and went far beyond anything we had in our guidebooks. We also greatly enjoyed the Popa museum with its collection of folk art and artifacts. The included hotel stays consisted of two nights in Iasi and one night in Gura Humorului--in Iasi the 4-star hotel accommodation was comfortable and we appreciated the ample breakfast. In Gura Humorului, accommodation was of a completely different style, in rustic cottage rooms well off the beaten track. Here we really felt like we saw a true slice of Romanian country life. We were served fresh milk from the cow and "placinta" cake made by the hotel owner. The contrast between the urban stay in Iasi and the experience of the more rural areas was an interesting aspect of the tour. The included dinner in Bucovina was an incredible experience--all the food was sourced from a local farm and delicious, if heavy on meat. In all, we had a terrific and fun experience and would highly recommend this tour. It was perfect for an American couple and their adult daughter living in Romania to spend family time together.