Mara Ilie
Historian and city guide
Saxon Transylvania and the fortified church network. Brings the archive photographs.
Viscri and the Saxon villages: fortified churches and working farms
Viscri and the Saxon villagesCultural & HistoricEasy8 hFamiliesFirst-timersPhotography
Duration8 h
GradeEasy
Good forMax 8Ages 5+
What the day is like
Two or three villages in a day, with the people who still hold the keys. Lunch is at a farm, not a restaurant.
Two or three villages in a day, visited with the people who still hold the keys to the churches. Viscri is the one with the reputation, and it earns it, but the villages either side of it are quieter and often better.
What makes these different
A fortified church is not a castle. It is what a farming village built when it could not afford a lord — walls thick enough to hold everyone and their cattle for a fortnight. Most still have the bacon lofts inside.
Lunch
At a farm, not a restaurant. Whatever is being cooked that day.
The day, hour by hour
09:00Pickup in Brașov
About ninety minutes north through the hills.
10:30Viscri
The white church, the walls and the bacon tower. We go up into the loft, which most visitors never do.
12:30Lunch at a farm
Included. Sit down with whoever is cooking. Tell us about dietary needs when you book and it is easily handled.
14:00A second village
Quieter, with no coach park. This is usually the part people talk about afterwards.
17:00Back in Brașov
Around five in the afternoon.
What's included
We provide
- Entry tickets to every site on the route
- Transport from Brașov and back
You bring
- Comfortable shoes — the streets are cobbled
- Something for rain
Where you meet
Pickup from your Brașov accommodation
Who takes you out
Guides are not booked individually — we assign whoever knows that ground and season best, and tell you who it is when we confirm.
Pick a date
Questions people ask
Is lunch really included?
Yes, and it is a proper meal at a farm rather than a sandwich. Vegetarian is straightforward if you tell us in advance.
How rough are the roads?
The last stretch to Viscri is unsurfaced and bumpy. It is fine in our vehicle but worth knowing if you get carsick.
Will the churches be open?
We arrange it in advance with the keyholder. Occasionally somebody is at a funeral and we go to a different village instead.