The Balkan region is not usually considered a destination for adventure travel but it actually offers a huge variety of landscapes and wildlife which are widely unknown to foreign visitors. The countryside is dotted with small picturesque villages, monasteries, ruined medieval castles, and family-run taverns and wineries which could add cultural and historical dimensions to everyone’s outdoor pursuits.
Bulgaria’s mountain resorts offer excellent skiing and snow-shoeing in the winter and through the rest of the year (when hotel rates are significantly lower) become bases for hiking and mountain-biking. The Rila, Pirin, Rhodope, and Balkan Mountains have miles of marked trails through spectacular scenery of gushing streams, highland meadows, mountain lakes, and panoramic vistas. Many of these mountain treks can be easily accessed from the capital city of Sofia and to also incorporate visits to historic and cultural sights like the famous Rila Monastery, the Belogradchik Fortress, the Ivanovo Rock Monasteries, and towns and villages with well-preserved traditional architecture. In the spring and early summer, some of the rivers also offer opportunities for rafting.
A recent project funded by the EU has helped developing a biking route along the Danube’s southern bank which will allow travelers to cycle its entire length from the Iron Gates to the Danube Delta and visit en route sites like the Baba Vida Fortress in Vidin, the Belogradchik Rocks and Fortress, the Ivanovo Rock Churches, and the UNESCO-protected Srebarna Lake.
The unspoiled
Romanian countryside also offers some great hiking with marked trails to suit all fitness levels. The Fagaras Mountains, which are part of the famous Carpathians, are located in the southern Transylvania region thus allowing the combination of outdoor pursuits with the cultural exploration of the former Saxon towns of Brasov, Sibiu, and Sighisoara with their well-preserved walled Old Towns and the UNESCO-protected fortified churches of Biertan or Prejmer. Further north, the more remote and rural areas of Maramures and Bucovina also offer some scenic hikes through hills dotted with beautiful painted monasteries and wooden churches. The extensive wetlands of the Danube Delta are of course a great destination for birdwatchers, especially during the periods of spring and autumn migration when it becomes a true paradise teeming with a variety of bird species including herons, pelicans, egrets, and geese.
Further west,
Bosnia-Herzegovina is a tiny country with a diverse landscape of mountain peaks, old forests, alpine villages, and deep river canyons. The country is home to the Dinaric Alps where hiking and mountaineering traditions stretch back to the times of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and which offer an array of well-maintained treks and walks. The primeval forests of the Sutjeska National Park house a large population of brown bear, dear, and chamois while the Bjelasnica Mountain north of the capital city of Sarajevo (which hosted the 1984 Winter Olympics) is sprinkled with small highland villages where centuries-old traditions and customs can still be found. The mountains around Sarajevo offer some magnificent hiking along deep canyons and through forests and meadows and many of alpine trails which have for centuries connected the highland communities are suitable for mountain-biking.
Bosnia-Herzegovina’s rivers rank among the best in Europe for white-water rafting and local outfitters offer half- or full-day tours for novice and experienced rafters alike. The Neretva and Tara Rivers boast some deep canyons with breathtaking views and crystal-clear water which has made them some of the best destinations for rafting and kayaking in Europe. The limestone canyon walls are covered with pines, elm, and linden trees and one can see the occasional waterfall spill-out into the river from the vertical rock. Because of the country’s small size, most of the outdoor adventure tours can be easily arranged as day-trips from Sarajevo or Mostar and combined with cultural sightseeing as well.
