Driving the Transfăgărășan Highway in Transylvania with Kids: Bears, Mountains and a Glacial Lake

As we started this roadtrip I had my doubts whether we would see any bears but we were in luck because we saw 17 brown bears, including eight cubs, along a single stretch of mountain road in the Carpathians, some of them close enough to the car that we had to frantically roll up the windows as they walked past. Unfortunately our daughter was asleep for most of it which was the single most frustrating piece of timing in her young life!

The Transfăgărășan Highway is one of the most spectacular roads in Europe. It crosses the Făgăraș Mountains (the highest range in the Romanian Carpathians) via a series of dramatic hairpin bends and tunnels, climbing to over 2,000 metres at its highest point before descending the other side past a glacial lake and a dam. Top Gear famously called it the best driving road in the world, which is the kind of claim that usually turns out to be exaggerated but in our experience, it's hard to disagree.

For families with young children, it requires some planning and a realistic attitude about time in the car. It also happens to be one of the most extraordinary days you can have in Romania.

Before You Go: The Most Important Practical Detail

The Transfăgărășan is closed in winter. The alpine section of the road (the high pass between Bâlea Cascadă and Piscul Negru) is typically open from 1 July to 31 October, weather permitting. Some years it opens earlier (in 2025 it opened on 6 June) but the provisional dates of July to October are what to plan around. In winter, the road is physically blocked on the Sibiu (north) side using concrete barriers, and driving through the closed section risks a fine as well as voiding your insurance if anything goes wrong.

Access when open is permitted between 7am and 9pm only, and can be temporarily restricted in bad weather. Before you go, check the current status at transfagarasan.travel or the official Romanian roads authority at dispecerat.andnet.ro, where the road is marked red when closed.

How to Do It: Day Trip vs Through-Route

There are two ways to approach the Transfăgărășan with young children.

The first is to drive it as a through-route — entering from the north (Sibiu side) and exiting south towards Curtea de Argeș and Pitești, or vice versa. This makes sense if you're moving between bases, but it commits you to a long day of driving at the end of which you arrive somewhere new and tired.

The second is to do it as a day trip, going up one side to Lake Bălea, then retracing your route back. This is what we did, departing from the village of Sadu (30 minutes south of Sibiu), and I would strongly recommend this approach if you have young children. It gives you complete flexibility to stop as much as you want on the way up, spend time at the lake, drive down towards the bears near Vidraru at your own pace, and get back when you need to.

The Drive Up to Lake Bălea

From Sadu, it took about 45 minutes to reach the start of the mountain pass, and then another 45 minutes of driving to reach Lake Bălea at the top. That's roughly an hour and a half of driving before you reach the main destination, which I mention so you can plan accordingly with snacks, entertainment, and nap-time strategy.

The drive up is spectacular and worth doing slowly. The road climbs through forested lower slopes before the treeline drops away and you're into open mountain terrain, with the hairpin bends becoming more frequent and the views getting progressively bigger. We stopped several times just to get out and look. This is not a road that rewards hurrying.

Lake Bălea (Lacul Bâlea) sits at the highest point of the road at about 2,034 metres. It's a glacial lake and very beautiful with several peaks rising steeply above the far shore. There are food stalls and souvenir stands at the lake (selling snacks, drinks, woolly hats) a cable car station, and the starting points for several hiking trails. It is a good place to stop, eat something, and let young children run around before getting back in the car.

A note on temperature: we were driving in late August when the Transylvanian foothills were in the mid-30s. At Lake Bălea it was around 20°C with a noticeable wind. Bring a layer regardless of what the forecast says at lower altitude because the mountain weather changes quickly and it can feel significantly colder than you expect.

The Bears: Vidraru Dam and Lake

After Lake Bălea, the road descends the southern side of the mountains towards Vidraru Lake and the Vidraru Dam. This is the section where bears are most commonly seen, as they cross the road to reach the water.

We saw our first bear about 20 minutes below Bălea. By the time we reached the dam area, we had counted seventeen, including eight cubs. Some of them were on the verge at the side of the road. A couple walked directly across in front of the car and one family was close enough we rolled up the windows as they walked past us

Important: Do not get out of the car near bears, and do not attempt to feed them. The Romanian road authorities are explicit about this. Wild bears are unpredictable and have caused serious injuries to tourists who approached them. Stay in the car, drive slowly past, and enjoy the view from the window. This is also better for the bears, who should not be associating human presence with food.

There is a playground about 15 minutes below Lake Bălea on the drive towards Vidraru. We would have stopped but our daughter was asleep. If your children are awake and have energy to burn, it's there.

The Vidraru Dam itself is an impressive arch dam built in the 1960s across a narrow gorge, with the dark water of Vidraru Lake stretching behind it and a giant statue of Prometheus on a nearby hilltop. There's a viewing area and you can walk across the top of the dam. With a toddler we kept things brief, but it's a satisfying end point to the drive before turning around.

Practical Tips for the Transfăgărășan with a Toddler

Time in the car is significant. The full day involves a lot of driving and that is the honest reality of it with young children. We handled this by planning around nap time (the bear spotting section worked out perfectly, in hindsight), stopping frequently on the way up, and not rushing any of it. Build in more time than you think you need.

Leave early. The road is busiest in the middle of the day, particularly in July and August. An early start gets you to Lake Bălea before the crowds, and the bear activity near Vidraru tends to be better in the morning and late afternoon than at midday.

Pack a proper picnic. The food stalls at Lake Bălea are convenient but basic. We had brought a full packed lunch and ate at the lake, which was much better. There are picnic spots at the water's edge and the setting is hard to beat.

Bring layers for everyone. The temperature at altitude is meaningfully lower than in the valleys and the wind at Lake Bălea can be sharp even in August. Even though you're mainly going to be in the car a warm layer for adults and children both is recommended for when you pop outside to admire the view.

The road itself is not scary to drive. The hairpin bends look dramatic from photographs but the gradient is manageable because the road was originally engineered for heavy military vehicles. The surface is good so take it slowly and pull over somewhere safe when you want to look at the view.

Tours from Sibiu or Brașov: If you'd rather not drive yourself, guided day tours run from both Sibiu and Brașov. This is a particularly good option if you're travelling without a car or want someone else to navigate. Check GetYourGuide for current options — the tour from Sibiu includes Râpa Roșie as a stop which makes for an excellent combined day.

Recommended tour: From Sibiu: Mud Volcanoes and Red Ravine Day Trip

(Use code TODDLERTRAVELDIARIES5 for 5% off via the GetYourGuide app.)

Where to Stay

The best bases for the Transfăgărășan are Sibiu (north side), Brașov (northeast), or the smaller villages between the two. The drive from Sibiu to the start of the pass takes 45 minutes; from the Bran area near Brașov you can approach from the south. We stayed in Sadu, 30 minutes from Sibiu giving us easy access.

Check this out for our best family recommendations of where to stay when you visit the region: Where to Stay in Transylvania with Kids: Brașov, Sinaia, Sighișoara and Bran

1. Elysian Fields — The Island Tiny House, Sadu (from around £55/night)

Best for: families who want total seclusion in the mountains, a hot tub under the stars, and a base that is itself one of the highlights of the trip

The tiny house sits in the garden of Maria and Raul's home in the mountain village of Sadu, 30 minutes from Sibiu and 45 minutes from the start of the Transfăgărășan pass. You wake up to a view of the Carpathians from the bed. There is a garden with swings and a small climbing frame, apple trees, friendly cats, an outdoor hot tub, and a host who brings you toys and books for the children. A herd of buffalos walked past the property on the morning we were there. No cots are available, so this works best for children who are past that stage. Free private parking on site.

2. Pensiunea Petra Verde, Porumbacu de Sus (from around £35/night)

Best for: families wanting a well-priced guesthouse with a standout breakfast on the north side of the highway, 11km from Bâlea Waterfall

Sitting in the village of Porumbacu de Sus on the northern approach to the highway, Pensiunea Petra Verde is a great family-friendly option which gives you mountain view balconies, family rooms and a tasty breakfast with local specialties. It puts you 11km from Bâlea Waterfall and right at the foot of the Făgăraș Mountains, which means you can drive up to Lake Bălea in the morning before the day visitors arrive. Free private parking on site.

3. Hotel Posada Vidraru, Arefu (from around £65/night)

Best for: families who want to be right on the highway at the bear-spotting section, with a restaurant, indoor pool and spa, and mountain views from the terrace

Hotel Posada Vidraru sits 200 metres from the Vidraru Dam at kilometre 62 of the Transfăgărășan road. Some rooms have balconies looking directly towards the dam and the forested gorge, and the hotel sits in the stretch of road where bears are most commonly seen meaning you might even see them from the hotel. There is an indoor pool, a spa, a restaurant serving Romanian and international cuisine, a children's playground, and free private parking. Cots are available on request for children under 3 and children under 7 stay free in an existing bed. A solid choice if you want a proper hotel rather than a guesthouse and want to wake up right where the action is.

Final Thoughts

The Transfăgărășan is a long day, and I will not pretend otherwise. By the time we got back to Sadu in the late afternoon, we were tired. Our daughter was asleep again in the car seat. The hot tub that night was entirely necessary.

It is also one of the best days we have had anywhere. The mountain scenery is extraordinary, the bears are genuinely unlike anything else you will see from a car in Europe, and the road itself with its hairpin bends, the glacial lake and stunning views delivers on its reputation in a way that famous things rarely do.

For the full Transylvania road trip itinerary, including all our stops from Sebeș to Bucharest, read our Transylvania with a Toddler: A Road Trip Guide. And for more on the places nearby, take a look at our guide to Sibiu with Kids.