Bird Garden Corund/Korond

The Iezer/Jézer Lake, also known as the pearl of the alps, is located in the Călimani/Kelemen Mountains at an altitude of 1730 m.  Some call it a bottomless lake. According to a legend, a lead duck was once thrown into the lake and found years later at the Black Sea. The depth of the water is between 3 and 5 meters. The lake has a triangular shape. Two brooks fed the lake, which flows into the Puturosul (Stinky) stream. The Lake Iezer Reserve in Călimani is a protected area of ​​national interest that covers a surface of ​​322 hectares, belonging to Toplița administrative center. The reserve lies at the foot of the Răchitiş massif and has a glacial lake (1200 sqm, 45 m long and 35 m wide). The surrounding area is home to a diverse range of shrubs and a wide variety of mammals. Photo: Amazing Nature/Páll Róbert

The sweet chestnut park of Crăciunel/Homoródkarácsonyfalva is a peculiarity of Szeklerland, as it is the only place where the 100 years old chestnut trees can be found. The park covers an area of 2 hectares, providing relaxation for visitors. During the first week of October each year, the locals host the Sweet Chestnut Festival here.

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

At the request of our guests, we organize cultural and artistic events. Dancers and musicians will present traditions from the local folklore, and the interested guests will have the opportunity to learn how to dance on folk music. Gyimesi Skanzen Guesthouse

The Fairy Glade is a group of mineral springs, which flow in open-air pools. The place has a wardrobe and resting points. In 2009, the Ars Topia Foundation decided to build traditional baths in Borsec, using voluntary work. For ten days, young people from Hungary and Transylvania worked together with the locals to arrange these baths. Since then, the baths enjoyed great success among visitors. The project achieved several goals, such as: building swimming pool with mineral water, foot baths, changing rooms, gazebo, sunbeds. There are indicator panels in widely circulated languages, hand-painted on wood and decorated with floral motifs specific to the area. Year after year, the number of tourists visiting these baths is on the rise, but locals also use these mineral waters for different treatments. The Fairy Glade also has belvedere points and picnic or sunbathing areas.  There is no program or entrance fee. 📷 Rédai Botond

The Frumoasa Dam is located on the Frumoasa brook, a tributary of the Olt river. The dam is made of ballast fillings, and a clay core. It has a height of 38 m and a length of 506 m. The lake has a total volume of 10.6 million cubic meters, of which 7.6 million up to the standard retention level serve for the drinking water supply of Miercurea Ciuc, providing 50% of the city’s needs. The area near the dam is known for fishing. There are various species of fish: perch, Prussian carp, European chub, common carp, brown trout, common bream, zander, and wels catfish. Guesthouses and holiday homes were built nearby, the area becoming a rather well developed travel spot. The tourists who choose to visit the Frumoasa Dam will find a wonderful, quiet place for relaxation. There are also hiking routes from the lake.

On the outer side of the curve, the Tolvajos brook eroded the rock wall. After a while, the volcanic rock with a less resistant structure no longer supported its own weight and fell into the brook. In this place, the stream flowed under the fallen rock, which resembles a small cottage, a "hut". According to tradition, the place was named "The Hut Stone". It is accessible from the national road 13A to the Chirui Baths.

CLOSED UNTIL MAY 31, 2026 Building on the experience of the temporary butterfly house in Odorheiu Secuiesc/Székelyudvarhely, we opened the first permanent butterfly house in Romania, at Praid/Parajd, Harghita county, on the spring of 2012. The building, created for this very purpose, is divided into two parts and is house to a reception area that communicates with a gift shop and to a so called “flying space” with a tropical microclimate that is decorated with tropical plants, a small lake and a circular walkway. Our butterflies come to us from South-American, African and Asian butterfly farms as puppets. After their arrival, the puppets are installed in a hatchery especially built with this purpose, and, depending on species, wonderful butterflies hatch from the caterpillars after a few days. Each year, the butterfly house can be visited in the warm months and one can watch, usually at the same time, 8 up 9 different common species and several hundreds of specimens from the 6-7 changing species of butterflies. Because butterflies’ lifetime is of only a few weeks, we are attentive, when changing, to bring new species, thus inviting our visitors to come again and again. Among our permanent guests, we would like to highlight the virtuoso Blue morpho butterfly (Morpho peleides), the graceful Zebra butterflies (Heliconiinae), the ever lazy Owl butterflies (Calligo memnon), as well as the Paper kite butterfly (Idea leuconoe), which floats in the air like a silky sheet. Our butterfly house offers moments of relaxation and of excitement, both to children and to adults. Open every day from May to September. TICKETS • 10 RON - children, pupils, students • 12 RON - adults, pensioners • under 3 years old are admitted for free