The Corvin Castle & Turda Salt Mine

The next day of our trip, of which story it started here, we spent it in the western part of Transylvania, traveling about 370 km by car through the sun, wind or storm. The route of the day was: Sighisoara – Corvin Castle – Turda and Turda Salt Mine, and spent two nights in Turda.

It was a tiring day although we spent most of the time in the car, because the itinerary was not the easiest one, and this is due only to the great distances between the objectives.

To see

Here’s what we’ve visited on this day of driving through the country:

The Corvin Castle

Built in the Middle Ages and inhabited for over 400 years, The Corvin Castle is the most important tourist destination in Hunedoara. The imposing castle at one time was in the top fairytale destinations in Europe, and it’s not hard to see why it was included in the top. This castle takes your breath away when you see it for the first time.

After taking a break to take some pictures and to admire the imposing stature of the castle, you can easily dare to cross the valley that protects it, on a rather narrow but very secure bridge (not moving around). At the entrance, the price varies between 20 and 30 lei for adults, depending on the period during which you’re visiting.

The first impression when we entered the castle was not a “Wow” one. And that can be a little disappointing, especially because you see it from outside and it is very imposing, but the interior is normal, maybe modest. The rooms are renovated and beautifully furnished in the style of its years of glory, but there is nothing in particular to catch your attention.

The only “wow” moment was in the “Diete’s Hall”, where the ceiling and the columns blend together extraordinary and we could take our eyes from then and needed a moment of reflection. We were lucky to get here early in the morning to avoid some of the crowd, even though the visitors were beginning to gather. Just like all the beautiful and famous tourist destinations, the freer people the more you can enjoy them.

It was a beautiful experience and totally worth the ticket price and the trip here, The Corvin Castle deserves to be visited at least once.

Turda

After a storm caught on the road, we arrived in Turda. Unfortunately, the city was a great disappointment for us 😥, the city itself seems to have been beautiful once, that at some point there were investments made in order to bring it back to life. The city center is very careless, garbage everywhere, and the restaurants in the area we suggest to be avoided 😖. We stayed here because Cluj seemed too expensive for us (that’s because we got exactly during the TIFF festival, so the city was full) for how many days we spend in the area.

Turda Salt Mine

Inactive since 1932 and currently open for touristic and curative purposes. The exploitation of salt in this area took place over a period of about 2000 years.

For us, the most impressive part was the Rudolf Mine because of the height it has and the view that the balconies from the upper mine give you. Another thing that has attracted our attention is that in this salt mine are kept the old medieval machines with which the salt extraction was made.

To reach the base of the Terezia Mine, the lowest point that can be visited by tourists, we had to descend 107 steps through the entrance tunnel, 13 floors of wooden stairs (there was a lift, but we did not have the patience to stay in queues so long) and a few more floors on very narrow stairs, and here we found to our surprise a small lake, on which people were strolling by boat.

After redevelopment in 2010, the entrance to the salt mine is predominantly through the main entrance on Salinelor Street, 54 (Strada Salinelor 54). The cost of an adult ticket is 30 lei, and the parking fee is 5 lei/day, tickets worth every penny. Besides the fact that you can make the well-known salty air treatment, you can also enjoy a beautiful view. You can take a ride in the big wheel inside in mine (yes, there is a wheel inside), for which you also have to pay a ticket, as for the boats, sports fields and the rest of the activities you can do in the salt mine (apart from walking, breathing and looking 😊). At the main entrance, there is also a fair with various souvenirs and traditional products.

…

After such a day, full of events and long walks, once we saw the bed we took advantage of it and slept until morning. Mainly because we already have the plan for the next day, namely to visit the Turda Gorge and Cluj, but more about these superb locations (nature and urban) to follow in the blog next week. 😀