Bear watching in Transylvania: all you need to know

Last Updated on October 13, 2025 by Ioana

I was born and raised in Romania, and I moved back here in 2024 after living in NYC for almost 14 years. I recently did a Romania road trip where I explored my own country as a tourist. And one of the activities I’ve done was to go on a bear-watching tour. In this blog post I will share review of bear watching in Transylvania so you know what to expect from this experience. This post contains affiliate links. When you make a purchase I may get a small commission at no extra cost to you. Find out more here.

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Where in Romania did you go bear watching?

I went bear watching in the Piatra Craiului National Park. This is an activity where you watch wild bears in their natural habitat in the forest.

So it’s an ethical activity and in my opinion, the best way to watch bears from a safe distance.

In case you didn’t know, Romania has the largest brown bear population in Europe (excluding Russia). Due to the large population, you will get the occasional bear sightings when driving on Transfagarasan, one of the most beautiful roads in the world.

But if you want to watch Romania’s brown bears with an experienced guide and learn more about them and about the local wildlife, then joining a tour is the best option. 

The place where you go bear watching is a short drive from the medieval city of Brasov. So if you plan on doing this activity you should spend at least one night in Brasov.

Check out my one week Romania itinerary to help you plan a longer trip.

How does bear watching work?

On this guided tour you will be picked up from Brasov in the late afternoon at your scheduled departure time and then the guide will drive you to the forest in the Carpathian Mountains. During a first stop you will meet the rangers.

Then the rangers start driving deeper into the forest and the tour starts following them with the car. After they park the car, the rangers escort you on a short walk to the bear hideaway. 

Then you spend about 2 hours in the hideaway watching the bears and taking pictures.

Before each tour the rangers leave some food for the bears in front of the observatory to ensure that the bears show up. They have been doing this for years, so the bears know that the observatories are additional food sources for them.

That being said, the food they leave for the bears is by no means enough to feed these animals. It’s just a little treat. So the bears continue to be wild animals and they continue to find their own food. 

Is bear watching safe?

Yes, it’s totally safe as you will be indoors in a bear observatory. The observatory has large windows so you can see the bears and take lots of pictures and videos.

By the way, these bear hides were designed in partnership with a professional photographer, so people can take high quality pictures of the bears.

As you walk from the car to the bear hide through the forest you will be accompanied by 2 rangers. They both have guns and bear spray with them in case some problem bears meet the group.

However, this happens only on rare occasions. They were saying that in 10+ years of running this activity, they only had to use the bear spray twice. So it’s highly unlikely that a bear will come close to the group during the short walk.

How large is the group of people for the bear watching activity?

My group had about 15 people. But the group size will depend on the day you visit. Some days it could be just your party, so it feels like a private tour.

Other days, you could have 10-15 people. The bear hide has capacity for only about 20 people, so they only get pretty small groups.

The bear hide has 3 or 4 rows on benches and each bench is at a higher level than the ones in front of it. This way they ensure that everyone attending the activity can see the bears through the large windows instead of being blocked by the people sitting in front of them.

Did you have a guide for the bear watching activity?

Yes, we had a very knowledgeable guide. He shared a lot of information about the European brown bears and their natural environment. 

At the same time, when we were at the bear hide, he would translate the information that the ranger was sharing about the bears we saw.

The ranger gives each bear a name. And he’s also part-time wildlife researcher since he monitors them and shares new information with scientists that study the bear populations in Romania.

If was a lot of fun to learn the bears’ names and their stories. Plus, each bear had a different personality type, so they were fun to watch.

How much does it cost to go bear watching?

The ticket costs a bit over 60 euros, but there are times when they offer discounts so you can snag a ticket at a reduced price.

It all depends on the time of the year you visit and how lucky you get. But even if you have to pay the full price, I promise you won’t regret it. 

You’ll spend an amazing afternoon in Romania’s forests and you will be able to marvel at lots of wild brown bears.

Just think about it: how many people can say that they went bear watching in Central Romania? It’s such a unique experience! It should be on everyone’s bucket list.

Did you like the bear watching experience?

I loved it! It was such an amazing experience! Bear watching is really one of the coolest activities you can do in Romania.

I thought I would see only 1 or 2 bears, but over 10 of them showed up around the bear hide.

I spotted both cubs and adult bears. Watching them scratch their backs by the trees or lifting themselves up on logs was adorable. 

Everyone doing this tour was so happy with the experience and we all could not believe that we just saw that many bears from such a short distance. 

It is the type of experience that you’ll remember your entire life. For me it was as cool as doing wildlife viewing on my Kenya safari.

If it’s your first time in Romania I highly encourage you to do this.

What else do I need to know about bear watching?

Timing of the tour

The tour starts in the late afternoon, around 5pm. And you will be back in Brasov only around 9-10pm. So plan on having a late dinner that night.

Weather considerations

Since you’re in the forest, the weather is colder. And you have to walk about 5-10 minutes from the bear hide to the car both ways, so make sure you bring a jacket with you.

I visited during summer and I was wearing flat sandals. It was fine because the forest trail was easy, but if I were to go again I would wear sneakers.

Toilet

There is no toilet at the bear hide, so make sure you don’t drink a lot of water ahead of this tour. When we parked the car to meet the ranger, there was an area where you could go pee in the wild. 

So if you really need to go, you can do it in the forest, but it has to be before the last few minutes of driving to get to the bear hide. Nature enthusiasts do this all the time when camping. But if you’re not usually an outdoorsy person, I just wanted to give you a heads up.

Food

You cannot bring any snacks to the bear hide because bears have a very sensitive nose and if they smell your snacks they will try to come get them. Best to take all precautions to avoid that scenario.

Noise

You should also keep your voice down while in the bear hide and during the walk in the forest to not startle the bears.

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