Today, the Transfagarasan road is primarily a tourist route. The most beautiful part of the road is the northern part, between the settlement called Vama Cucului and the Balea Lake, located right on the pass. Through numerous hairpin bends you rise from the dense forests to the barren rocks and high peaks of the Alpine landscape. There are plenty of places along the way where you can stop to enjoy the beautiful scenery and take a picture. We drove the route in the middle of summer, which meant that all the snow on the mountains was already gone. How much more beautiful will the route be if you drive the road at the beginning of the season, when the area is still completely covered with a thick layer of snow? But do not come too early, because the road is a large part of the year closed due to the wintry weather. Generally the road between is passable between May and October.

The small glacier lake called Balea, located on the pass, isn’t really picturesque anymore. The area fell victim to major tourist developments. Hotels, parking lots and numerous souvenir shops and eateries, are spoiling the atmosphere. The lake is still a great starting point for hikes into the surrounding mountains. After the pass you drive through an 887 meter long tunnel, after which the road descends again through a substantial number of hairpin bends to lower forested areas. When the steepest descent is done, the road takes you along the beautiful shore of the artificial lake named Vidraru. The lake is held into existence by an impressive 1968 curved dam.

And for the real Dracula fans, the highlight of the route will be at the end of the stretch. Just after the dam are the ruins of the Poienari Citadel, the "real" Dracula Castle. Dracula has never existed, but he was an invention of the Irish filmmaker Bram Stoker, whose Dracula character is based on the Romanian prince and brutal ruler Vlad Tepes (1431-1476). Many castles in Romania are claiming to be a Dracula castle, but for only a few of them there is real evidence that it was once connected to Vlad Tepes. But for the Poienari Citadel there is. But in order to visit the fort you have to work. The castle is located high on a cliff, and is only accessible by 1500 steps, which fortunately are mostly in a forest, so you're protected from the burning sun. All in all, the Transfagarasan road is a wonderful ride and easily done as a daytrip from one of the town or camp sites in the area. However, it is probably too opportunistic to call it the best road in the world. Anyway, you probably have to drive the road yourself to find out how beautiful it really is. It is in our opinion not the most beautiful road in the world, but certainly one of the more spectacular roads to drive in Europe.