"Romania is a country of crazy superstitions and fantastic legends. With its dramatic castles and medieval towns where mass tourism means you, a horse and cart and a handful of farmers, Romania is the Wild West of Eastern Europe." (Lonely Planet Guide, 2001)

You are going to discover the country of "Count Dracula" the mythical vampire invented by the Irish novelist Bram Stoker. Stoker's mythical vampire was inspired by Vlad Tepes, nicknamed "Vlad the Impaler", a 13th century Romanian resistance hero against Turkish and continues to which continues to sustain an extraordinary subculture. On your trip to Transylvania and the Carpathian Mountains, you will meet more buffaloes, bears or wolves than bloodsucking vampires! So to prepare for your trip, don't pack garlic, just follow these guidelines...

Getting here from the UK

• The raid starts in Sibiu, Romania. The journey down is straightforward: enter Romania from Hungary at Nadlac using the E68 and stay on the same road all the way to Sibiu.
• See the www.aferry.to website for cheap tickets and plan your journey using the AA website at www.theaa.com or RAC website at www.rac.co.uk
• Most of the drive down is on good fast motorways. You will need to buy a motorway vignette for Austria (€6.00) and Hungary (€7.60), available at the border crossing points 24 hours a day.
• Good quality fuel, food and drink are available at regular intervals all the way down.
• You can buy fuel using your credit cards in all EU countries. Credit cards aren't used as widely in Romania and you should be prepared to pay using the local currency (Lei).
• Speed limits are strictly in all the countries you pass through (including Romania), and you may have to pay on the spot with cash if caught.
• Radar traps are frequent and you should be particularly careful when approaching built-up areas.
• EU and Romanian drink-drive laws are stricter than in the UK with blood-alcohol limits of 0.01%. Getting caught drink driving may mean your vehicle is impounded.
• For details of driving regulations for each country, including details of speed limits and things you must carry, visit www.eurodriveregs.co.uk
• Although the roads in Romania and Hungary are generally good, they can suddenly turn into pot-holed nightmares, so take care especially at night. Look out for animals in the road; trucks, cars and horse drawn carts without lights and other drivers swerving to avoid hazards. A branch in the road may be the only warning of potholes, subsidence or even road works!
• Although you need to be on your guard against pickpockets, scammers and thieves at the border zones, Romania is generally a very safe country for foreign visitors to travel through (see the Lonely Planet guide to Romania and Moldova (2004) for more information - available from www.amazon.co.uk )

Documents

• Bring your UK drivers' licence and an international drivers' licence (£5.50 from the AA or RAC)
• Bring registration documents and MOT certificates for all vehicles
• You will need road insurance cover for you and your vehicle. Make sure your ‘green card' covers Romania
• You must arrange appropriate medical insurance, including repatriation cover. The raid is a motorcycle tour not a competitive event, so you don't need ‘competition' insurance.
• Change Euros or Sterling for Romanian Lei near the border. The bureau de change are regulated, all offer the same rates, do not charge commission and will not rip you off!
• The current rate is about 1.00 Euro = 4 Lei.
• Romanians usually only accept mint condition bank notes (Sterling, Euros and Lei).
• Travellers' cheques and credit cards can be used in the larger cities, but changing money is a problem in the countryside. Romanians like cash, so don't count on using anything other than Lei during the Raid!

Luggage & Equipment

• Your bike needs to be in perfect condition and have been serviced before you arrive.
• It will need an GPS.
• You will be doing a lot of off-road miles, so replace the tyres, chain, sprockets, brake pads, wheel bearings and air filter.
• Spares are virtually impossible to find in Romania, so as well as your normal trail-riding or enduro spares and tools, bring anything you might need to replace in the next 1000 miles.
• As a minimum, you should include spare levers; cables; split links; spark plug, spokes, break pads and bearings. Don't forget a headlamp torch (£2.50 from Hein Gericke)
• Although road-side ‘vulcanizari' or tyre-repair shops will patch an inner-tube for about £2.00 you will need to carry a spare and a pump. If you don't like punctures, consider fitting heavy-duty tubes or Bib-mousse.
• EU quality 95-98 octane unleaded petrol is available all over Romania, but 2-stroke riders should bring their own 2-T oil.
• Summer downpours are generally brief but heavy, so bring lightweight waterproofs. Lightweight, quick-drying clothing, including a fleece, is useful for the evenings.
• Although a qualified medical practitioner accompanies the raid and high quality private medical care is available in the larger Romanian cities, you may want to bring a small first-aid kit including: pain-killers, anti-histamines, plasters, diarrhoea tablets (immodium), wound dressings, antibiotics, antifungal powder, antiseptic cream.
• Mobile phone coverage is surprisingly good in Romania and you can make a call using your UK phone from almost anywhere.
• Motorcycle spares and gear are expensive for Romanians, so if you have any riding gear or bike spares that you no longer want, bring them down and give them to the local lads.

General

• Although Romania doesn't have much of a tourist industry, souvenirs are available from vendors on most main road and especially near border crossings.
• In the cities many ‘Western' goods are becoming available at low prices.
• Romanian food is hearty and plentiful. The style is similar to Hungary and Germany.
• The climate is continental, with hot, sunny summers and cold winters.
• Romanians have a "Latin" temperament: friendly, passionate and with a laid-back attitude to meals and time-keeping
• English and French are taught in school and younger Romanians are practically fluent in one or both.
• Local time is GMT + 2 hours.
• Power is 220V 50Hz AC and uses a two round-pin plug/socket