The most beautiful natural sites to discover Moldova-Bukovina

Beautiful valley where the river is surrounded by gentle mountains covered with forests. Pensions and camping abound around Lepşa (thanks to the fortunes of Italy) as well as sumptuous and colorful wooden villas. Possibility to visit a small trout farming and buy (if you do not want to fish them in the river) to get them ready in your pension. The place is also perfectly celebrated by the Romanians, since the valley is located just steps from the Monastery of Putna, where the Stefan Cel Mare Voivode is founded.

The majestic "Monts du Gypaète" offer great hiking opportunities. At the heart of the massif lies a national park, a nature reserve that protects many rare botanical species (edelweiss, sabot-de-Vénus...). These mountains are nicknamed the "Moldavian Olympus". Kogaionon, the sacred mountain of the Dacians, was located here and Zamolxis, their supreme god, had his temple. The steep slopes are flanked by deep forests and strangely shaped rocky peaks, such as Panaghia. Its highest points are Ocolașul Mare and Toaca (around 1,900 m).

The Dragoș Vodă bison(zimbri) reserve lies 15 km west of Târgu Neamț, at the entrance to the Vânători Neamț nature park. Created in 1968, it was home to the first bison reintroduced to Romania in captivity. Today, it still holds a few specimens. Others have been released into the wild, but some, living in semi-liberty, can also be seen. You can also meet other animals, such as deer and peacocks. The nature park team offers safaris to observe the bison in their natural habitat.

To the south of Vatra Dornei, in the natural park of the mountains Călimani, is the superb geological reserve of the Twelve Apostles (Rezervaţia Doisprezece Apostoli). Its strangely shaped volcanic rocks, sculpted by erosion, sometimes evoke human figures, sometimes dragons and other fantastic creatures. You can reach it from the village of Neagra Șarului, by a hike of about 3 hours (marking: red dot) or from Gura Haitii, in about 2h30 (blue dot).