Tours in Braşov

Start in Piata Sfatului, the main square, and do what the locals do: sit down and look up. The Council House stands in the middle like it has always been there, the roofs around it tilt in every direction, and the pale hills close in on all sides. Order something and give it twenty minutes. Brasov rewards people who stop.

Behind the square, the old town runs in tight, tidy streets that are easy to walk without a map. Strada Sforii is the one people photograph, a lane so narrow you turn sideways when someone comes the other way. The Black Church looms over the centre, dark and heavy, and it is worth stepping inside just for the quiet. Walk out to the old town walls and bastions, then follow the path up beside them for a different view of the red roofs.

Tampa, the mountain at the edge of town, is the thing you keep seeing from the square. You can reach the top on foot or by cable car, and on a clear day the whole city lies flat below you. Ask a local guide if you want Bran Castle, Rasnov or the Saxon villages around Brasov. These are the day trips people arrive hoping for, and a guide can build one around you.

The Saxon past shows in the food and drink as much as in the stone. Cured meats, aged cheeses and palinca appear on tables across the old centre, and beer has long been part of the story here. A tasting right on the main square is a good way to learn how the town eats and drinks, and it makes a fine start before you wander off into the side streets.