DAY 1
Oradea, Romania 🇷🇴
Bucharest
Our journey began with some stuck in traffic in the outskirts of the capital.
Sibiu
Even if we didn’t plan to stop here, we decided to include it in our Christmas Tour given the fact its one of the most beautiful cities in Romania. Also it was time for lunch, so after enjoying some traditional dishes at Leon Restaurant, we gone for a walk inside the walls. Took a climb to Saint Mary Cathedral Tower, made our way in the Christmas Market and finished up with a great coffee at Meron in the Main Square.
Oradea
On our way, I remembered that I have a good friend here, so I gave him a call to let him know we were heading his way. Long story short, we ended up with a guide for the evening! 😊
Dinner
After a brief check-in at our place where we left our luggage, we headed out in a hurry to meet our friend since he was on a tight schedule. We took a short spin around the city center to get a feel for it and then settled down for a meal after a very long day.
La Siesta
Since it was getting late, we said our goodbyes to Claudiu and decided to stretch our legs with a short walk around the Christmas Fair. Despite the temperatures hovering around freezing, the place was still bustling with people.
DAY 2
Road to Poland via Kosice 🇸🇰
Work Session
As always, when you’re a freelancer, the projects starts to pop when you’re on the road. So, with somewhat recharged batteries, I woke up early to tackle some of the tasks I needed to complete.
The Breakfast
Pretty late, but pleased that I had managed to finish my tasks, the gang started waking up one by one. I gathered everyone, packed our stuff, and set off to grab some calories for the day. Place for the day was Restaurant Astoria, across Crisul Repede river.
Oradea, City Tour
Since always, my objective for every city I visit is the high ground, so we couldn’t miss the City Hall Tower for some spectacular views over the city. Not to mention a bit of cardio for your health. Also, with the sun watching over us, we wandered through the streets, enjoying the beautifully restored buildings, which gave the city a very polished architectural charm.
Drive to Kosice
After wrapping up our visit in Oradea, we continued on our route. Without mentioning the events passing through Hungary, after about 3 hours and 270 km, we reached Košice.
Kosice, City Tour
We parked our car near Hlavná ulica (Main Street/City Center) and started our walk to St. Elisabeth’s Cathedral. Naturally, once there, we took the stairs all the way up to check out the surroundings. From the top, we also spotted the Christmas Market, located behind the National Theater.
The Lunch
The various smells of food and sweets from the fair got to us, so it was time to grab something to eat. However, we wanted something relaxed and slow-paced, away from the crowded market. Our choice was Pivovar Hostinec. While the food was good, the waiting time was awful, and at one point, we almost decided to leave (probably due to low sugar levels! :)).
Road to Krakow
Feeling energized, we took another stroll to explore the streets at night before heading to our car to continue our drive to Kraków. On our 4h drive, we crossed the Tatras Mountains where Clara enjoyed for a short while some snow, enough for a a snowball fight.
Krakow
Exhausted, but not entirely, Clara and I decided to check out the Christmas lights and explore the market. The big Christmas tree in the main square was a stunning centerpiece, surrounded by crowds soaking in the festive spirit. Even though we had been here before, Kraków is a beautiful city to visit year-round, but especially during the holidays.
DAY 3
Krakow
Work time
Once again, tasks were piling up in the backlog, but with some effort (meaning waking up earlier than the rest), I managed to catch up.
The Breakfast
After sorting out the checkout and doing some research for a place to eat, we arrived at a spot called Mo-ja Café & Bistro, conveniently close to both our hotel and the city center. There, we enjoyed a delicious breakfast, though no coffee just yet
Krakow, City Tour
We wandered through the streets to soak in the atmosphere, indulged in some sweets from the markets, admired local street art and architecture, and fueled up with a coffee on our way to St. Florian’s Church.
Wawel Royal Castle
No visit is complete without the Castle. Beautifully laid out on the hills with great panoramic views over the city and the Vistula River, we checked in just for the garden, Castle II, and the Cathedral, as we were short on time.
The Dinner
Having covered plenty for the day, it was time to wrap up our 12 km walk and enjoy a traditional Polish meal at Pod Wawelem Kompania Kuflowa. Kudos to Clara for keeping the pace!
Christmas Lights
Most people would have gone back to their car to head for their next stop, but not us. On our way back, we enjoyed the Christmas lights and decorations once more, which gave the city an authentic holiday feeling.
Road to Warsaw
Pretty late, we hopped into our car, fueled up, and hit the road. We still had another 3.5 hours of driving to our next stop, the capital, Warsaw.
Warsaw
We checked into our hotel, which, of course, was called Leonardo :). After a quick shower, we hit the bed. What a day it had been!
DAY 4
Warsaw 🇵🇱
The Breakfast
Even though our hotel had a good offer, I always prefer to explore local spots. In this particular case, this exploration took us 50 m away from our hotel to a place called Francuska Robota. It was delicious!
Warsaw, City Tour
Away from the crowds in Kraków, we made our way to the city center, stopping along the way to check out the Culture Palace and the Nicolaus Copernicus Monument. We continued all the way to Castle Square, where a colorful Christmas tree dominated the scene.
The Lunch
Late in the day and pleased with the amount we had explored, we decided to take a break and enjoy something local. We were lucky enough to get a table at one of the Gościniec locations near the Warsaw Barbican.
Route Resumed
Right across from the restaurant was the entrance to the Christmas Fair. It wasn’t anything too spectacular but cozy enough to enjoy a pancake. From there, we headed back to our hotel to rest before the evening session.
The Rest
Once again, the pedometer hit 15 km, so a well-deserved rest was in order for all of us, especially for our superhero Clara. 💖
Evening Lights
During the night, when the lights come on, the look and feel is very New York-like. It’s really nice to check out some of the bars and clubs, if you’re kid-free :). Once again we went all the way to Castle Square, where we gone for a full fast food meal, at McDonalds, per Clara’s request and took a Bolt on our way back.
Closing Session
And there it was, capital of Poland. A great mixture of old and new architecture and a model of how cities should develop in this part of the world. Good job Poland!
DAY 5
Road to Vilnius 🇱🇹
The Checkout
Packed our stuff and made our way to the reception, where we got a real treat for Christmas Eve, free parking! Then, we headed to a nearby location to enjoy one last breakfast in the mighty Warsaw at a nearby location La Lucy.
The Mall
Before we left, we did one more round of the city and checked out the Złote Tarasy Mall, where we explored some stores and enjoyed a coffee to recharge for the road.
The Drive
With about 500km ahead of us, we hit the road, prepared for a 5.5-hour drive to switch time zones once again. We listened to Christmas music and played games with Clara to keep the atmosphere lively.
Vilnius
We arrived at our hotel for a 2-night stay, set up our luggage, and eagerly set out to experience Christmas Eve in Lithuania’s capital, though we didn’t have high hopes of finding much open that late.
Christmas Eve in the City center
We took a Bolt to the main square, where the Vilnius Cathedral stands, and to our surprise, the place was packed. We wandered around, enjoyed a hot chocolate, and then headed back to our hotel to get ready for Santa.
DAY 6
Christmas Day in Vilnius 🇱🇹
The Morning
The big day had finally arrived! We started with a tasty breakfast at our hotel, but not before Clara received her presents from Santa. We also got our gift, a beautiful sunny day, perfect for exploring the city and its surroundings
Vilnius – City Tour
Fueled up and excited, we began our journey, heading once again to the city center while adding a few extra stops along the way. Naturally, we stopped for a coffee and later enjoyed an excellent Christmas lunch at EtnoDvaras, savoring some delicious Lithuanian dishes. Five hours later, we decided it was time for a break, so we headed back to our hotel.
Trakai Castle
Just half an hour away, this place is a fantastic destination to visit year-round, with the castle being the main attraction. After a short walk across the wooden bridge and taking in the views, we strolled along the lake to enjoy dinner while admiring the castle beautifully lit up.
Evening Lights
With some time still on our hands, we planned to go skating in front of the City Hall. Unfortunately, the tickets had sold out days before, so we just admired the lucky ones who were more organized, most of them locals. Merry Christmas, everyone!
Christmas Closing
It was time to wrap up our visit to Vilnius, a truly wonderful place to explore. I’d even call it a hidden gem in Europe, especially considering the surprisingly few foreign travelers we encountered.
DAY 7
Drive Home, Part 1
The Checkout
Before anything, we enjoyed one more tasteful breakfast at our hotel. Back in our room, besides packing our stuff, I managed to catch up on some overdue work.
Drive to Kaunas
It was time for a closing. Even if we wanted to continue our route to Riga, the weather wasn’t as friendly as it had been so far, so we decided to head home with over 2,000 km in front of us. First stop, Kaunas.
Kaunas
Because of the weather we just made a short walk along the main street all the way to Church of St. Michael the Archangel where we also stopped for a short lunch at Mangal restaurant.
Drive to Lublin
Continued on our way with our next stop set for Lublin, 560 km away. Six hours later, we reached the freezing city, covered with a thin blanket of snow.
Lublin
Even though we skipped the usual evening tour, we thoroughly enjoyed a tasty dinner at our hotel restaurant and relaxed a bit with Clara in the downstairs jacuzzi. We definitely deserved it!
DAY 8
Drive Home, Part 2
The Morning
Pretty exhausted after so much visiting and driving, I decided to get some extra rest while also catching up on pending work. Taking care of that, along with enjoying our included breakfast, was the perfect fuel to continue our journey home.
Drive to Oradea
Organized as always with some snacks for the road, we were once again ready to hit the freezing highway.
Pitstop Rzeszów
Feeling a little under the weather and needing to refuel both ourselves and the car, we pinned Restauracja Tbiliso on the map to take a break and recharge.
Drive resumed
With no time to spare, we also got some gas and continued our route to Oradea.
Oradea
With another 465 km on the counter, we reached our resting place in our homeland. With most places closed, we went on a quick food run at Carrefour to get our blood sugar back to normal.
DAY 9
Drive Home, Part 3
The Morning
Once again, after checking out, we had our breakfast at the same place we’d been before, took a light walk, and headed to our car.
Drive to Bucharest
With some fog on our way, we didn’t encounter any other noteworthy events, as cloud coverage was the norm for about 80% of the drive.
Pitstop Sibiu
After seeing the sun for the first time in about two days and feeling really hungry, we decided Sibiu was the place to stop and recharge for the remainder of our journey.
Drive resumed
Tired and anxious to get back home, we didn’t spend too much time here and quickly made our way to the car, eager to enjoy some well-deserved rest in our own beds.
Back Home, Bucharest
With decent traffic on our way, we managed to get back safe with plenty of stories to tell. Once again, it was one hell of a ride!
OVERVIEW
DRIVE
3,970 km
TRAVEL TIME
9 Days
COUNTRIES
Slovakia, Poland, Lithuania
PICTURES TAKEN
2,100 Shots
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