Bear Watching near Brasov: Learn About Europe's Largest Brown Bear Population

Embark on a bear-watching adventure near Brasov, Romania, home to Europe’s largest brown bear population. Learn about their life, habits, and capture unique moments with your camera.

Duration: 5 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Piatra Craiului National Park Visitor Center - In the afternoon, we will pick you up from your accommodation in Brasov. We pass through Zarnesti and after another 25 minutes drive, we will arrive at a junction where we turn right. Then the fun part starts!
    We will drive for about 30 minutes deep in the forest, offroad and unpaved road, to where…
What's Included
  • Forest ranger escort
  • Transport by air-conditioned vehicle
  • English speaking guide
  • Pick up and drop off at your accommodation in Brasov
What's Not Included
  • Tips & gratuities
  • Pick-up outside Brasov (for accommodation outside Brasov there is an extra fee)
Additional Information

Romania, owing to minimal human interference, plays host to the highest number of brown bears in Europe. Nestled in the core of the Carpathian mountains, there is an opportunity to witness these magnificent creatures in their wild surroundings, gather intriguing trivia about the bear life in the wilderness, and seize exceptional instances with your…

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.8
(71 Ratings)
5 stars
4 stars
3 stars
2 stars
1 star
Leon_b
Jun 21, 2024
Great to see bears in the wild, NOT in a zoo - What a great day,, my guide was very knowledgeable, told me all that I need to know about bears on the way to hide, even had conversation about other wildlife as well.. if you enjoy nature I highly advise this trip, seen 6 bears in all!! Brilliant 👍👍
Review provided by Viator
Lenadvice
Jun 17, 2024
Great trip with lots of bears - We had a very nice and well-organized tour with a very friendly guide who was happy to answer all of our questions. You could tell that the animals were close to his heart. In the almost two hours we spent in the hut, we saw bears and foxes almost the whole time. There were even 8 bears there at one time. We were very lucky and would definitely recommend the tour. Booking was also very straightforward and possible spontaneously.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Gemma
Jun 4, 2024
Wild bears! - Good communication, organised tour at very short notice. Our lovely guide, Andra arrived on time and was really informative and friendly. We learned lots about bears from her. And we saw the bears in their natural environment. A great experience. Thank you
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Ectoplasmfantasia
Apr 28, 2024
Highlight of Braşov - This was my absolute highlight of a trip to Romania. Booked on the day via WhatsApp with the lovely Irina (Neotours). Excellent value. Was driven to the forest (45 mins) and opportunity to use the toilet before going into the forest. Our guide was Alex and he was incredibly interesting and engaging. He shared lots of interesting facts about the bears. The hide was comfortable, if basic, and we saw the first bear within 15 mins. Saw 7 in total and had over 2 hours enjoying their activity. Felt authentic and natural. Excellent value, highly recommended, well worth booking.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Iainjwatson
Apr 19, 2024
Bear Essentials: Luck and Wonder in the Transylvanian Forest - We booked our bear watching trip at short notice and Neotour/Outdoor Holidays made the arrangements efficiently and without fuss. We were very lucky as the usual bear hide was unavailable so we had to travel further to a back-up hide down an unpaved forest road but while it is virtually guaranteed to see bears at either hide, there is far less chance of seeing bear cubs at the regular hide. We were fortunate enough to see two mothers each with two cubs - they were very playful (though the ranger said an adult male had killed a third cub) We spent a bit more than two hours in the hide as we were also treated to the sight of adult males (the mothers and cubs moved off when they heard them arrive) who took to their hind legs at various points and to a male and female together, apparently ‘courting’ just ahead of mating season. Our guide Andra (also a mountain guide/climber) spoke flawless self-taught English, was very knowledgeable and intelligent, and very friendly. The 90 min journeys in her car to and from the forest flew by. It was a very memorable experience and I would highly recommend the tour and the guide.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Annemaries316
Feb 13, 2024
Awesome bear watching in Zabala! - It was GREAT! We drove to Zăbala, since there already bears were out of hibernation. We had contact via WhatsApp and I payed the invoice also via WhatsApp. We had a real nice guide with a very difficult name. When we arrived we already saw three bears. We stayed for 2 hours or so and saw 7 (!) bears. Thanks ever so much for this one in a lifetime experience!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Adventure25154066683
Jun 3, 2023
A once in a lifetime experience - I had promised my 12 year old son before the pandemic that I would take him bear watching. We were not disappointed. This was an amazing experience. On arriving at the hide, which is located in such stunning surroundings, the first bear arrived in just 15 seconds, before the ranger had even put out any food. At one point there were 9 in total and they remained for the full 2 hours that we spent in the hide. I had bought some fancy zoom attachment for my phone so I could take some decent shots but they came so close, I didn’t need it. This was a once in a lifetime experience and one I would recommend to any nature lover.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
440gabrielaa
Mar 18, 2023
What an experience! - Alex was a great guide who not only gave us the amazing experience of seeing these majestic creatures in their habitat, but also gave us lots valuable info and cool stories. He was very respectful towards nature and a transmitted his passion for bears making the experience super exciting.. super! 100% recommend !
Review provided by Tripadvisor
S5750otdavidr
Aug 19, 2023
Buena observación pero un poco "artificial". Good observation but a bit "artificial" - Me gustó la coordinación del transporte y las explicaciones del guía. No me gustó que los osos estuvieran esperando nuestra llegada. Se nota que están acostumbrados a los "biscuits" diarios que les ponen delante de la caseta de observación. I liked the coordination of transportation and the guide's explanations. I didn't like that the bears were waiting for our arrival. It shows that they are used to the daily "biscuits" that they put in front of the observation booth.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Roselynne_o
Oct 21, 2022
Activity needs to be updated - We were really looking forward to this tour, due to a lot of incorrect and delayed information this tour never happened for us. I have no more words to describe how upsetting this was for us.
Review provided by Viator