Difficulty Grades

Here is a list of the difficulty grades, adopted by Active Travel Romania for all escorted (guided) walking tours and self-guided (in-to-inn) hiking vacations in Romania, run by the company. 

To ensure you have the best vacation possible, we recommend starting your planning early. Good physical condition is required. To achieve this, we recommend starting your day with a walk, jog, or cycle. Swimming a couple of times a week is also highly recommended. You don't need much to get in shape. And don't forget that the most important tip for an unforgettable active holiday is to choose a trip that corresponds to your physical condition! Note that you should personally carry your baggage, which is naturally an additional difficulty.

Here is a list of the difficulty grades, adopted by Active Travel Romania for all escorted (guided) walking tours and self-guided (in-to-inn) hiking vacations in Romania, run by the company. 

Very easy or easy. No exceptional experience is needed; anyone who can handle long Saturday walks in the forest can also cope with these tours. As a rule, the trips are short and at a low altitude. Often, it is your choice to join or skip a day tour. The routes follow a hilly terrain without steep ascents and descents. Usually, the active part (walking/cycling) is 3/5h a day. 

Medium Most of you, who are used to walking during a long weekend, will be in condition to cope with a tour of this level. You should be in good physical condition, but not too good. We have successive days of longer and more difficult walking and days of lighter walking. Some parts of the day routes are done at a higher altitude. The paths are in good condition. The active part (walking/cycling) takes roughly 5/7h a day. You are free to skip some walks and have a rest.

These tours include trekking/cycling, which is a little harder, generally on challenging terrain. We take it for granted that you are in good condition and fit. You should be physically prepared at home to get the most out of the tour. Most of the hiking is done at a greater height (max 2544 m). As with other tours, you are free to skip some treks and take a rest.

Tough Tours of this level demand that you be really in good shape. The paths are not always in the best condition, and the marking can be scarce. There are day treks with significant ascents and descents. Changing weather conditions, even in midsummer/ play an important role when trekking at a very high altitude and may cause changes to the preliminary route. This is to be decided by the mountain guide on the spot. Usually, the treks are 6 to 8 hours per day, but some can be longer. Preliminary trekking experience is an advantage, but not necessary if you are really in good shape.

Classification of the trekking & hiking tours Scale Difficulty Average high Average km/day very easy - ranging slopes up to 200 m up to 8 km easy - wide path, well accessible 200 - 400 m 8 - 12 km medium - narrow path, sometimes pathless 400 - 600 m 12 - 16 km hard - narrow path, occasionally pathless, rarely exposed 600 - 800 m 16 - 20 km very hard - narrow path, often pathless, often  exposed over 800 m over 20 km   Classification of the biking tours Scale Difficulty Average high (m) Average km/day elementary - asphalt roads up to 200 up to 20 km easy - partly asphalt roads, sometimes well-ranging roads 200 - 400 20 - 30 km medium - equal shares asphalt roads/ranging slopes 400 - 600 30 - 40 km hard - mainly on slopes, sometimes in poor condition, sometimes with asphalt 600 - 800 40 - 50 km very hard - mainly on slopes, sometimes technically challenging, sometimes offroad, no asphalt over 800 over 50 km