We first heard about this place a couple of years ago and when checking it out more in detail, we were completely mesmerized by the idea of being in a remote area, in the beautiful Romanian mountains and exploring the surroundings on the back of a horse.

This year, end of July, we finally made things happen. Gathered a small group of friends, made a reservation and headed for a beautiful weekend outdoors. Reservation is a must and advisable to be done as in advance as possible, as the place is small and the request is big, especially during summer months.

Nedeea Vâlceană is a family business – husband, wife and two lovely young daughters, all passionate about horse and horseback riding, located in a beautiful surrounding somewhere in the Lotru Mountains, in the Vâlcea county, about 1 hour drive from the nearest village – Călinești.

The headquarters is a place called La Mii de Stele (At Thousands of Stars), a beautiful, simple and very cozy chalet, perfect to spend the night, have your dinner and breakfast, meet the horses and enjoy the quiet of all the nature around. Away from cities and civilization, away from technology, with not much electricity available, but with stories told in the evening around the fire, with delicious homemade food, with comfy beds and warm welcoming hosts.

Getting there on Friday after noon (you can hike for about 1 hour or the hosts can pick you up with their 4X4 car), we immediately fell in love with the place. It’s exactly what we are looking for when we plan weekends away from cities – so much quiet as to get to hear all the nature’s sounds, coziness, rural simplicity, smiles and warm welcome, tasty food made on the spot with local ingredients, good local drinks, everything to make you better blend in.

Saturday was the day we had a horseback riding trip planned and for some of us, it was a first time experience. A bit scared in the beginning, but thanks to the hosts who explained everything in detail and helped us with getting used to the horses, we soon started to feel comfortable and to enjoy the trip and the view. The horses are probably some of the most well-behaved horses we have seen or heard about and this also helped a lot with us getting comfortable while on their backs. No conflicts, no accidents, just calm, sensitive and very friendly horses guiding us through the forests of these mountains.

We spent a full 5 hours trip on Saturday with these horses, with breaks for foraging some berries, with breaks for enjoying the view and also letting the horses relax, get some rest, some food and water. The weather was excellent and it was one of the most enjoyable experiences this year for us.

More details about Nedeea Valceana HERE.