Maramureș: wooden churches and the Merry Cemetery
Tall shingled churches, carved gates, haystacks and horse carts in Romania’s most traditional corner, up to the Prislop pass.
- Distance
- 199 km (123 mi)
- Driving
- 2 h 45 min
- Suggested days
- 4
- Stops
- 8
- Countries
- Romania
- Updated
- June 17, 2026
At a glance: 4-day road trip of about 199 km (123 mi) with 8 stops, from Baia Mare to Prislop Pass. About 2 h 45 min of driving in total.
Route description
From Baia Mare make a short detour east to Surdești, whose UNESCO oak church has one of the tallest wooden spires in Europe. Then take the DN18 over the forested Gutâi pass into historic Maramureș, a region of carved wooden gates and hay-stacked meadows.
At Săpânța, near the Ukrainian border, the Merry Cemetery’s blue crosses are painted with scenes and cheeky verses about the dead. In Sighetu Marmației the former prison is now a sombre memorial to the victims of communism.
The DN18 then follows the Iza valley past the modern wooden monastery of Bârsana; turn off at Bogdan Vodă for Ieud, whose small hill church holds 18th-century paintings. Sundays, when villagers wear traditional dress to church, are especially rewarding, but visit discreetly.
Continue up to Borșa below the Rodna mountains and the Prislop pass at 1,416 m, where the road crosses into Bukovina. Watch for horse carts and livestock on the roads, and expect some patchy asphalt; guesthouses offer home cooking and space to park.
Stop-by-stop itinerary
In driving order. Distances are estimates between consecutive stops.
- 1Start
Baia Mare
Romania - 217 km
Surdești Wooden Church
HistorySurdești, RomaniaA UNESCO-listed oak church with a slender shingled spire more than 50 m high, among the tallest wooden structures in Europe. Ask in the village if the door is locked.
- 355 km
Merry Cemetery
OdditiesSăpânța, RomaniaHundreds of bright blue carved crosses, each with a naive painting and a humorous verse about the person buried below. Come early before the tour buses.
- 419 km
Sighetu Marmației
Romania - 523 km
Bârsana Monastery
HistoryBârsana, RomaniaA modern monastery built entirely in the Maramureș wooden style, with a church spire of about 57 m, gardens and small shingled chapels.
- 624 km
Ieud Hill Church
HistoryIeud, RomaniaA small UNESCO wooden church on a hill above the village, with wall paintings from the 18th century. Ieud is one of the most traditional villages of the Iza valley.
- 741 km
Borșa
Romania - 820 km
Prislop Pass
ViewsBorșa, RomaniaA 1,416 m pass between Maramureș and Bukovina, with views of the Rodna mountains. There is a small monastery and a meadow for a picnic at the top.
