New tour of Bulgaria and Romania

See everything from gold-domed cathedrals to Dracula's castle! Continental Journeys' 15-day grand tour of Bulgaria and Romania, the newest members of the European Union, explores a treasure trove of undiscovered cities, well-preserved medieval towns and famous painted monasteries. A fully escorted tour The escorted tour, costing $1,939 per person, double occupancy, starts in Sofia and ends in Bucharest, the capitals of Bulgaria and Romania. Tour prices include superior tourist-class hotels, nearly all meals, extensive sightseeing, English-speaking tour escort, transportation, airport transfers, hotel taxes and service charges. Nine departures are scheduled through September 8. Transatlantic air can be purchased through Continental Journeys as can additional nights in Sofia and Bucharest. Single supplement is $529. In Bulgaria: undiscovered beauty Off the beaten track in mountainous Bulgaria, sightseeing takes in the gold-domed Alexander Nevsky Cathedral and 4th-century St. George Rotunda in historic Sofia; icon collections at renowned Rila and Bachkovo Monasteries; the Roman amphitheater and National Revival architecture in Plovdiv, the second largest city; an ancient Thracian tomb and recently discovered Thracian gold at the historical museum in Kazanlak in the Valley of the Roses; the imposing fortifications of the royal city of Veliko Turnovo; art and architecture in the old towns of Tryavna and Arbanassi; and medieval rock churches hewn in the Roussenski Lom River gorge. In Romania: castles and kings The scenic route through the Romanian countryside leads to cosmopolitan Bucharest and the open-air Village Museum of Fold Art; Bran Castle, better known as Dracula's Castle, and the medieval old towns of Sibiu, Sighisoara and Brasov in Transylvania; Merry Cemetery, with its gaily decorated crosses, and charming villages with wooden churches in the Maramures; amazing 15th- and 16th-century frescoes covering the outer walls of monasteries in Bucovina; spectacular Bicaz Gorges; opulent Peles Castle, former summer residence of Romanian royalty; and Curtea De Arges, where Romanian kings are buried. About Continental Journeys Continental Journeys also offers tours to Albania, Austria, the Baltics, Belarus, Bosnia, Croatia, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Poland, Russia, Scandinavia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Switzerland and Ukraine. The company is at tel. (800) 601-4343 or (818) 995-8643; fax (818) 995-8673; info@continentaljourneys.com; and www.continentaljourneys.