Bram Stoker never came to Transylvania, but he sent Jonathan Harker through Bistrița, and the town still enjoys the connection. Dealul Muncelului, a hill above the village of Negrilești, sits west of Bistrița in the Someș valley, and from here the road east leads through the Saxon town to the Tihuța pass, the Borgo Pass of the novel, where Count Dracula's carriage is supposed to have met his English visitor. It is a fine excuse for a ride, even if the vampire is fiction and the real history more interesting.
The hill itself carries traces of the Roman frontier watch system, part of the Dacian limes inscribed by UNESCO in 2024, and the countryside around is gentle farmland and orchards. Bistrița was founded by German settlers, the Transylvanian Saxons, in the twelfth century, and its Gothic church, arcaded houses and fortified walls show their wealth and skill. South of the town, the Lechința area produces white wines that have been made since Saxon times, and the vineyards spread over the sunny slopes.
The road over the Tihuța pass to Vatra Dornei is a superb ride, climbing through forests and meadows with curves, hairpins and views of the Călimani mountains, and it is generally well surfaced, though busy in places with trucks. Around Negrilești, the roads are quieter and more rural, winding through villages and hills, with patched surfaces and the occasional cart or herd of sheep. In high summer the pass is a cool escape from the baking valley floor.
Căianu Mic, about ten kilometres away, has fuel and shops, and Bistrița has everything you need, including hotels and restaurants. Stoker gave Harker a night at an inn in Bistrița called the Golden Krone, and the town has happily leaned into the joke ever since. Out in the villages, try the local cheese, the cabbage rolls and the plum brandy, and enjoy the hospitality.