Natura — Hotel in Porumbacu de Jos

I have stayed (with my family) at this place for three consecutive years now. The rooms are spacious, the bathrooms are well equiped, the breakfast is plentiful, the menu is traditional/rustic Romanian, the outdoor area is wonderful (the kids loved it and never got bored), and the hosts make me proud of my Romanian heritage. Whether you are travelling with or without kids, Natura Family Resort is a great destination if you wish to relax and enjoy an authentic Romanian homestay.

If you're holidaying with children, don't bother bringing toys with you: there's a playroom, a generous outdoor playground (even a soccer field), bikes, badminton rackets, a trampoline, a sandpit, multiple slides and swings, and many other things that'll keep the young ones busy even on a rainy day. The rabbits, the chicken, and the ducks are sure to be a hit with the young ones, and they are just at the back of the garden.

While the kids enjoy an ice-cream, the parents may choose to enjoy a cold beer (there's even a chilled tap), the house wine (as well as a selection of local and international wines), or the home made tuica (a must-try).

For context, we travel from New Zealand, and we could easily stop anywhere in Romania. We keep going back to Natura not only because we really liked it the year before, but also because we constantly find new things to do there, and nearby. Our 4 year old girl just fell in love with horse-riding and there are options aplenty within a 5 minutes walk (or drive). Not too far, one can find the Bruckenthal Museum (alas overrated, if you asked me). Nature lovers will enjoy a not-too-far trout farm (Albota), stags / deer, horses, ponies, clay castles, monasteries, lakes, rivers, and great forest treks.

The urban traveler will appreciate knowing that within a 30 minute drive they can reach Sibiu and its great museums, restaurants, zoo, parks, and, why not, night-life. Sibiu also has the nearest international airport.

If history if your thing, then you'll probably appreciate being halfway between XV-th century Corvin Castle Corvinilor, XIV-th century Bran Castle, and Sighisoara, the XII-th century walled city listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Realistically, you can reach these sites in less than 2 hours behind the wheel.

We did many of these trips, and we really enjoyed coming back to a warm meal, served with a chilled drink, at an outdoor table overlooking the tallest section of the gorgeous carpathian mountains.

The family running Natura Family Resort are simply wonderful and I wholeheartedly recommend their venue for anyone travelling through Romania. Given the continuous improvements that Natura has undergone year after year, I look forward to being pleasantly...

I really love this place. We've been at Natura 3 years ago to celebrate New Year!s Eve, we got back in the spring of 2017 and right now I am on my way home again from Natura. |I still don't know if I love their food more than the quiet of the mountains or the wonderful garden surrounding the place. Botea Family are very friendly people, always there to help with anything we might need. ||The food is provided from locals and all their ingredients are fresh and absolutely yummy. The food is made within the property and the menu is changing almost every day. ||I looove how the mountains are seen from almost each room and the night's quiet. This time we enjoyed a beautiful firecamp on 1st of January 2019 joined by hot wine. It was a real joy and we have already informed Mr. Sergiu that we will come back to Natura maybe this summer or in winter once again.||I recommend this place also for families with kids as they have rabitts, chicken, a fluffy Asian dog and also the opportunity to ride horses or to have a walk with the carriage down to Ghiocelul Pension. I loved to pet all the horses as they were gentle and seemed to get along with tourists.||As I was saying, if you have never been to this, you should give it at least a try and make sure to book it early for a second time if you wish to return, as the place is fully booked the...

Pros: |- good location, remote and far from noise|- great garden, playground and heated pool (did not use it but many kids seemed to have fun)|- garden tables nicely arranged far from each other and diverse sitting options|- lot of space for kids to play (including a small football field, trampoline, ping-pong table)|- nice garden and small animal farm (the dogs may use more room but they looked well taken care off and maybe they get regular time outside)|- friendly staff|- big rooms|- good breakfast|- nice “daily” menu which was actually almost an entire restaurant menu, not only 1-2 options. Not sure if this is always available|- tasty food|- good value for money. |Cons:|- no AC in our room (not sure if there are rooms with AC). We didn’t need it but it may be useful in the middle of the summer||More of a heads-up than a con, it’s not a place if you are bothered by kids running around. It didn’t bother us at all as we also have one but before having kids, most probably I would have not been too excited, even if none really...