Casa Dunca

Twenty minutes from the Ukrainian border in Maramureș, Casa Dunca sits on Strada Mocăniței in Săpânța, the village that invented the Merry Cemetery — a burial ground of hand-carved oak crosses painted with vivid scenes and sardonic verse since 1935.

The guesthouse earns a 9.8 rating across 67 reviews, an unusually high mark for rural northern Romania. Rooms reflect local craft: hand-woven textiles and carved wood details typical of Maramureș workshops rather than mass-produced hotel furnishings.

Săpânța's narrow-gauge Mocănița steam railway, after which the street is named, runs seasonal trips along the Vaser Valley — the boarding point falls within easy walking distance of the front door.