May tour in Moldova including wine tasting at Asconi winery

On arrival at Chisinau International Airport, you will arrange your own transfer to the hotel in Chisinau (optional private transfer upon request). After settling in, you can have a walk through downtown and explore the city centre on your own.

Optional: Dinner at the restaurant.

The first stop of the day will be at Château Vartely winery in Orhei town. Château Vartely is the first winery in Moldova that focused on Terroir, for white wines. Located only 45 kilometers from Chisinau, Château Vartely has a special architecture and presents a real landscape delight, being located on a hill from where a dizzying view opens. For those who love to take pictures, Château Vartely has created for the first time a fascinating projection of augmented reality that reproduces, through special effects, the history of the winery. The story is projected on a screen made of real barrels, the ones where the wine rests before being bottled, and then it expands and occupies the entire surface of the cellar with spectators.

Next, you will set off on a time travel to Orheiul Vechi (Old Orhei) to see a natural amphitheater revealing a territory which was first inhabited 40 000 years ago. more The Cultural, Natural and Landscape Reserve Orheiul Vechi includes a series of historical and cultural monuments as well as natural landscapes in the gorge of the Raut River. Ancient fortifications, cave monasteries, monks and hermits – here you can follow the history of this region. The originality of Orheiul Vechi landscape is due to the gorge of the Raut River, dug under the form of a canyon in the limestone layers of the former Sarmatian Sea, about 14 million years ago.

In the afternoon, you will have lunch at Butuceni guesthouse in Butuceni village where you will taste dishes from the slow local cuisine. You will have free time to walk around Butuceni village where you can see the beautiful gates of the houses.

You will continue your trip at Cricova underground winery. During the excursion at the winery in the tourist train, at a depth of 80 m, you will discover the underground galleries formed by over seventy streets covering an area of nearly 120 km, each bearing Bacchic names: Sauvignon, Cabernet, Cahors.

In the evening, you will be transferred to the hotel in Chisinau.

Optional: Dinner at the restaurant.

This day will begin with an excursion at Zamfir Ralli Arbore manor. The Rally family, a family of Greeks by origin, came to Moldova in the 18th century. Zamfirachi Ralli Boyar had a large family, who lived in Chisinau for a year, only the holidays they spent in Dolna in a villa. Here, in the summer they organized balls and parties with violinists and gypsies. It was here that the library functioned, then the music school, and only in the 1970s the museum was opened with a few changes, which today operates as a branch of the Puskin Museum in Chisinau.

Next, you will travel to Capriana Monastery, founded in medieval Moldova, which is one of the oldest monasteries in the country. It is located in Capriana in a picturesque forested area once called Codrii Lapusnei. During a long period, Capriana Monastery acted as the residence of the Moldovan archbishop.

In the afternoon, you will travel more to in Ulmu village where you will discover Poiana winery – a modern enterprise with a picturesque landscape of the vineyards and the lake. Here, you will enjoy tasting delicious wines and a copious lunch. You will also have free time at Poiana winery to enjoy beautiful views or engage in active forms of tourism such hiking or riding a bicycle.

In the evening, you will be transferred to Chisinau.

Optional: Dinner at the restaurant.

On departure day, you will arrange your own transfer from the hotel to Chisinau International Airport (optional private transfer upon request). If your flight is in the afternoon, you can visit the Handicraft Souvenir Market, Central Market of Chisinau or some shops with traditional Moldovan products like: wine, chocolate, dried fruits, walnuts and honey.