The bookings of guest houses in the Danube Delta for the May 1 mini-holiday is about 80%, similar to that of the Easter holidays, with festivals and sports competitions set to take place in May, in Tulcea and in the towns surrounded by the waters of the Danube Delta Reservation.

The prices offered by the accommodation units in the Delta for the May 1 mini-holiday start from 1.700 RON for three nights accommodation, half board and free access to all facilities, some of them including transportation from Tulcea to the destination towns.

'For the Easter holidays we had an occupancy rate of over 70%. At the end of last week, for the May 1 mini-holiday, the booking rate was similar and we expect an occupancy rate of over 90%. Sfantu Gheorghe has the most beautiful beach in Romania, the finest sand and the air is the best. 20-30 years ago, a study was carried out and it was found that the air there is purer than at Omu Peak,' Octavian Moldovan, a representative of a resort in Sfantu Gheorghe village, told AGERPRES.

He said that last year the occupancy rate of the accommodation unit was over 65%, as it was open to guests for nine months, not just six months.

'We hope to have at least the same number of guests this year, unless we manage to grow by at least 5%. Because of the war with Ukraine, we have no incoming tourism. We rely on Romanian tourists. We also have, it is true, foreign tourists, but they come individually,' mentioned Moldovan.

At an accommodation unit in the village of Baltenii de Sus, located on the Sfantu Gheorghe branch of the Danube, the occupancy rate during the Easter holidays was about 90%. At the moment, the administrators of the establishment are welcoming guests with typical local dishes.

In some areas of the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve, for example in Jurilovca commune, the offers of some accommodation units for May 1 have been sold out since last year.

Th May Day mini-holiday parties will kick off on Wednesday evening, starting at 18:00, at the 'Ivan Patzaichin' fountain on the Danube waterfront in Tulcea, where a flashmob will take place to mark International Dance Day and a recital by a brass band from Bistrita-Nasaud county, ahead of the 'Street Art Fest & Street Food' that begins on Thursday, according to data provided by the County Council.

'For four days, street and contemporary art will intertwine with the festive atmosphere of music and the many forms of artistic expression, offering captivating performances, multi-sensory experiences and moments of connection. Days full of recreational activities, culinary delights, street concerts, full entertainment and moments for the whole family. Art takes to the streets with spectacular shows that will take your breath away: street music performers, boundary-defying fakirs, crowd-pleasing street performers, circus acrobatics on the ground and in the air, aerial dance with dancers suspended in the air, urban dance, street dance and choreographed shows with fire, dancing flames and dragons,' announced Tulcea County Council.

During the same period, the Tulcea City Hall is making the city center available to 24 producers from the country.

'Starting May 1, for four days, we are welcoming you in the Civic Square, where we will have shoes from Suceava, traditional Romanian products from Arges, cosmetics from Daeni [a commune in Tulcea county - editor's note], flowers, and activities for children at the book stall. There will also be 'mici' [grilled minced meat rolls, editor's note] and beer and we will have a soccer table, where anyone who wants to occupy their free time by walking and drinking beer can take a seat,' said the director of the Agropiete SA company of the City Hall, Rodica Pascale.

In fact, from May 16 to June 1, the city will host the Aegyssus Sport Fest, an event that brings together sports competitions, some of them national championships, in which more than 1,800 people from all over the country have announced their participation.

'The National Half Marathon Championship, the National Panathlon Athletics Championship, the National Mountain Bike XCO Cup and the National Triathlon Championship will bring to Tulcea elite athletes and will confirm the importance of this festival in the national sports calendar. Public access is free and the atmosphere will be animated by fair-play, determination and passion for exercise. Aegyssus Sport Fest thus consolidates its position as one of the most important multi-sport events in Romania, supporting performance and promoting the values of sport,' reads a press release from the Tulcea City Hall.

The sports festival also includes the start of the first edition of the Ivan Patzaichin International Canoe Marathon, which will take place on the Danube, from May 23 to 25, over a distance of about 40 kilometers. At the end of the route, in the Danube Delta village of Mila 23, the Ivan Patzaichin Museum awaits the participants. The museum will reopen to the public in May. This year, visitors will have access recitals of traditional Lipovan music will be organized, including lesser-known tunes on request, by appointment only.

As a matter of fact, the participants in the Ivan Patzaichin International Marathon could stop on their way to Mila 23 and Maliuc, where the Pontic shad Festival (Alosa immaculata, editor's note), organized by the municipality of the Maliuc, will take place, May 24 to 25.

'Do you want to escape from the daily routine and experience an authentic festival, full of life and traditions? Then get ready for an unforgettable adventure in the heart of the Danube Delta! The Pontic shad 2025 celebrations await you with a unique experience, rich in details that will captivate your senses. Imagine traditional music, energizing dances, delicious dishes made of fresh fish and a magical atmosphere,' reads the invitation extended by the local authority to tourists.

The town of Sulina will also welcome tourists on Friday, May 2 to the Atlantic mackerel Festival (Scomber scombrus, editor's note), an event organized by the City Hall and the House of Culture.

'The event aims to preserve and valorize the gastronomy based on traditional recipes of the Delta; to promote the tourist potential of the Danube Delta; to preserve and valorize the traditions of the Danube Delta area. The program will include the preparation and tasting of Atlantic mackerel in various traditional recipes, exhibitions of local products, music and dance performances presented by the folk ensembles of the Sulina Cultural Centre and of the minorities from the Danube Delta, as well as recitals by local artists Elena Cojocariu, Lucica Buhaev, Florentina Dunaev and the Euxinus band,' reads a press release.

One of the biggest events of Sulina, the only town of the Delta, the Pirate Festival, will take place from May 15 to 18. It was initiated by Gelu Tusu from Bucharest, born in Baia, Tulcea county.

'I was in the Delta with some friends, one autumn, nine years ago, and we were staying in Crisan. During a trip to Sulina, the boatman insisted on showing us the cemetery in Sulina and we said in one breath to just go. We saw the tombs of the two lovers, of ship commanders, the tomb of Princess Moruzi, that of a pirate and asked the boatman if someone had given them a funeral. The following spring, we conducted a ritual of remembrance,' Gelu Tusu recalled.

At the first editions, there were a few dozen people, and the ritual of remembrance included a religious service in the cemetery, a custom that is still part of the festival program.

'Last year, we had 2,500 spectators each day in Sulina, and this year I hope to attract over 3,000. Every day, there are three bands, we have an international band this year, Gipsy Kings, on May 18, but we have Loredana, Cargo, White Mahala, Proconsul, Vita de Vie,' said Gelu Tusu.

In general, during the festival, all accommodation places in Sulina are occupied, despite the prices charged for a ticket.

This month, the stand-up paddle (SUP) season starts in the Delta. The first trips are scheduled for next weekend and cost about 300 RON.

'We leave from Tulcea, around 9:00 am, to Cotete lake, where we stay for two or three hours to get used to the board, then we go to Scaunele, another paddling spot, where we have lunch. The trip lasts almost nine hours in total, and the tourist product offers the Delta without noise and without filters,' said the trip organizer Cristian Mocanu.

In Macinului Mountains National Park, tourists will be able to see peonies in bloom, a plant that in Romanian tradition and culture is associated with love, devotion and sacrifice. On May 10, the territorial branch of the Union of Ukrainians in Romania organizes the 8th edition of the Peony Festival which will take place in the forest of the village Fantana Mare.

Moreover, this year, the park's guests have at their disposal a reconfigured route, Celic-Dere - Alba, which offers them the possibility to admire the mixed nature reserve Carasan-Teke, on a distance of 1.6 kilometers. Access to the new area set up for visitors can be made by car from the Celic-Dere monastery to Izvor, and from there, on foot, to the Carasan-Teke reserve, from where tourists can return to the monastery and thus cover about 9 kilometers, compared to 16 kilometers, the total route Celic-Dere - Alba.

'A tourist route must go through areas with elements of biodiversity, but keep the route on pre-existing paths, made by wildlife, not anthropized, so as not to bypass areas of maximum biodiversity with rare, vulnerable or endangered species, but at the same time, through the configuration of the route, to ensure their preservation, by avoiding direct flooding, or to ensure the tranquility of both wildlife and our own,' the director of the National Park Administration, Viorel Rosca said, explaining the need to reconfigure the route. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Luisiana Bigea; EN - writing by: Simona Iacob)