Underground attractions

There are travellers who tried cruising, hiking, hitchhiking, diving, couch surfing and backpacking. Travelling Cheap suggests a different approach (and it is relatively cheap, depending on your country destination): underground tourism but not on your way to work in a crowded tube but in a salt mine.

A cheap European destination would be Romania which has beautiful overground and underground attractions: the salt mine in Praid (Transylvania) or in Slanic Prahova (in Wallachia).

Praid Salt Mine – the salt reserve in this mine can provide salt for the whole Europe for hundreds of years. The salt is around 20 million years old and the salt mining is believed to have started in 64 BC when the Roman emperor Marcius Ancus introduced the tax on salt. This salt mine is 1200 m long, has a height of 16-20 m and it has playgrounds, a buffet, a small museum, large alleys for walking and a church.

You get the impression you are in a different world between the greyish walls of the mine. The temperature in the mine is constant (around 16 degrees C) and many people visit this salt mine because the air has therapeutic effects on respiratory diseases. The access into the salt mine is done by regular bus services and from the bus station you have to use the stairs to go deeper into the mine. The entrance fee is around EUR5-6 but you can spend a whole day in the mine and don’t forget that the salt for your lunch is free. Close to the mine entrance there is a shop selling various salt products – bath salts etc. Near Praid there is a small village called Corund which is famous for its ceramics with specific decorations – you can get your salt shaker here.

In Slanic Prahova you can also visit the salt mine galleries with impressive salt sculptures and amenities. The spa resort of Slanic Prahova has several springs and lidos with salty water and a unique Salt Mountain.