Tipova in the morning, Chateau Vartely by evening

In the morning, Tipova is still empty

I leave the car up on the cliff and we walk down over the rock to the edge, where cells and a church are cut into the pale limestone above the Dniester. In the morning there's usually nobody else here, just the wind, your own footsteps and the river far below. I have many stories, but at the cliff edge I keep them short: there you just want to sit and look.

The day starts with a cliff in the morning, a glass of wine in the evening, and a long village lunch with a family in Lalova in between. It suits people who want nature and a winery in one day without going underground for the wine. Moldova has good underground cellars, but that's another day. Here everything happens in the open air: rock under your feet first, then, towards evening, wine from three local grape varieties at a modern winery in Orhei.

From Chișinău we drive about a hundred kilometres north in just over an hour and a half. On the drive we get acquainted, and I learn what matters most to you: the local history, the wine, or simply sitting on a rock in silence. That decides how much I talk at the cells, sometimes barely a word.

The monastery inside the rock

The walk down and back up is moderately difficult: not mountaineering, not a park stroll either. You're on rock, first down to the cells, then uphill, in summer under the sun. Closed shoes are best, trainers or boots. Sandals aren't ideal, but if you have nothing else, you can walk in them, very carefully and at your own risk. The way down takes about half an hour and the climb back the same, with stops to catch your breath and look at the river.

The monastery doesn't stand on the cliff, it's hidden inside it: the cells and the church are cut straight into the limestone face above the Dniester. From a distance you see only dark openings in pale stone. Up close you realise that behind each opening is a room, and another behind it, and that people lived and prayed here between walls without a single straight line.

Inside it's cool even in July. Outside, the stone is warm from the sun, yet two steps past the entrance it feels cold under your palm. The walls are rough, the floor uneven, there's little light, and your eyes need a few seconds to adjust to the half-light. I say a few words at the entrance about what was here, then leave you in peace: you understand Tipova best sitting on a stone by a cell, looking down at the river. Photos come out well, but later guests remember the silence more.

The path goes on to the viewpoints, and if you feel up to it, we walk it. If not, we calmly climb back to the car: this trip is about the monastery, the lunch and the wine, not kilometres of trail. In all we spend about an hour and a half at Tipova, then head to lunch.

A long lunch in Lalova

Lalova is only about ten minutes from Tipova, and we eat at Hanul lui Hanganu: a traditional Moldovan village lunch as guests of a family. A han is an old Romanian wayside inn, and that's the feel: simple, homely, without restaurant formality. Food is cooked to order, so lunch takes about an hour and a half, and I won't rush anyone: after the walk you want to sit, stretch your legs and eat slowly.

Lunch is optional and paid on site. I translate the menu and tell you what to order, because Moldovan home cooking is more filling than it sounds, and three people easily order what six couldn't finish. One tip: go easy on the wine at lunch. Vartely is still ahead, and the first glass of the day is better drunk where someone tells you about it.

Chateau Vartely, all above ground

After lunch we drive about an hour south to Orhei. Not Old Orhei with its cave church above the Răut, I take guests there on a different day, but the town of Orhei, home to Chateau Vartely. It's a modern winery, one of the country's leading ones, with a brand dating from 2004. Nobody goes underground here: the tour covers the production halls and the tasting room, and the vineyards lie in two regions, Codru and Valul lui Traian.

On the way the car usually goes quiet: someone dozes, someone looks out of the window. Outside, we pass hills and fertile fields growing all kinds of crops, and between them quiet Moldovan villages, houses with little fences and animals grazing beside them. I don't talk on this stretch: after lunch it's good to rest on the road. By Orhei everyone wakes up on their own.

We arrive in the late afternoon, when the heat eases and the light turns soft. The tour and tasting are paid on site, cash or card. We agree on the standard or extended tasting in advance. We spend an hour and a half at the winery, then drive an hour back to Chișinău. You're back at your hotel in time for dinner, if you still want one after the tasting.

Three grapes I come here for

At the tasting I especially enjoy explaining the names of the grapes: Feteasca Neagra, Feteasca Regala, Rara Neagra. They are local varieties, and their names offer a little Romanian lesson: feteasca comes from fată, a girl, neagră means black, regală royal, and rară rare. So: the black maiden, the royal maiden and the rare black one. Once I translate this at the table, people usually sip more slowly and thoughtfully.

Feteasca Regala makes white wine, the other two make red. I'll let you taste them without telling you what to expect. If so far you've only had Cabernet and Merlot in Moldova, this tasting introduces you to local grape varieties.

Shoes, heat, children and paying on site

Shoes first, because on this route they matter most. The way down to the cells and back up to the car is over rock, so wear trainers with a decent sole and leave heels and flip-flops at the hotel. There's water in the car, half a litre each, but in summer I'd take one more bottle down to the cells.

Next, the heat. Tipova is open ground and gets very hot by midday in July and August, so we go there first, before lunch. On a very hot day I change the schedule: we set off earlier and do the walk while it's cool. The best months are April to October, though I also drive it from November to March. Then there's hardly anyone about, lunches get longer, and an empty Tipova sounds nothing like it does in summer. On wet rock I judge the way down and back up on the spot and change the plan if needed.

Children are welcome too: day trips work well for families. Seats for children from nine months are available on request, included in the price. With children we go down and back up more slowly, with stops, and that's fine. If the walk is too much for someone in your group, tell me before the trip and I'll rework the day in advance, not at the edge of the cliff.

Then there is language: away from tourist spots few people in Moldova speak English or German, and in villages even fewer. So in Lalova and at the winery I stay close and translate the names of the dishes, your questions to the hosts and everything said at the tasting, if you've booked an English or German tour.

Paid on site: lunch in Lalova, the winery tour and tasting at Chateau Vartely. There is no entry ticket at Tipova. The day's price covers the car with fuel, the tour in your language (English, German, Russian or Romanian), pick-up and drop-off anywhere in Chișinău, the airport included, and water. If you prefer Italian, Spanish or Turkish, a guide from my team who speaks it comes with you. One to four people ride in a Toyota Prius+, five or six in an Opel Vivaro, seven to twenty in a Mercedes Sprinter. If I'm booked on your date, a guide from my team leads the same route, and I remain responsible for the day.

Bring:

• trainers or boots, sandals only if you have nothing else;
• a cap and a second bottle of water in summer;
• something with sleeves, it's cool inside the rock even in the heat;
• cash for lunch, cards may not be accepted in the village.

Who this day suits

I recommend it if you want nature and wine together and have seen the cellars or prefer to stay above ground, and to those who like walking, just not all day. It also suits guests on their second or third day in the country who have seen classics like Old Orhei, families whose children can manage the rocky paths, and anyone who wants to be back for dinner rather than at midnight.

I don't recommend it if you want a long list of sights in one day: there are just two places and a lunch, and that's the idea. If walking down and back up over rock is not advisable for you, choose something else too: I have routes without a single step for that. Write to me and we'll find the right one.

Why in this order

The order isn't random. Tipova comes first because in the morning it's empty and cool, and it's better to sit out the midday heat at a table than on the rocks. Lunch follows the walk, when you've worked up an appetite, and Vartely is kept for the evening: after a tasting nobody wants to walk uphill. And Orhei is only an hour from Chișinău, so you're back at your hotel for dinner.

To spend a day on this route, see the tour page: Tipova Cave Monastery and Chateau Vartely. It has the schedule, the price per car and a booking form. And if you want to change something, add a stop on the way, shorten the walk, or bring a grandmother who won't be going down the rock and back up the hill, message me on WhatsApp and I'll shape the day around you.