Holiday Arsenal in Transylvania
Opened in 2009 in the town of Orastie, Hunedoara county, Arsenal Park has been continuously expanding ever since.
Ștefan Baciu, 11.08.2016, 23:00
Opened in 2009 in the town of Orastie, Hunedoara county, Arsenal Park has been continuously expanding ever since.
An aqua park has been added to the compound. The spa area here is made up of three different areas: Sun Waves, Inner Bliss and Belvedere Lounge&Terrace. Emil Cristescu, the manager of the compound tells us more about the novelties of the only adventure park with military theme in Romania: “Given my passion for military items I decided to purchase from the Defense Ministry around 150 military items, which I restored and exhibited. They make up the largest open-air military museum in Romania. The compound was opened for the public in June 2009. We have been developing it ever since. He 80-hectare park now has 12 kilometers of bike lanes. Tourists can visit the entire park by bike or on roller skates. In 2010 we applied for European funding, the project was approved in 2013 and a year later we resumed works. All leisure facilities are now ready for tourists, whose number has constantly increased. We had over 50 thousand visitors last year alone. Our theme park is open both to people looking for an adrenaline rush and also for those seeking relaxation.
Romanian tourism, regarded as a whole, has reached a much needed maturity, says Olav Bagyo, the Arsenal Parks director: “We will focus on Transylvania, Hunedoara county and the entrance to the town of Orastie. Arsenal Park Transylvania is the first and only military theme park in Romania and this part of Europe. We also have a SPA center, we organize team-building activities and we also have an Aqua Land. The latter covers 1,730 sqm, has six indoor pools and 4 outdoor ones, a hydro massage system and saunas.
Foreign tourists are coming from many areas. Olav Bagyo tells us what they like most here: “We have had a lot of Hungarian tourists this year and many Spaniards. Most Spanish tourists usually bring their own jeep cars for off-road. There are several off-road club members who have been visiting us regularly, for 4 or 5 years. The French area also interested in off road, but by motorcycles and ATVs. We also have Danish visitors as well. We have several contracts with Denmark and we organize activities for older people. They also come by motorcycles. One of our collaborators is the Danish speed-motorcycle champion, who brings us motorcyclists. The oldest of them was aged 87.
The park has been built on the site where an anti-tank mines and fireworks factory had been operational in the past. Part of the exhibits recompose a page of Romanian history. Youngsters find it really interesting to see the military technique used in the past, and which is still in use, at least partially. The open-air museum has more than 150 exhibits. Among them, you can see cannons, light armored vehicles, fully-tracked armored personnel carrier, anti-missile devices, military trucks, a military ambulance, a locomotive, mine trains, an IAR and AN-2 aircraft, an MIG aircraft but also a Kamov Ka 26 helicopter. Also, it is the only compound offering military drill programs, run by former Romanian Army military trainers.
With details on that, here is Arsenal Park director Olav Bagyo once again: “Activities related to the parks military theme round off the entire leisure offer: air soft weapons simulations, paintball, target shooting with the bow. All that creates the “military adventure, a phrase made of two words that perfectly tie in with one another. For the adventure part, we have a former water cannon, equipped with an elevator. It is 35 meters tall. We also have the power fan system, which is unique in Romania, which allows for a 35-meter jump. It is one of bungee jumpings younger cousins. It is basically the same system, except for the fact that it doe not use elastic cords. A steel cable is used instead, coiled on a cone-shaped capstan. The braking system operates at as close as five meters. Braking is being done slowly, gradually and with no shock whatsoever. For almost anybody, such a jump poses a real challenge. Also, from up above, at a height of 45 meters, starts one of Romanias longest zip lining, with 640 meters in continuous line.
Olav Bagyo also tells us about the Adventure Park: We have hurdled routes, built between the trees. Everything is ecological, no nails are used. There are no metal screws fastened in the trees, everything was made using wooden lumps, which allow for the tree to grow naturally. Each year, the lumps are adjusted, so that no damage is being done to the tree they are bolted on. There are several different routes. Color signs are also used, each indicating a certain degree of difficulty. Routes start off from 4 meters and reach up to 19 meters. Besides, the very large surface area, exceeding 88 hectares, is a great advantage for us. That allows tourists who are not crazy about an active holiday to have a walk, to do yoga or visit the deer reserve on the premises.
The SPA center and the multi-purpose hall, jointly named the AquaPark Arsenal, includes three distinctive areas, SunWaves, Inner Bliss and Belvedere Lounge& Outdoor restaurant. On the outer side you can find SunWaves, which includes four swimming pools, six toboggans and an outdoor bar. The Belvedere Lounge& Outdoor restaurant has an unique view. Water in the swimming pool is no more than 1.20 meters deep, while water temperature always stays at29 to 32 degrees Celsius.
