Hello fellow-cyclists,
Since 2 years there is a bridge between Calafat and Vidin. Before there was a ferry. I believe / suppose the bridge is closed for cyclists. Or am I wrong? If I am wrong, please let me know.
Anyway, I am interested to know if there still is a ferry from Calafat to Vidin. If there is a ferry, what is the (approximate) schedule, or how many times a day it is running?
I will be grateful for more information.
Thanks and have a good trip or good stay at home.
Juuk Slager
Netherlands
The bridge is not closed to cyclists. It is even reported to have a bicycle path, and cyclists and pedestrians don’t have to pay for the bridge like drivers do (source here).
Hello Christopher,
thanks very much for your useful answer. I can not understand Romanian, so I can not check the newspaper, but I fully believe you. And even if cyclists have to pay, that is not a problem for me. It is important to know that we can use the bridge. Not every bridge in the main road has cyclepathes or is allowed for cyclists. Not even here in the Netherlands.
There remains my question about the ferry. Is it still running or not? And how often.
If you or someone else has an answer to it, that would be very useful too. If the ferry is still running then you can make a little tour Vidin, ferry, Calafat, bridge, Vidin. That would be interesting too.
Best wishes,
Juuk Slager
As far as I can tell, the ferry is no longer running. It stopped with the construction of the bridge, and all the passport control structures were moved to the endpoints of the bridge.
Incidentally, the bicycle/pedestrian path on the bridge is only on one side, which may require you to plan your approach to the bridge carefully (here is a blog where a couple of cyclists describe getting onto the bridge and posted pictures that should give some help even if you don’t understand Romanian.)
Thanks Christopher for your addition. Yes, sounds quite logical that they keep only one bordercrossing. I forgot that it is a national border too.
Best wishes,
Juuk Slager