Azuga, Prahova County, Romania

🇷🇴 Azuga is a small resort town nestled in the mountains of Prahova county in the historical region of Muntenia, in Romania. Azuga is located at the foot of the Baiu mountains, and contains the longest ski run in Romania, the Sorica - together with other ski slopes. Formerly heavy industrialised, Azuga retains now a bottled water factory - a leftover from the famous beer factory that brewed Azuga Beer, a sparkling wine factory, wine tasting and lodging. The beer factory, the glassware factory and the wool cloth factory were privatised and now are closed and completely demolished. The refractory materials factory, also privatised, is still standing but it is closed. The town offers a dramatic view over the Bucegi mountains, even from street level and especially from the top of the Sorica mountain.

Until the winter of 2002, Azuga was known as an industrial town. After that date, the town was turned into a resort to capitalize on the mountain landscape of the Baiu Mountains. Shortly after, the Sorica slope was certified by the International Ski Federation. Today, Azuga houses many hotels and hostels that provide accommodation for tourists. Accommodation in local homes can also be found for a lower price. The town formerly had several other factories including a beer factory, a glassware factory and a wool cloth factory, but those factories were demolished. The refractory materials factory, while still standing, is closed.

Economy: Tourist Industry The town is an emerging ski resort, with extensive development in tourism infrastructure.

Sorica is a ski slope with a length of over 2,100 metres (6,900 feet) and a vertical drop of 561 m (1,841 ft). The slope is recommended for both beginners and experienced skiers.

There are also two slopes descending the Cazacu mountain, one is 1,920 meters long (with a drop of 530 m) and the other, more suitable for beginners, is 400 meters long, with a drop of 115 m. Slopes are equipped with ski lifts and a Leitner gondola lift, which goes to the top of Sorica slope, allowing skiers to choose between the two main slopes (access to Cazacu slope requires some tens of meters of ascending, possibly by a small ski lift).

Because of the almost constant winds on the ridge during winter, the uppermost station is a few meters below the top. A higher station would have likely had icing issues, making morning startups difficult as sometimes the only alternative is the snow groomer - snowmobiles not being able to travel in fresh high snow.

In the summer, Azuga is a hiking destination, being a starting point for trips to various mountain destinations in Predeal, Bușteni, or Sinaia. Unpaved forest roads attract many bicycle enthusiasts, who can ride along the Azuga River, which is peppered with small wooden artificial waterfalls that oxygenate the water for the many Trouts that naturally populate the river.