Arieșeni (german: Leppusch; hu, Lepus) is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

located in Alba County,

Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the ...

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, a ...

. It has a population of 1,921. The commune is composed of eighteen villages: Arieșeni, Avrămești, Bubești, Casa de Piatră, Cobleș, Dealu Bajului, Fața Cristesei, Fața Lăpușului, Galbena, Hodobana, Izlaz, Păntești, Pătrăhăițești, Poienița, Ravicești, Ștei-Arieșeni, Sturu, and Vanvucești.

Geography

The commune is located in the ethnogeographical region

Țara Moților Țara Moților (german: Motzenland), also known as ''Țara de Piatră'' ("The Stone Land") is an ethnogeographical region of Romania in the Apuseni Mountains, on the upper basin of the Arieș and Crișul Alb River rivers. It covers parts of th ...

, in the northwestern corner of Alba County, on the border with

Bihor County Bihor County () is a county (județ) in western Romania. With a total area of , Bihor is Romania's 6th largest county geographically and the main county in the historical region of Crișana. Its capital city is Oradea. Toponymy The origin of ...

. It is crossed by

national road The National Road (also known as the Cumberland Road) was the first major improved highway in the United States built by the Federal Government of the United States, federal government. Built between 1811 and 1837, the road connected the Pot ...

, which starts near

Ștei Ștei ( hu, Vaskohsziklás) is a town in Bihor County, Crișana, Romania. Between 1958 and 1996, it was named ''Dr. Petru Groza'', after the Romanian socialist leader who died in 1958. History The town was founded in 1952, near a village of ...

, to the west, and runs to

Câmpeni Câmpeni ( German: ''Topesdorf''; Hungarian: ''Topánfalva'') is a town in Alba County, Transylvania, Romania. The town administers 21 villages: Boncești, Borlești, Botești (''Botesbánya''), Certege (''Csertés''), Coasta Vâscului, Dăndu ...

(the capital of Țara Moților), to the east, and on to

Turda Turda (; hu, Torda, ; german: link=no, Thorenburg; la, Potaissa) is a city in Cluj County, Transylvania, Romania. It is located in the southeastern part of the county, from the county seat, Cluj-Napoca, to which it is connected by the Europe ...

, where it joins

DN1 DN1 ( ro, Drumul Național 1) is an important national road in Romania which links Bucharest with the northwestern part of the country and the border with Hungary via Borș. The main cities linked by DN1 are Bucharest, Ploiești, Brașov, Sibiu, ...

. The county seat,

Alba Iulia Alba Iulia (; german: Karlsburg or ''Carlsburg'', formerly ''Weißenburg''; hu, Gyulafehérvár; la, Apulum) is a city that serves as the seat of Alba County in the west-central part of Romania. Located on the Mureș River in the historica ...

, is to the southeast. Arieșeni is nestled in the

Apuseni Mountains The Apuseni Mountains ( ro, Munții Apuseni, hu, Erdélyi-középhegység) is a mountain range in Transylvania, Romania, which belongs to the Western Romanian Carpathians, also called ''Occidentali'' in Romanian. Their name translates from R ...

, within the

Bihor Massif Bihor Mountains ( ro, Munții Bihorului, hu, Bihar-hegység) is a mountain range in western Romania. It is part of the Apuseni Mountains, which are part of the Carpathian Mountains The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians () are a range of ...

, at the foot of the

Cucurbăta Mare Cucurbăta Mare ( hu, Nagy-Bihar), also known as Bihor Peak, is a mountain in the Bihor Mountains. It is located in the southeastern part of Bihor County, near the border with Alba County, in Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a count ...

, which, at , is the highest peak in the Apuseni Mountains. The river

Arieșul Mare The Arieșul Mare ( hu, Nagy-Aranyos) is a river in the Apuseni Mountains, Alba County, western Romania. It is the left headwater of the river Arieș. It flows through the villages Arieșeni, Gârda de Sus, Scărișoara, Albac and Vadu Mo� ...

, which has its source in the nearby Mount Vârtopul, flows through Arieșeni.

Tourism

Arieșeni is a very popular ski resort among the people of Bihor and Alba counties, having 3 ski slopes: the old one is about long, the second about and the third one, opened in January 2011 is the longest, having in length. The first ski lift in Romania was installed in Arieșeni and with the opening of the new slope, the resort has also got a brand new funicular. There are several other notable natural tourist sites in the area, including the Vârciorog Waterfall, the Scărișoara Glacier, Groapa Ruginoasă, Piatra Grăitoare, Pătrăhăițești village, and the Cucurbăta Mare, also known as the Bihor Peak.

References

Communes in Alba County Localities in Transylvania Ski areas and resorts in Romania {{Alba-geo-stub