BUDAPEST, Hungary — A new seven-stage rally race is coming to Europe.

The Central Europe Rally will be held in Hungary and Romania in April, with some 250 racers in three categories — motorcycles, cars and trucks — with all time trials to take place on closed military bases in Hungary. The April 26 finish will be in Balatonfured, a town on the northern tip of Lake Balaton, which is the largest freshwater lake in Central Europe and a major Hungarian tourist attraction.

The European race will start in Budapest on April 20, and will cover 1,860 miles, according to organizers at the Amaury Sports Organization, which also organizes the famed Dakar Rally.

The Dakar Rally was canceled this year due to terrorism threats along its traditional routes in North Africa. An adventure through the desert and other off-road landscapes, the race historically ran from Paris to the capital city of Senegal. In past years it had also originated in other European cities.

In 2009, the Dakar Rally will resume on a new continent — South America. The route will start in Buenos Aires Jan. 2, run through Chile and finish up back in Argentina Jan. 18, according to the Amaury Sports Organization.