Transylvania
Alba Carolina Citadel is the crowning attraction of Alba Iulia. Within this star-shaped citadel are museums, churches and the Unification Hall that sealed…
Must-see attractions in Romania
Transylvania
Some castles perch on mountains, others skulk in mist-shrouded hills, but Hunedoara’s juts out from an industrial jungle. Despite being surrounded by…
Sinaia
Over 40 years, dozens of builders, artists and wood-carvers brought Peleş Castle into existence. The neo-Renaissance masterpiece was commissioned by…
Bucharest
The exquisite Athenaeum is the majestic heart of Romania’s classical-music tradition. Scenes from Romanian history are featured on the interior fresco…
Bucharest
The Palace of Parliament is the world’s second-largest administrative building (after the Pentagon) and former dictator Nicolae Ceauşescu’s most infamous…
Bucharest
This restored villa is the former main residence of Nicolae and Elena Ceauşescu, who lived here for around two decades up until the end in 1989…
Cluj-Napoca
More of a living, breathing creative space than a gallery, Fabrica de Pensule teems with just-made artwork by local and foreign creators who use this…
Cluj-Napoca
The showpiece of Piaţa Unirii is 14th- and 15th-century St Michael’s, the second-biggest Gothic church in Romania (after Braşov’s Black Church). Its neo…
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Transylvania
One of the high points of any vampire-themed trip to Transylvania is kitsch Hotel Castel Dracula. Its blood-curdling decorations, and location on a…
Wallachia
The Endless Column, one of Constantin Brâncuşi's best-known and most celebrated works, sits at the eastern end of Calea Eroilor (20 minutes on foot from…
Grigore Antipa Natural History Museum
Bucharest
One of the few attractions in Bucharest aimed squarely at kids, this natural-history museum, showing off Romania's plant and animal life, has been…
Bucharest
West of Calea Victoriei is the locally beloved Cişmigiu Garden, with shady walks, a lake, cafes and a ridiculous number of benches on which to sit and…
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Transylvania
Encircled by a moat fringed with willow trees, Făgăraş Citadel is an impressively intact fortification from medieval Transylvania. The oldest part of this…
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Wallachia
This small, spare museum just outside the train station contains the military barracks where former Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceauşescu and his wife Elena…
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Wallachia
The Poienari Citadel was once a powerful fortress guarding entry to a strategic pass linking Wallachia with Transylvania. The castle's vantage point was…
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Sibiu
Sibiu's Gothic centrepiece rises more than 73m over the old town. Inside, marvel at ghoulish stone skeletons, 17th-century tombs and the largest organ in…
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Transylvania
The Sarmizegetusa Regia archaeological site is Romania’s Stonehenge. Only stones remain, enclosed by pretty woodlands, but they reveal compelling clues…
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Wallachia
Curtea de Argeş was an early capital of Wallachia, and these ruins from the 13th and 14th centuries mark the spot where the court once stood. The main…
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Zosim Oancea Glass Icons Museum
Transylvania
This museum of painted icons, named after the priest who collected them, is a true hidden gem. Unlike the sombre wooden icons you’ll see elsewhere in…
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Wallachia
The art museum is the only real must-see in Craiova, both for the art itself, including a small but important collection of six works by internationally…
Transylvania
Rising above the town on a rocky promontory, Bran Castle holds visitors in thrall. An entire industry has sprouted around describing it as ‘Dracula’s…
Bucharest
Tiny Snagov Island, at the northern end of Snagov Lake, is home to Snagov Monastery and Vlad Ţepeş' alleged final resting place. The small stone church…
Museum of the Romanian Peasant
Bucharest
The collection of peasant bric-a-brac, costumes, icons and partially restored houses makes this one of the most popular museums in the city. There’s not…
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Histria Archaeological Complex & Museum
The Danube Delta & Black Sea Coast
About 65km north of Constanţa, Histria, or Istros, settled in 657 BC by Greek traders, is Romania’s oldest town. Its founding by Greek colonists, through…
Bucharest
From the centre of Piaţa Unirii, look southwest to the Patriarchal Cathedral, the centre of Romanian Orthodox faith, built between 1656 and 1658. It…
Wallachia
This is a highly informative, well-organised exhibition of folk traditions in the Oltenia region surrounding Craiova. The exhibition begins downstairs…
Braşov
Rising 940m high and visible around Braşov, Mt Tâmpa is adorned with its very own Hollywood-style sign. Hard as it is to imagine, it was the site of a…
Bucharest
About halfway up Şos Kiseleff you'll find the 27m Triumphal Arch. Based on Paris’ namesake monument, it was built in 1935 to commemorate the reunification…
Bucharest
What was supposed to be a 6km-long dam during the communist era, left abandoned after the 1989 Revolution, turned over 22 years into a vast urban delta…
Bucharest
The modest Creţulescu Church stands in repose near the far larger and more dramatic Royal Palace. Look for the original paintings near the door to the…
National Museum of Contemporary Art
Bucharest
The Palace of Parliament houses a superb art gallery, which displays temporary, ever-changing exhibitions of eclectic installations and video art. Check…
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Sighişoara
Sighişoara's delightful medieval buildings are enclosed within its citadel, a Unesco-listed complex of protective walls and watchtowers. Walking in the…
Transylvania
Five kilometres from central Sibiu, this is Europe's largest open-air ethnographic museum, where churches, mills and traditional homes number among 400…
Bucharest
Just to the north of the National Art Museum is the Athénée Palace, so evocatively captured in its postrevolutionary, prostitute-teeming state by Robert…
Bucharest
The city’s most prestigious burial ground houses the tombs of many notable Romanian writers – a map inside the gate points out locations. Many Romanians…
Bucharest
The Jewish History Museum is housed in a colourful synagogue that dates from 1836 (rebuilt in 1910). Exhibits (in English and Romanian) outline Jewish…
Sibiu
Brukenthal Palace is worth visiting as much for its resplendent period furnishings as for the European art within. Duck beneath the Music Room’s…
Braşov
This wide square, lined with cafes, was once the heart of medieval Braşov. In the centre stands the 1420 Council House (Casa Sfatului), topped by the…
Sighişoara
Vlad Ţepeş (aka Dracula) was reputedly born in this house in 1431 and lived here until the age of four. It's now a decent restaurant, but for a small…
Bucharest
This striking memorial, respected and reviled in equal measure, marks the dramatic events of 1989, when many people died in this area for their opposition…
