Transylvania
This museum recounts more than two millennia of gold-mining history through more than 2000 objects, including tools and intricate sculptures.
Must-see attractions in Transylvania
Sibiu
The former Council Tower links Piaţa Mare with its smaller sister square, Piaţa Mică. First built in the 13th century, and refortified in the 16th, it has…
Cluj-Napoca
The permanent collection of this sizeable gallery has creaky rooms featuring 18th- and 19th-century art, mostly portraits of nobles and their bewigged…
Braşov
The Renaissance Hirscher House, completed in 1545, was once the largest building in Braşov. It was commissioned by Apollonia Hirscher, the widow of Braşov…
Székely Land
Some 2km northeast of the centre in the Şumuleu district (Csíksomlyó in Hungarian) is a fine Franciscan monastery, built in 1442 by Iancu de Hunedoara …
Székely Land
Just 6km northwest of Gheorgheni on the road to Topliţa is the tiny village of Lăzarea (Gyergyószárhegy in Hungarian). The predominantly Hungarian village…
National History Museum of Transylvania
Cluj-Napoca
Within this museum of regional history you’ll discover Dacian artefacts, mostly from Sarmizegetusa’s archaeological sites, including glass blow pipes,…
Târgu Mureş
Opened in 1802, this is one of the oldest libraries in Transylvania, named for its founder Count Sámuel Teleki de Szék. Technically still used as a public…
Cluj-Napoca
Commissioned by the king of Hungary, Matthias Corvinus, in 1486, this church took more than 20 years to complete. Its interior seems spare at first glance…
Cluj-Napoca
On the eastern side of Piaţa Muzeului, the rosy, gilt-edged decor within this sanctuary is worth a peep; look up for trompe l’oeil frescoes.
Transylvania
Peer into the life of Romanian poet and activist Octavian Goga (1881–1938) at this museum complex in Ciucea, where he died. Controversial Hungarian 20th…
Cluj-Napoca
Rotating exhibitions of local art within this stone tower can be somewhat threadbare. But it’s still worth wandering inside this pointy-roofed former…
Sighişoara
Built in 1896, after the demolition of the Franciscan convent, St Joseph's thoroughly modern appearance owes to a fire and complete restoration carried…
Transylvania
Facing the church on the north side of Piaţa Centrală is Şugălete, a row of 13 terraced buildings constructed between 1480 and 1550. This two-floor…
Transylvania
With long boulevards for cycling and walking, as well as a lily pond with giant goldfish, this park is a good spot to stretch your legs, especially if you…
Ethnographic Museum of Transylvania
Cluj-Napoca
On the upper floor of a renovated neo-Gothic building, dating to the 16th century, find well-tended exhibitions on Romanian peasant life throughout the…
Braşov
A gallery to kill time in, more than a star attraction, the Art Museum has two floors of mostly Romanian paintings, including the luxuriant modernism of…
Transylvania
The fairy-tale fortification in Bazna, with hefty wooden gates and portcullises, encloses a 14th-century Gothic church. Treasures include a baroque altar…
Székely Land
Some 400m east of Piaţa Libertăţii, the county museum is housed in an 18th-century baroque-style building, one of the oldest in town. The collection of…
Braşov
This venerable museum near St Nicholas' Cathedral time-travels into the history of Romanian education. Students have been educated on this site since the…
Franz Binder Museum of World Ethnology
Sibiu
Named for a 19th-century collector from Sibiu, the Franz Binder Museum of World Ethnology was undergoing a revamp when we passed through. A scattering of…
Braşov
In 1524 a new wooden citadel was built in Braşov, on top of Citadel Hill just north, though the stone wall ruins you now see are from the 16th and 17th…
Braşov
Formerly an access route for firefighters, Strada Sforii is one of the narrowest streets in Europe at 1.2m wide. Lurid tales have sprung up about Vlad…
Braşov
In Saxon Braşov, Romanians were banished to the Schei quarter in the southwest; entry to this quarter from the walled city was marked by the Schei Gate…
Mureşenilor House Memorial Museum
Braşov
On Piaţa Sfatului's western side stands the intimate Mureşenilor House Memorial Museum, which honours the family of Jacob Mureşan, the first editor of the…
Museum of Dacian & Roman Civilization
Transylvania
Down by the park, at the foot of the fortress hill, this museum showcases fragments of the region's ancient history, including earthenware vessels, tools…
Transylvania
A stocky, 14th-century watchtower is the most prominent feature of this once-great fortress, south of Bologa village. It's a pleasant uphill walk to the…
Braşov
Climb the stairs of the semicircular White Tower, which dates to 1494, for great views over Braşov. It's a 250m walk, alongside medieval walls, to reach…
Târgu Mureş
A block west of the Ethnographic Museum is an ornate and well-preserved synagogue from 1899–1900. Before WWII more than 6000 Jews lived in Târgu Mureş; in…
Braşov
The old City Hall houses the two-floor, by-the-numbers Braşov Historical Museum, in which the region's history from Roman times via medieval military…
Transylvania
Out-of-sight Michael the Brave Church, brought to Alba Iulia in 1992 from Maramureş, stands on the site of a former Metropolitan cathedral built by Mihai…
Târgu Mureş
In high summer when the mercury tops 40°C, this swimming complex, 2.5km north of the centre, is a welcome oasis. There's a couple of giant pools, a few…
Sibiu
This Roman Catholic church and monastery was built in stages across the 15th to 18th centuries. Its white and gold baroque splendour is usually enclosed…
Braşov
This 11m tower, actually the same beige colour as Braşov's White Tower, is part of the town's old medieval fortifications. It last served as a watchtower…
Braşov
Standing outside the Black Church is a grave statue of Johannes Honterus, a Renaissance man who set up a printing press and established a major library in…
Transylvania
Understand the background and impact of the 1918 signing of the union between Transylvania and Romania right where the historic event occurred, and browse…
Târgu Mureş
Also known as the ‘small cathedral’, this sanctuary at the southern tip of Piaţa Trandafirilor was built in 1934–36 in the style of a scaled-down homage…
Sighişoara
Behind the Church of the Dominican Monastery is a Statue of Vlad Ţepeş (sometimes known as 'The Impaler'), showing the legend with a bewildered look and…
Cluj-Napoca
A block south of the National History Museum is the birthplace of Matthias Corvinus, a 15th-century Hungarian king. This Gothic building is now the…
Târgu Mureş
Enclosed by the walls of the citadel, this oft-closed late-Gothic church is the oldest one in Târgu Mureş. Construction began in the mid-14th century,…
