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Moldova
The world is finally waking up to the charms of this little nation wedged between Romania and Ukraine. Moldova was famously dubbed the world's least happy place in a bestselling book in 2008, but today it's better known for its unspoiled countryside and superb wine tours. As one of Europe’s least visited countries, Moldova retains a measure of roads-less-travelled charm. But that’s changing quickly as budget flights from Western Europe take off.
Moldova may be entering the consciousness of the global traveller, but those seeking the remote and obscure still have their Shangri-La in the form of the breakaway republic of Transdniestr, where the Soviet Union reigns supreme. As for the unhappy thing, well that's a thing of the past. According to the most recent UN survey, today's Moldova is the world’s 67th happiest country.
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Top attractions
These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Moldova.
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Bendery Fortress
This impressive Ottoman fortress, outside the centre near the Bendery–Tiraspol bridge, was built in the 16th century and saw keen fighting between Turkish and Russian forces before falling to Tsarist Russia permanently in the early 19th century. You can walk along the ramparts taking in the fine views of the Dniestr River, have a picnic on the grounds, and visit several museums on-site that document the fort's long and rich history. For years this was a functioning Russian army base and off limits to the public. With the recent thaw between Chisiņau and Tiraspol, the castle complex has been given completely over to tourism. A new hotel marks the entrance to the complex near the bridge, about a 15-minute walk from the centre of town. From the entrance it's a five-minute walk to the fort past the glistening domes of the restored Alexander Nevsky Church. If arriving by bus from Tiraspol, alight at the first stop after the bridge and backtrack to entrance.
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Nativity of Christ Metropolitan Cathedral
The main highlight of the Parcul Catedralei is the city's main Moldovan Orthodox church, dating from the 1830s, with rich interior frescoes. The bell tower was originally built in 1836, but was destroyed after WWII and rebuilt in 1997. Legend has it that the bell originally commissioned for this tower ended up in Bolhrad (in present-day Ukraine) thanks to a mix-up by a boozy bureaucrat in St Petersburg. Chişinău ended up with the much bigger bell earmarked for Bolhrad. It wouldn't fit in the church belfry, hence this bell tower was built to accommodate the bigger bell.
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National Museum of Ethnography & Natural History
The highlight of this massive and wonderful exhibition is a life-sized reconstruction of the skeleton of a dinothere – an 8-tonne elephant-like mammal that lived during the Pliocene epoch – 5.3 million to 1.8 million years ago – discovered in the Rezine region in 1966. Sweeping dioramas depict national customs and dress, while other exhibits cover geology, botany and zoology (including bizarre deformed animals in jars). Allow at least an hour to see all the displays.
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Army Museum
Occupying one end of the Centre of Culture and Military History, this once-musty museum now hosts a moving exhibit on Soviet-era repression. Stories of Red Terror, forced famines, mass deportations and gulag slave labour are told through photographs, videos, newspaper clippings and dioramas. While little is in English, the museum nevertheless gives you a good sense of the horrific scale of the crimes perpetrated by Lenin and Stalin. There are eerie interrogation rooms and the items on display include Soviet propaganda posters and Cheka and NKVD uniforms. Be aware that some of the videos are quite graphic and disturbing. Do note that the displays dedicated to Soviet crimes between the world wars pertain to events that happened outside of Moldova, as Moldova was not part of the Soviet Union then. Those interested in Soviet crimes against humanity should also check out the Repression Memorial near the train station. The Army Museum also has dated displays of Moldova's past military campaigns and, in a park outside, a small open-air military exhibition with Soviet-made tanks, fighter planes and other military toys inherited by Moldova's armed forces.
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National Archaeology & History Museum
This impressive museum contains artefacts from the region of Orheiul Vechi, including Golden Horde coins and 14th-century ceramics; a rare, 2000-year-old Sarmatian fired-clay urn in the shape of a curly-coated ram; a beautiful amorpha (Greek jar) painted with anthropomorphic deities; and weapons dating from ancient times to the present. A huge late-Soviet-era diorama on the 1st floor depicts a battle near the village of Leuşeni on the Prut River during the pivotal WWII Iaşi-Chişinău Offensive. The sculptures in the garden out front date from 1–4 BC, making them the oldest stone objects discovered in Bessarabia.
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Parcul Catedralei
Dab in the middle of Chişinău, this park is popular with families and canoodling teenagers on benches, and makes for great strolling. The highlight is the Nativity of Christ Metropolitan Cathedral, dating from the 1830s, and its lovely bell tower (1836). Along B-dul Ştefan cel Mare the main entrance to the park is marked by the Holy Gates (1841), also known as Chişinău's own Arc de Triomphe. On the northwestern side of the park is a colourful 24-hour Flower Market.
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National Art Museum
A massive facelift was half-finished at the end of 2018, with the gorgeously restored main wing open to visitors. The focus is on contemporary Moldovan art, with a room or two of European works (mainly Dutch, Flemish and Italian) plus space for rotating exhibitions. The annex at the back contains a more extensive European collection, plus folk art and icons, but it remains closed indefinitely.
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Grădina Publică Ştefan cel Mare şi Sfînt
Parcul Grădina Publică Ştefan cel Mare şi Sfînt is a first-rate people-watching area. Ştefan was Moldavia's greatest medieval prince and ubiquitous symbol of Moldova's brave past. His 1928 statue lords over the entrance.
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Pushkin Museum
This is where Russia's national poet Alexander Pushkin (1799–1837) spent three years exiled between 1820 and 1823. You can view his tiny cottage, filled with original furnishings and personal items, including a portrait of his beloved Byron on his writing desk. There's also a three-room literary museum in the building facing the cottage, which documents Pushkin's dramatic life. Pushkin fans will want to know that it was here that he wrote his poem 'The Prisoner of the Caucasus' and other classics – that is, when he wasn't involved in the amorous intrigues, hard drinking and occasional violence of his social circles in what was then a distant rough-around-the-edges outpost of the Russian empire. English-language excursions need to be booked in advance.