Székely Land
From the modern church on the main road, Biserica Sfânta Maria, a cobbled path leads down to the lake. Wonderfully scenic thanks to a mountain backdrop…
Must-see attractions in Romania
Constanţa
This museum offers a fascinating if slightly confusing stroll through 2000 years of maritime history on the Black Sea. The exhibit begins in the Greco…
Mihai Eminescu Museum of Literature
Iaşi
This museum documents the writings, life and loves of Eminescu (1850–89), Romania’s favourite writer and poet. The great love of the married poet,…
Transylvania
Standing proud in the whisper-quiet village of Valea Viilor is an 18th-century church with weighty protective walls. It’s necessary to call a caretaker to…
Constanţa
Constanţa's stunning but sadly derelict art-nouveau casino, dating from 1910, was awaiting a long overdue renovation at the time of research and closed to…
Maramureş
This Orthodox monastery complex boasts a wooden church built with a nontraditional stone base. At 75m in height, it lays claim to be the tallest wooden…
Bucharest
Tricky to find, the little Zambaccian Museum is in a restored villa between B-dul Aviatorilor and Calea Dorobanţilor (just north of Piaţa Dorobanţilor)…
Székely Land
Some 2km south of town, a striking wooden gateway carved in filigree leads to the small, conical Jesus Chapel, encircled by a stone wall. Estimated to…
Székely Land
The salty waters of Bear Lake are a popular place to soak in summer. People have been coming here for the lake’s restorative properties – some claim the…
Romania
Oradea's fortress dates from the 15th and 16th centuries and played a key role in conflicts between the Turks, Austrians and Hungarians over the years…
Transylvania
Enter this incense-perfumed Orthodox cathedral, built in 1921–22, and gaze upwards at the soaring ceiling, gold decorations and lavish icons. The…
Bucovina
Displays here range from the Bronze Age to the present, and highlight Moldavia's famous rulers, particularly Ştefan cel Mare. While the numismatics,…
Moldavia & the Bucovina Monasteries
Just north of the Princely Court, this simple wooden synagogue dating from 1766 was built over the foundations of a 1490 predecessor. The tiny interior is…
Danube Delta
This well-worth-visiting museum is presented on two levels, with the upper level given over to extensive Roman findings and the lower level displaying…
Constanţa
This airy museum in an atrium is heavy on 19th-century realism and landscapes, including those by Nicolae Grigorescu, whose pointillist and Impressionist…
Alexandru Borza Botanic Gardens
Cluj-Napoca
These wonderfully relaxing gardens comprise rockeries, neoclassical statues peeping from tangles of rose, and a Japanese-style garden with a crimson…
Moldavia & the Bucovina Monasteries
This exposition features the dank ruins of Ştefan cel Mare's 1497 Princely Court complex, which once encompassed all of the nearby buildings on the square…
Sinaia
The church and monks’ cells on this site during the 17th century weren’t ample enough to accommodate Sinaia’s growing religious community, so in 1846 this…
Wallachia
Severin's most striking building is this massive water tower, dating from 1910. It was one of the first buildings here to use iron in its construction…
Iaşi
Located on the western side of the Palace of Culture, the history museum tells the story of Moldavia over the centuries. From the earliest evidence of…
Bucovina
Suceava's oldest surviving church, Mirăuţi is 500m northwest of the main square. Founded by Petru II Mușat in 1375, it was Moldavia's original coronation…
Bucharest
The Sephardic Jewish Cemetery lies opposite Bellu Cemetery in the south of the city. Two rows of graves dated 21 to 23 January 1941 mark the Iron Guard's…
Bucharest
The New St George’s Church dates from 1699 and is significant primarily as the burial place of Wallachian prince Constantin Brâncoveanu (r 1688–1714)…
Transylvania
Bistriţa’s number one landmark is the Evangelical Church, whose 76m Gothic tower dominates its main square. Construction began in the 14th century, and…
Cluj-Napoca
Hogging the limelight in front of St Michael’s Church is a bulky 1902 statue of horseback Matthias Corvinus, the famous 15th-century Hungarian king.
Iaşi
Jewish victims of the fascist Iron Guard’s pogroms are buried in four concrete bunkers at this cemetery on Mountain Hill (Dealul Munteni), 5km west of…
Constanţa
This impressive mosque is the seat of the mufti and was built in 1910 by King Carol I. It's the spiritual home of the 50,000 Muslims who inhabit the…
Wallachia
This evocative gate stands at the entrance to Târgu Jiu’s central park and is a logical place to begin a tour of Constantin Brâncuşi's sculptures. The…
Romania
Arad’s star-shaped fortress was built on the orders of the Habsburg empress Maria Theresa between 1763 and 1783. It stands on the site of an old fortress…
Timişoara
This museum displays a representative sample of paintings and visual arts over the centuries as well as regular, high-quality temporary exhibitions. It's…
Constanţa
Constanţa's planetarium, located just next to the Natural Sciences Museum Complex, is a fun rainy-day treat for kids. The 3D projection shows throughout…
Wallachia
The city’s unique Clock Museum has a collection of historical timepieces owned by several famous Romanians, including King Carol I, and an 18th-century…
Maramureş
One of three branches of the Maramureş Museum – the others are the Elie Wiesel Memorial House and the Village Museum – this ethnographic museum displays…
Târgu Mureş
Visitors can wander freely within the walls of Târgu Mureş' citadel, whose foundations date to 1492. It houses the Fortress Church and City Museum, and…
Ethnographic & Folk Art Museum
Maramureş
Northwest of the stadium in the City Park, this comprehensive collection in four large rooms traces traditional life in Maramureş from cradle to grave,…
Iaşi
Built in 1841 over a 1615 church foundation, the Bărboi has an eccentric combination of a Byzantine stone-and-brick interior and a neoclassical portico…
Cluj-Napoca
Founded in the 16th century, this stately cemetery is a memorable place to stroll among elegant tombs and mausoleums of Transylvanian poets and composers,…
Romania
This Eclectic-style building from 1913 houses the Archaeology & History Museum as well as the Philharmonic Orchestra. At the time of research it was…
Bucharest
The Old Princely Court Church, built 1546–59 during the reign of Mircea Ciobanul (Mircea the Shepherd), is considered to be Bucharest’s oldest church. The…
Maramureş
Organise visits to the cemetery through the Jewish Community Centre. To reach the cemetery from Str Gheorghe Şincai in the centre follow Str Izei for a…
