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Timişoara

Romania’s third-largest city (after Bucharest and Cluj-Napoca) is also one of the country's most attractive urban areas, built around a series of beautifully restored public squares and lavish parks and gardens. It's known as Primul Oraş Liber (the First Free City), for it was here that anti-Ceauşescu protests first exceeded the Securitate’s capacity for violent suppression in 1989, eventually sending Ceauşescu and his wife to their deaths. With western Romania's nicest hotels and finest restaurants, it makes a perfect base for exploring the Banat region.

Timișoara will serve as the European Capital of Culture in 2021.

Explore Timişoara

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Museum of the 1989 Revolution
This is an ideal venue to brush up on the December 1989 anticommunist revolution that began here in Timişoara. Displays include documentation, posters and…
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Communist Consumers Museum
This museum houses an odd collection of pre-1989 consumer goods manufactured in Romania. It fills to the point of overflowing three rooms and a hallway…
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Synagogue in the Fortress
Built in 1865 by Viennese architect Ignatz Schuhmann, the synagogue acts as an important keynote in Jewish history – Jews in the Austro-Hungarian Empire…
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Reformed Church
The 1989 revolution began at the Reformed Church, where Father László Tőkés spoke out against Ceauşescu. You can sometimes peek in at the church, and it…
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St John of Nepomuk & Virgin Mary Statue
The statue of St John of Nepomuk and the Virgin Mary, located in the centre of Piaţa Libertăţii, was made in 1756 in Vienna and brought to Romania in…
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Timișoara Art Museum
This museum displays a representative sample of paintings and visual arts over the centuries as well as regular, high-quality temporary exhibitions. It's…
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Orthodox Metropolitan Cathedral
The Orthodox cathedral was built between 1936 and 1946. It's unique for its Byzantine-influenced architecture, which recalls the style of the Bucovina…
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Banat Village Museum
This open-air 'village' was created in 1917 and exhibits more than 30 traditional peasant houses dating from the 19th century. Take tram 1 (black number)…
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Memorial to Victims of 1989 Revolution
In the form of a crucifix shaped by massive nails, this memorial to the anticommunist uprising of 1989 is at the southern end of Piaţa Victoriei.

M
Museum of the 1989 Revolution
This is an ideal venue to brush up on the December 1989 anticommunist revolution that began here in Timişoara. Displays include documentation, posters and…
C
Communist Consumers Museum
This museum houses an odd collection of pre-1989 consumer goods manufactured in Romania. It fills to the point of overflowing three rooms and a hallway…
S
Synagogue in the Fortress
Built in 1865 by Viennese architect Ignatz Schuhmann, the synagogue acts as an important keynote in Jewish history – Jews in the Austro-Hungarian Empire…
R
Reformed Church
The 1989 revolution began at the Reformed Church, where Father László Tőkés spoke out against Ceauşescu. You can sometimes peek in at the church, and it…
S
St John of Nepomuk & Virgin Mary Statue
The statue of St John of Nepomuk and the Virgin Mary, located in the centre of Piaţa Libertăţii, was made in 1756 in Vienna and brought to Romania in…
T
Timișoara Art Museum
This museum displays a representative sample of paintings and visual arts over the centuries as well as regular, high-quality temporary exhibitions. It's…
O
Orthodox Metropolitan Cathedral
The Orthodox cathedral was built between 1936 and 1946. It's unique for its Byzantine-influenced architecture, which recalls the style of the Bucovina…
B
Banat Village Museum
This open-air 'village' was created in 1917 and exhibits more than 30 traditional peasant houses dating from the 19th century. Take tram 1 (black number)…
M
Memorial to Victims of 1989 Revolution
In the form of a crucifix shaped by massive nails, this memorial to the anticommunist uprising of 1989 is at the southern end of Piaţa Victoriei.

Top attractions

These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Timişoara.

See
Museum of the 1989 Revolution
This is an ideal venue to brush up on the December 1989 anticommunist revolution that began here in Timişoara. Displays include documentation, posters and…
See
Communist Consumers Museum
This museum houses an odd collection of pre-1989 consumer goods manufactured in Romania. It fills to the point of overflowing three rooms and a hallway…
See
Synagogue in the Fortress
Built in 1865 by Viennese architect Ignatz Schuhmann, the synagogue acts as an important keynote in Jewish history – Jews in the Austro-Hungarian Empire…
See
Reformed Church
The 1989 revolution began at the Reformed Church, where Father László Tőkés spoke out against Ceauşescu. You can sometimes peek in at the church, and it…
See
St John of Nepomuk & Virgin Mary Statue
The statue of St John of Nepomuk and the Virgin Mary, located in the centre of Piaţa Libertăţii, was made in 1756 in Vienna and brought to Romania in…
See
Timișoara Art Museum
This museum displays a representative sample of paintings and visual arts over the centuries as well as regular, high-quality temporary exhibitions. It's…
See
Orthodox Metropolitan Cathedral
The Orthodox cathedral was built between 1936 and 1946. It's unique for its Byzantine-influenced architecture, which recalls the style of the Bucovina…
See
Banat Village Museum
This open-air 'village' was created in 1917 and exhibits more than 30 traditional peasant houses dating from the 19th century. Take tram 1 (black number)…
See
Memorial to Victims of 1989 Revolution
In the form of a crucifix shaped by massive nails, this memorial to the anticommunist uprising of 1989 is at the southern end of Piaţa Victoriei.

Guidebooks

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