Urban escapes
City breaks
The cities worth a weekend: medieval Brașov and Sibiu, youthful Cluj, Art Nouveau Oradea, baroque Timișoara, cultured Iași and contradictory Bucharest. Pick a city, give it two days.
București
The capital of beautiful contradictions — Belle Époque, communism and a booming food scene.
Brașov
A medieval Saxon city at the foot of Tâmpa, gateway to Bran, Râșnov and the mountains.
Sibiu
A former European Capital of Culture, with Saxon squares and the famous roof 'eyes'.
Sighișoara
The only inhabited medieval citadel in Europe, a UNESCO site.
Cluj-Napoca
Transylvania's youthful capital — universities, festivals and energy.
Sinaia
The 'Pearl of the Carpathians' in the Prahova Valley, around Peleș Castle.
Oradea
Romania's Art Nouveau jewel, brilliantly restored.
Timișoara
The city of the revolution and baroque squares, a European Capital of Culture.
Iași
Moldavia's cultural capital — palaces, churches and vineyards.
Suceava
The gateway to Bukovina's painted monasteries, a UNESCO treasure.
Maramureș
Authentic rural Romania — wooden churches, carved gates and the steam train.
Alba Iulia
The star-shaped Alba Carolina citadel and the heart of the Great Union.
Hunedoara
Corvin Castle — Romania's most spectacular Gothic castle.
Constanța
The Black Sea coast, between ancient ruins and resorts.
Tulcea
The gateway to the Danube Delta, a UNESCO biosphere reserve.
Craiova
The capital of Oltenia — parks, art and baroque.
Târgu Jiu
The city of the Brâncuși sculptural ensemble.
Horezu
The UNESCO monastery and folk ceramics.
Baia Mare
The modern gateway to Maramureș.
Târgu Mureș
The Palace of Culture and Secession elegance.
Arad
The Vauban fortress and Viennese boulevards.
Bușteni
Below the Caraiman, in the heart of the Bucegi.
Predeal
Romania's highest mountain resort.
Piatra Neamț
The 'Pearl of Moldavia', between mountains and lakes.
Sovata
A spa resort around Bear Lake.
Băile Herculane
The Roman thermal resort in the Cerna Valley.
Mamaia
The most popular resort on the coast.
Curtea de Argeș
The royal necropolis and Dracula's real castle.
Târgoviște
The old capital of Wallachia and Vlad the Impaler's seat.
Turda
The spectacular salt mine and the wild gorges.
Făgăraș
The moated citadel and the gateway to the Transfăgărășan.
Viscri
The Saxon village with a UNESCO fortified church.
Biertan
One of the finest fortified churches.
Gura Humorului
The ideal base for the painted monasteries.
Vatra Dornei
A mountain resort of mineral waters and skiing.
Mangalia
Ancient Callatis and the southern coast.
Vama Veche
The bohemian village at the edge of the sea.
Râmnicu Vâlcea
The gateway to the monasteries of the Olt Valley.
Mediaș
A Saxon citadel with a leaning tower.
Bistrița
A Saxon town and the Borgo Pass from 'Dracula'.
Zărnești
The Piatra Craiului range and the bear sanctuary.
Miercurea Ciuc
The Szekler heart and the Șumuleu pilgrimage.
Sfântu Gheorghe
A cultural Szekler town, near Covasna.
Praid
The vast salt mine and the Salt Valley.
Rimetea
The best-preserved village, below Székelykő.
Câmpina
The Iulia Hasdeu Castle and the Grigorescu museum.
Sighetu Marmației
The Memorial of Pain and the heart of Maramureș.
Vișeu de Sus
The steam train up the Vaser Valley.
Borșa
The Prislop Pass and the Rodna Mountains.
Putna
The necropolis of Stephen the Great.
Câmpulung Moldovenesc
Below the Rarău and the Lady's Stones.
Eforie
The mud baths of Techirghiol.
Reșița
Mountains, locomotives and the Nera gorges.
Drăgășani
The vineyard of rare Romanian grapes.
Deva
The citadel on the volcanic hill.
Petroșani
The Jiu Valley, Straja and the southern Retezat.
Buzău
The gateway to the Buzău Land — the mud volcanoes.
Brăila
The Danube port with a neoclassical centre.
Galați
The Danube waterfront and gateway to the northern Delta.
Odorheiu Secuiesc
The heart of Székely Land.
Băile Tușnad
The smallest town, below Saint Ana Lake.
Slănic Prahova
The spectacular salt mine and the Salt Mountain.
Câmpulung Muscel
The first capital of Wallachia.
Slănic-Moldova
The 'Pearl of Moldavia' of mineral springs.
Năvodari
A family resort at the northern end of the coast, with a wide beach and a marina.
Eforie Sud
A quiet clifftop resort next to the therapeutic Techirghiol lake.
Techirghiol
Famed for its therapeutic lake and sapropelic mud — the heart of the coast spa cures.
Costinești
The youth resort — a relaxed vibe, fun and the Evangelia shipwreck.
Olimp
The first of the southern resorts, with modern hotels and a serviced beach.
Neptun
The most elegant southern resort — forests, lakes and a select air.
Jupiter
A family resort between forest and lake, with gentle beaches.
Cap Aurora
The smallest resort, with terraced hotels on a little headland.
Venus
Young and cheerful, with a lively beach and hotels named after women.
Saturn
The southernmost resort before Mangalia, with a wide beach and campsite.
2 Mai
A fishing village turned bohemian refuge — calm and a pace from another world.
Beiuș
A small Bihor town, gateway to the Apuseni, the Meziad Cave and Băile Felix.
Salonta
A Bihor plains town, with the Cionka Tower and the memory of the poet Arany János.
Ștei
A base town for the Apuseni, near the Bears' Cave and the Bihor gorges.
Botoșani
A Moldavian town, homeland of Eminescu (Ipotești) and Enescu.
Focșani
The capital of Vrancea, on the old border between Moldavia and Wallachia, at the heart of the vineyards.
Drobeta-Turnu Severin
A Danube port town, with Trajan's bridge and the Iron Gates.
Satu Mare
A north-western town with the Firemen's Tower and a Central European heritage.
Vaslui
A Moldavian town tied to Stephen the Great's victory at Podul Înalt (1475).
Zalău
The seat of Sălaj, near the Roman fort of Porolissum and the Meseș Mountains.
Slatina
A town on the Olt, between the sub-Carpathian hills and the southern plain.
Giurgiu
A Danube port town, near Comana Nature Park and the bridge to Ruse.
Slobozia
A Bărăgan plains town, near the Amara spa resort.
Călărași
A town on the Danube and the Borcea branch, in the Bărăgan plain.
Alexandria
The seat of Teleorman, a town planned in 1834 on the southern plain.
Snagov
A lake and monastery north of Bucharest, with the reputed grave of Vlad the Impaler.
Coming soon.