Traveling in Romania (and Why You Should Go Right Now)
Most people don't necessarily equate “Romania” with “cool travel destination.”
This Eastern European country between Hungary and Bulgaria isn't usually a place people have high up on their must-visit lists. Romania is where communism and vampires live — not somewhere you travel to for fun. Right?
Well, that couldn't be farther from the truth.
While Romania is still developing after the fall of Ceausescu and communism (and most will say communism hasn't fully left), it's a much easier and interesting place to travel than you probably realize.
(And, for the record, I didn't see a single vampire while I was there.)
Romania, in short, blew me away. I had been looking forward to traveling there for years, but the country far exceeded my expectations. And here's why:
Why You Should Travel to Romania Right Now
It's affordable
Cheaper even than the Czech Republic and Hungary, Romania should be attractive just because of its price tag. Everything from accommodation to transport to food is affordable. Even the “touristy” places are far from expensive.
For example, in Brasov — one of Romania's top tourist destinations for both domestic and foreign tourists — entry to the major attraction (Bran Castle) was only $7 USD for an adult ticket with photo license. The most expensive meal I had in the country (at a really posh restaurant) was $12 — the cheapest was less than $3. You can only imagine how cheap beer was.
It's beautiful
The countryside, the medieval cities, the people… Romania has plenty of surprises in store.
Cities like Sighisoara and Brasov are ridiculously attractive and colorful, and the rolling countryside remains largely untouched in most parts of the country. And the locals? Lovely people who will undoubtedly be happy to see you and happier still to talk to you about their country.
It's relatively easy to travel
One of the biggest surprises for me was how easy it was to get around Romania. The country is fairly well-connected by trains, buses, and planes to the rest of Europe, and you can even use your Eurail pass here.
And, out of all the public trains and buses I rode while in Romania, only one was old and slightly dirty. Most were newer and clean — some even had air conditioning! And the best part? Every single train and bus I rode actually ran on time! (Not necessarily always the case, of course, but no delays in a week is pretty good.)
Most people speak English
Adding to the ease of travel is the fact that almost everyone in the country speaks at least a little English — especially those in the younger generations. This makes it easy to not only travel in Romania, but also to get to know the locals a bit.
It's not too crowded yet
Because Romania (and, really, most of Eastern Europe) is quite a ways off the usual tourist trail, even the “touristy” places feel relaxed and welcoming — even in high season. The only place I really found to be crowded was Bran Castle — but there are plenty of better things/places to see anyway.
Old traditions survive
Since Romania isn't teeming with tourists, older traditions — like making homemade schnapps and weaving and woodcarving — are still going strong.
You can still find quirky places like Merry Cemetery that nobody knows about. Villages still feel like villages. And the cows still come home at night.
It's ready for tourism
Because of the above reasons and more, Romania is very much ready for tourism.
Bucharest has a brand new subway system and buses equipped with GPS-enabled screens. Villages like Viscri are converting old heritage buildings into home stays. And nearly everywhere offers visitors free wifi access.
But this won't all last, of course. As the country continues to develop and Romania's economy improves (likely to happen once it officially joins the Schengen zone soon), many of these reasons may become irrelevant.
So, if you've ever considered traveling in Romania, go now!
Find accommodation in Romania:
Do you think you'll ever travel to Romania?
*Note: Intrepid Travel graciously provided me with a complimentary Eastern Europe Explorer tour. But all opinions, as always, are entirely my own.
If you're interested in doing the same tour I did, you can check it out here.
Amanda Williams is the award-winning blogger behind A Dangerous Business Travel Blog. She has traveled to more than 60 countries on 6 continents from her home base in Ohio, specializing in experiential and thoughtful travel through the US, Europe, and rest of the world. Amanda only shares tips based on her personal experiences and places she's actually traveled!
Glad you liked it here in our quaint little country. 😀
If you want to see real beauty however, I would recommend our mountains (Bucegi ones are the most accessible). The paths aren’t paved or anything and you have to be a little fit to climb, but it’s really not that difficult and it’s well worth it. To get the most of this experience I’d recommend spending the night in a mountain cabin. Malaiesti cabin is one of my personal favorites. It’s amazing there during summer. 😀
Thanks for the suggestion!
Hello!
I am really glad that you came to Romania and you like it.
I am from Romania and I can not get enough of it’s beauty.
Romania is blessed with all kinds of touristic attractions. You shuld come back one day and visit the rest of Romania.
You have to visit The Muddy Volcanoes (I think that they are unique in the world), Bukovina with it’s monesteries with exterior paintings, Danube Delta (amaizing), Danube river, the sea side.
Romania has lot of potential for turism. You should come again. You have lot of others to discover!
I definitely do want to go back!
We’re going next week and can’t wait… in great part our excitement is due to a Romanian man we met while finding a couchsurfing.com stay. He’s been helpful, fun, sweet, and oh so good about explaining so many things. I agree, Romania’s the place to be, and I haven’t even been there, yet.
Oh that’s fantastic! I hope you have a great time!
allready posted some tips for you if you want to return to Romania (or if others want to come here) ina ddition to that, I think you shoul visit the North-Eastern area (Moldova region – not to be confused with The Republic of Moldova) which has plenty of amazing monasteries, churches and the romantic city of Iasi/Jassy and the mountain area Valea Prahovei/Prahova Valley, which lies between Brasov and Bucharest (btw Bucharest is also an interesting place to see, although, unlike the rest of Romania, it is kinda crowded and traffic is a pain unless you use the subway)
Thanks for these suggestions in addition to the others! I did visit Bucharest, as well, but definitely preferred the smaller towns and villages.
Amanda, thank you for all the kind, beautiful words. It’s nice to see once in a while warm thoughts on Romania, and not just the usual gypsy, horse meat, vampires propaganda. 🙂 It is indeed a beautiful country and I’m not just saying it because I’m a local, but rather because of my travel experiences of the past few years: I left my home country hating it and I returned just to fall in love with it for the first time.
So good to hear that you’ve fallen in love with your home country – that’s wonderful.
And yes, Romania is MUCH more than gypsies and vampires! Well worth exploring.
If u go to romania when all muslims are on “ramadam” u’ll be surprised how many english/americans u’ll find in bucharest just drinking and having fun, transforming old center of bucharest in an very large pub….
Hi there,
first of all thanks for the beautiful things that you wrote about my country. It is indeed a beautiful country who surely can/will surprise anyone who will visit it.
I would like to point some additional things also.
Not only english is spreaded among the new generations. There are a lot of people, especially in center and north Romania, who speak german. There are also a lot of people who can at least understand spanish and italian.
I would also recommend you the Danube delta, which is still wild and untouched by the civilisation. Mamaia sea resort, which rivals much known resorts like Ibiza. Peles castle which is not to far away from Bran castle, Sighisoara of course, Sibiu, the monasteries in Bucovina, Maramures. In Bucharest I would strongly recommend the old city center (newly restored), The Parliament Palace (“People House” as many romanians still call it) and the Village Museum. You could also hike and you’ll be very surprised how wild our forests still are (bears, foxes, wolves are something pretty common if you’ll gonna camp in tent).
P.S. It is very possible to be bothered by some things, most of them inherited from our communist past, but if you could ignore them, you’ll discover a beautiful country with nice people. After all the beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder. 🙂
Have a wonderful day !
VS
Yes, I found a lot of German spoken there, too – probably because of the Saxon influence from the past.
Thanks for the suggestions. I did indeed visit some of the places you mentioned (like Sighisoara, Maramures, and the old city center in Bucharest).
Thank you so much for the wonderful review you gave my country. Yes, we are friendly to everyone as long as they are friendly to us. Therefore, all tourists are more than welcomed.
My tip for all you future travellers is to get off the beaten road. You’ll find Lotus flowers on a thermal lake near Oradea (nord-west part of the country) and amazing old churches and monasteries in the whole eastern part. The Danube Delta is full of mosquitoes, but a good spray will allow you to discover a UNESCO world heritage site. Tragu Jiu is the place to check out and see where God gave man the power to bring a piece of heaven to Earth if you’re interested in some art too.
I do have one request though: When you check out a museum, or anything of the sort, please pay the full $3-$7 entrance fee and the $5 photo-video fee. It means nothing to a westerner but it’s the difference between keeping a small museum open or closing it. Don’t be the family with made up badges that asks to enter for free since $12 for 4 people is nothing. We’ll let you in with a smile on our faces but you’ll hurt these friendly people more than you know and not just because of the money.
Thanks again
PS: I’m sure everyone here is nothing like that family, but spread the word as that was unfortunately not the only incident.
Thank you for the suggestions – and for making the point about paying those entrance and photo fees. It’s true for any destination!
Uau, I am from Romania and I am stunned to see your optimism about traveling in Romania – it’s remarkable! Thank you for this great advertisement! There are lots of cheap and interesting places to visit in Romania indeed and tourists are (almost) welcome anytime.
You are most welcome. I loved Romania, and am always happy to share my enthusiasm for it!
Hey. I’m Romanian and I have traveled a little around Europe and I can assure you that I have never seen more beautiful natural places than in my country (yet).
I totally agree this article, but i would like to make one observation: if you plan using trains for traveling, have a lot of patience. It depends a lot on the route, of course, but still… Some trains can get more than 2 hours (very very rarely) delay .
It’s great that you love your country so much and are so proud of it!
And yes, I think no matter where you’re traveling, you have to be prepared for train delays!
Hi there,
You did a great job with this post and as a Romanian I need to thank you for the awesome articles you did about our country!
I just want to add something: you found no vampires in Romania? That’s strange, as all Romanians are vampires 🙂 Just check this website- http://allromaniansarevampires.com/ – and you will find why (together with other interesting info about the country and its people).
Thanks, Alina! It was my pleasure to write about Romania – I really did love it! It’s one of the top countries I suggest people visit these days.
Next time I’ll have to look more closely for those vampires! 😉
Thanks for liking our country so much, Amanda! 🙂 Makes me feel proud to be a Romanian, as I’ve never been before! You should try to visit the northern part of the country, next time you come here, and I specifically suggest you come to Bukovina, the place of so many traditions and hospitable people, and the landscape is awesome, too! 🙂
Maybe one day I get to visit Ohio, and USA in general, I’ve been wanting that since I was a child!
Greetings from Romania,
Catalina
I did very much like your country, Katy. I hope to be able to return soon!
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Wow! Romania wasn’t at the very top of my list but the pics make it look very inviting. You also make some very convincing arguments of why now is the best time. It looks like the countryside alone is worth the trip. Can’t wait to get back to Eastern Europe so we can explore Romania. 🙂
Now is most definitely a great time to go to Romania! And yes, the countryside alone would make it worth a trip in my opinion!