1. Danube Delta
After passing through several countries and absorbing countless lesser waterways, the Danube empties into the Black Sea south of the Ukrainian border. The Danube Delta (Delta Dunării), included on UNESCO’s World Heritage list, is one of Romania's leading attractions. At Tulcea, the river splits into three separate channels: the Chilia, Sulina and Sfântu Gheorghe arms, creating a constantly evolving 4187-sq-km wetland of marshes, floating reed islets and sandbars. The region provides sanctuary for 300 species of bird and 160 species of fish. Reed marshes cover 1563 sq km, constituting one of the largest single expanses of reed beds in the world. The delta is a haven for wildlife lovers, birdwatchers, fishers and anyone wanting to get away from it all for a few days. There are beautiful, secluded beaches at both Sulina and Sfântu Gheorghe, and the fish and seafood, particularly the fish soup, are the best in Romania.
2. Cluj-Napoca
Bohemian cafes, music festivals and vigorous nightlife are the soul of Cluj-Napoca, Romania's second-largest city. With increasing flight links to European cities, Cluj is welcoming more and more travellers, who usually shoot off to the Apuseni Mountains, Maramureş or more popular towns in southern Transylvania. But once arrived, first-time visitors inevitably lament their failure to allow enough time in Cluj. Don’t make the same mistake. Start with the architecture, ranging from Romania’s second-largest Gothic church to baroque buildings and medieval towers. Dip into galleries and gardens. And allow at least one lazy morning to recover from Cluj’s fiery nightlife. The city, teeming with students and artists, is by turns bookish and bawdy – intrigue is guaranteed.
3. Mamaia
Mamaia, a thin strip of sand extending north from Constanţa, is Romania's most popular and expensive package-holiday resort. In season, from early June to early September, the 8km-long beachfront is lined end to end with sunbathers from all around Romania, who compete for that precious patch of seaside real estate. By night, Mamaia morphs into what feels like one long nightclub, with dozens of high-adrenaline dance places and impromptu beach parties.
4. Timișoara
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 has been named European Capital of Culture 2021.
5. Bucharest
Romania’s capital gets a bad rap, but in fact it's dynamic, energetic and fun. It’s where still-unreconstructed communism meets unbridled capitalism; where the soporific forces of the EU meet the passions of the Balkans. Many travellers give the city just a night or two before heading off to Transylvania, but that’s clearly not enough. Allow at least a few days to take in the good museums, stroll the parks and hang out at trendy cafes. While much of the centre is modern and garish, you'll find splendid 17th- and 18th-century Orthodox churches and graceful art nouveau villas tucked away in quiet corners. Communism changed the face of the city forever, and nowhere is this more evident than at the gargantuan Palace of Parliament, the craziest and crassest tribute to dictatorial megalomania you’ll probably ever see.
6. Sinaia
Nestled in a slender fir-clad valley, Sinaia teems with hikers in summer and skiers in winter. Backed by the imposing crags of the Bucegi Mountains, it's a dramatic place for a to hike for the day, or, using the network of cabanas open to walkers, several days. The town itself is a melange of crayon-coloured wooden houses contrasted with the 'wedding-cake' style of its grander 19th-century buildings. Once home to Romania’s first king, Carol I, who created a summer retreat here, Peleş Castle is a dream of hidden passages, fairy-tale turrets, vertiginous galleries and classical statues; it's so beguilingly imaginative, it could raise a swoon from the most hardened cynic. Sinaia is administratively part of Wallachia but is most easily reached from Transylvania.
7. Moldavia & Bucovina
Less visited than other parts of Romania, Moldavia rewards those intrepid enough to seek it out: from glorious medieval monasteries to rugged mountains ideal for hiking, this singular region combines natural beauty with plenty of action. Moldavia’s bucolic villages and oddly endearing towns feature some of Romania’s friendliest locals. Beyond the hinterland, Moldavian modernity is fully displayed in Iaşi, one of Romania's largest cities and a vibrant student town famous for its nightlife. Bucovina, to the northwest, is home to Romania's pride and joy: a half dozen UNESCO-protected painted monasteries from the 15th and 16th centuries that attest to the region's artistic skills and enduring faith. Everywhere you'll find signs of Moldavian prince and Romanian national hero Ștefan cel Mare and his epic battles with the Ottoman Empire, above all at the mighty fortresses at Suceava and Târgu Neamţ.
8. Braşov
Gothic spires, medieval gateways, Soviet blocks and a huge Hollywood-style sign: Braşov’s skyline is instantly compelling. A number of medieval watchtowers still glower over the town. Between them sparkle baroque buildings and churches, while easy-going cafes line main square Piaţa Sfatului. Visible from here is forested Mt. Tâmpa, sporting ‘Braşov’ in huge white letters. According to local legend, the Pied Piper of Hamelin reemerged in Braşov. Indeed, this playful town has many tales as colourful as its pastel-hued streets. Locals will eagerly spin a yarn about Vlad the Impaler’s romantic dalliances, a noblewoman revived from her grave, and the time a bear waddled into the main square. Braşov is a good base for skiing in nearby Poiana Braşov, or trekking in Piatra Craiului National Park, 30km west. Most travellers use it as a gateway to castles in Bran and Râșnov.
9. Sibiu
Sibiu is awash in aristocratic elegance. Noble Saxon history emanates from every art nouveau facade and gold-embossed church. Renowned composers Strauss, Brahms and Liszt all played here during the 19th century, and Sibiu has stayed at the forefront of Romania’s cultural scene through its festivals of opera, theatre and film, as well as rock, jazz and more. The country's first hospital, school, library and pharmacy were all established here, and locals are justly proud of the spirit of enterprise that endures to this day. Beyond its grand architecture, Sibiu has a good dose of bohemian flair. Houses with distinctive eyelid-shaped windows watch a cast of artists and buskers bustling below them. Cafes and bars inhabit brick-walled cellars and luminously decorated attics. Sibiu's soul lies somewhere in between genteel coffee culture and unbridled creativity; go find it.
10. Sighişoara
So resplendent are Sighişoara’s pastel-coloured buildings, stony lanes and medieval towers, you’ll rub your eyes in disbelief. Fortified walls encircle Sighişoara’s lustrous merchant houses, now harbouring cafes, hotels and craft shops. Lurking behind the gingerbread roofs and turrets of the Unesco-protected old town is the history of Vlad Ţepeş, Transylvania’s most notorious ruler; he was born in a house that is visitable to this day. Revered by many Romanians for protecting Transylvania from Turkish attacks, Ţepeş is better remembered as Vlad the Impaler, or Dracula, fuelling a local industry of vampire-themed souvenirs. Allow time to lose yourself along Sighişoara's alleys, hike to its hilltop church, and sip coffee at cafes half a millennium old. If Sighişoara doesn’t sate your thirst for medieval splendour, it also makes a great jumping-off point to explore Saxon villages like Viscri and Biertan.
11. Maramureş
Widely regarded as Romania's most traditional region, dotted with steepled wooden churches and farmhouses fronted by ornately carved gates, Maramureş feels as if you are climbing into a horse-drawn time machine and heading back a couple of centuries. Indeed, Maramureş' tapestry of pastureland, peopled by colourfully garbed peasants, jumps straight out of a Brothers Grimm fairy tale. Welcome to the heart of folkloric, medieval Romania, where the last peasant culture in Europe continues to thrive. But don't wait forever to visit: even here the 21st century is making inroads, as young ‘uns eschew embroidery for Twitter and tending flocks to waiting tables in London. Medieval Maramureş exists in the Mara and Iza Valleys and eight of their churches are on UNESCO’s list of World Heritage sites. Among the best are Deseşti in the former and Poienile Izei in the latter, not just for their architecture but for their well-preserved interior wall paintings.
>>> Hotels in Maramureş
12. Bran
Illuminated by the light of a pale moon, the vampire’s lair glares down from its rocky bluff… but regrettably, Bran Castle’s blood-drinking credentials don’t withstand scrutiny. Claims that Vlad Ţepeş – either ‘the Impaler’ or ‘protector of Wallachia’, depending on who you ask – passed through here are unproven. Nor did the castle inspire Bram Stoker, much as souvenir-sellers attempt to link Bran to the iconic Gothic novel Dracula. These seem minor quibbles when you gaze up at the turreted fortress, guarded from the east by the Bucegi Mountains and from the west by the Piatra Craiului massif. Meanwhile, the castle’s museum pays greater homage to Romanian royals than immortal counts. Ignoring this, a gauntlet of souvenir sellers hawk fang-adorned mugs and Vlad-the-Impaler compact mirrors.
Source: Lonely Planet
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