Bucharest - Tipps & Hidden Gems!

If you want to get from A to B in the City - there is only one choice during the day time! It's definetly the metro! You will get all around Bucharest the fastest under the ground. Traffic is usually really busy the day and even short routes can take hours during the peak times. The Metro is working from 05:00 - 23:00 In the evening hours - it's the taxi the no.1 choice

If you want to save a few quid and get around the city fast then the metro is definetly the way to go! In Bucharest you are paying for each ride - 0.50 EUR single ticket But if you are staying more than a weekend I can highly recommend you to buy a ticket for the month! It's only around 12,- EUR and get access to a flat rate transportation the whole month!

Buna dimineata/ ziua / seara - Good morning / day / evening Salut / Buna - Hello Yes / No - Da / Nu Please - Vă rog Thanks - Mulțumesc Cheers - Noroc Welcome - Bine ați venit Bon Appetit - Poftă bună! Do you speak english? - Vorbesti engleză? Help! - Ajutor! How are you? - Ce faci? How much is it? - Cat costa?

Romania has a very diverse drinking culture. Not only is Romania a big wine producer, it also has some great beers and local spirits to offer. Make sure to try the typical Romanian wines made from the local Fetească Albă (white wine) or Fetească neagră (red wine) grapes. The most popular Romanian beer brands are Ursus, Timisoreana and Ciucas. Also there are a lot of craft beer breweries in Romania, if you get the chance to try one of those, don't miss it. If you are into spirits, make sure to try out some of the Romanian fruit spirits (Palinca) like Tuica (plum) and Rachiu (prune).

In case you need to change money, never ever do it on the airport. The exchange rates there are really bad. If you need to change money, it's the best if you do it in the morning, as they have the best exchange rates then. From my experience you will get the best exchange rates in the various exchange booths in the Bulevardul Corneliu Coposu street next to the Unirii square and on the other side of the street of the huge Carrefour store there.

Romania is a part of the European Union and because of that you can use your SIM-Card from another EU-member state in Romania without any additional costs for data roaming.

Generally speaking Bucharest is a very safe city and you can easily walk through the central areas also during the night, without being bothered by anyone. There are two areas you should avoid at all costs though: Ferentari and Rahova. Those two areas in the south of Bucharest are populated mainly by Romanian gypsies and are very unsafe and dirty. Avoid them.

If you want to see the modern, fancy and very western european looking part of Bucharest, then check out the north of Bucharest around the subway stations of line M2 Piata Victoriei, Aviatorilor, Aurel Vlaicu.

Bucharest nice architecture, but also charming parks to offer. The nicest parks in my opinion are the Herastrau Park in the very north of the city, the Cismigiu Park in the very center of the city and the Tineretului park, which is just one metro station south of the main square Piata Unirii.

Not only is Romania one of the countries in Europe with the fastest internet connections, it is also the country with the maybe cheapest mobile internet in whole Europe. For less than 10€ you can buy a prepaid SIM-card offer with as much as 180GB internet for the whole month. Vodafone is a good provider with reasonable prices. You can get a SIM-card in the vodafone shop at Piata Unirii or in the vodafone shop at Bulevardul Nicolae Balcescu between Universitate and Piata Romana.

Avoid taking photos in orthodox churches. Modest clothing is adviced. Women are expected to cover their hair when entering a church, men are expected to reveal it while being in the church. Self evidently make sure to not bother people who come to the church to pray in any way possible.

There are so many tasty Romanian foods, that you will probably not have time to try them out all. What you should try out for sure: Sarmale - meat filled cabbage rolls Mititei - grilled minced meat rolls Mamaliga - corn polenta served as a side dish in many romanian dishes Ardei umpluti - stuffed peppers Ciorba de burta - traditional tripe soup Papanasi - romanian dessert, fried curd pastry

Every autumn starting from late September there is a super cool farmer's market in the Cismigiu park. You can buy there all kinds of souvenirs, ready to eat foods, fresh fruit and Romanian wine. I can totally recommend it.

Are you hungry and on a budget? A great way how to save some money is to go to the big Carrefour supermarket next to the Unirii square and to try out the hot buffet there in the ground floor. It's nearly as cheap as if you cook yourself and the food is of decent quality.

Bucharest is a city in the continenta climate zone in Europe. That mean's that there are hot summers with a lot of sun and cold winters that often bring a lot of snow. That's why you shouldn't forget your sunscreen in summer and warm jacket in the winter.

Even though the tap water quality is better now than it used to be in the past in Romania, I would still not recommend to drink it. Stick to bottled water, it's the safest solution.

Romania has one of the strictest drug laws in all of Europe. Even small quantities of soft drugs like Cannabis can result in many year long prison sentences. It's a smart move to avoid drugs while staying in Bucharest.

The market next to the metro station Obor is the biggest one in Bucharest. You can find everything you need there from fresh fruits and vegetables, to household items and other interesting items.

If you feel like going out on a Tuesday night you should check out Control Club. There are massive discounts on drinks on Tuesdays in this club and it is also pretty well visited on this day of the week. The club plays electronical music and has a huge chill out / bar zone in the outside area of the club.

The Oldtown of Bucharest is not only a great place to go for a walk and to shoot photos of, the whole area also turn into a giant party zone during the night, even on weekdays. There is a huge variety of all different kind of bars and clubs concentrated in this area of the city, so it's also suitable for bar/club hopping.

If you are new to Bucharest and you want to see the main sights plus you want to have some background information about the history of Bucharest, then a free walking tour could be something for you. It's donation based and also it's a great possibility to socialize and get to know other travelers.