Bucarest

Transylvania is home to some of Europe's best-preserved medieval towns, most notably Brasov, featuring Old Saxon architecture and citadel ruins; Sibiu with its cobblestone streets and pastel-colored

Bucharest is an evolving city and capital of Romania. The city offers a real mix of both new and old attractions for visitors that include many historical palaces, museums and churches and also communist-style buildings offering reminders of its past. Bucharest has become a modern and vibrant European city and a gateway into the rest of Romania.

THINGS TO DO AND SEE IN BUCHAREST - Parliament Palace built in 1984 is the world’s second largest building (after US Pentagon) with over 3000 rooms spanning 12 stories. This is a huge building in the centre of Bucharest and tours are available to see some of the magnificent rooms of marble and decorations exclusively of Romanian design.
The city offers many museums that offer a great insight into the culture and people of Romania. These include the Museum of the Romanian Peasant offering an insight into the traditional way of life for many Romanians including their tools, clothing, crafts and celebrated festivals. The Art Museum is housed in a former royal palace and houses ancient and more contemporary Romanian exhibits while the Village Museum created in 1934 includes 300 traditional buildings containing possessions from every region in Romania.
There are some wonderful parks to visit in Bucharest including Cişmigiu Garden, the oldest park in the city; Herăstrău Park which houses the Village Museum and The Botanical Garden which can be found near Cotroceni Palace.

EATING OUT & NIGHTLIFE IN BUCHAREST - Bucharest offers hearty traditional cuisine including Sarmala – cabbage leaves stuffed with meat and rice and Mamaliga – polenta dish covered in sour cream. Bucharest is not short on nightlife, being a popular clubbers destination for many years. There’s a bar to suit all tastes in Bucharest including traditional bars, cocktail and jazz bars to taverns and Irish bars.

GETTING AROUND IN BUCHAREST - There are walking tours available, and these can offer a great way to get to know the city. Free guided tours can be found in the city centre as well as paid tours. The metro system in Bucharest is efficient if somewhat busy at times, and does avoid some of the traffic jams and frequent crowds during the summer.

Bucharest is a great European city offering great attractions to visitors who spend a little time discovering its hidden historical gems.