Romania is an attractive tourist destination, offering an impressive variety of opportunities for tourism.
Here come visitors with diverse interests from all over the world.
This is also the main reason for the year-round active tourist season.
Nature of Romania is one of the wildest on the continent.
The dense forests that cover the Carpathians are home to an impressive biodiversity.
Throughout the country have developed and flourished many different cultures and they all have left their traces into the modern face of Romania.
What is the Best Time to Visit Romania?
Since Romania offers a wide variety of opportunities for practicing of different types of tourism, you must comply the purpose of the stay with the most appropriate part of the year.
If you plan to lounge on the beautiful Romanian beaches then you should select the months of June, July and August.
Then the temperatures are highest and the sun shine is in abundance.
In early September there are also wonderful days for the beach and you can find some pretty good deals at good prices.
If you are planning a ski holiday in the mountains of Romania you have to travel from November to April, because this is the period with snow cover in most of the Romanian ski resorts.
If you only wish to indulge sightseeing, then it is best to travel in April, May, September and October.
During these months the weather is milder – no cold and no heat.
So you can spend outdoors most of the time without worrying about too low or high temperatures.
What Clothes to Wear?
During the summer months June, July and August you need only thin summer clothing, as it is very hot.
During most of the time you could walk only with slippers or sandals.
In September is also warm, but sometimes become cool and therefore it is good to have in your luggage a coat just in case.
For October, be prepared for variable weather and necessarily bring closed shoes – some days are very nice and you can leave on short sleeves, while others are pretty cool and warm clothing will be most comfortable.
From November to late March winter clothing is necessarily.
In April the weather is quite mild during the day but still quite cold at night, so you can prepare both lighter and warmer coats.
In May it is better to take your lighter clothes as well as some warmer clothes.
Overall, this month is very mild, sunny and pleasant and the sun smiles on most days, but sometimes you may be surprised how cool could be in May.
Weather
Romania falls within the temperate climate zone and local climate has pronounced continental features.
Winter is usually cold.
Often during the winter months fall heavy snow.
In January and February temperatures can drop to historically low levels in the range of (-20) and even (-30) °C.
In 1942 on the territory of the country was measured the record-low temperature of (-38.5) °C.
Of course, these are frosts that occur relatively rarely even during the coldest winters.
Otherwise, the usual daily average temperature in Bucharest in January is about 1°C in January.
During the summer months the weather is very hot, especially compared with Western Europe.
Temperatures are usually around 30°C, but often exceed 40°C especially inside the country.
Along the Black Sea conditions are quite pleasant.
Winters are less cold and summers offer much lower temperatures and are usually quite fresh and pleasant.
In spring and autumn the weather is strongly variable, but over the years these transitional seasons are very different.
The weather often change from sunny to cloudy and from humid to dry.
Rainfall is fairly evenly distributed through the seasons, but there is a slight increase in spring and autumn.
Things to Do in Romania
Romania is an attractive tourist destination that offers a huge variety of opportunities for recreation practically throughout the year.
The country has a beautiful coastline with magnificent beaches.
The jewel of the Romanian coast – Mamaia resort – enjoys the glory of one of the top destinations on the Black Sea coast.
Beach season is short – from June to early September, but on the other hand, during these few months tourists enjoy countless opportunities for fun and entertainment.
The country offers excellent conditions for mountain lovers and for winter sports practicing.
In the Carpathians you will find dozens of resorts and resort towns that offer ski runs for beginners and advanced.
The winter season is longer in comparison with the summer.
The snow cover in the Carpathians lasts from November to April.
One of the oldest and best ski resorts not only in Romania but also on the Balkans is the Sinaia resort.
The name derives from the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt.
One of its major advantages, which should not be underestimated is the proximity to the capital Bucharest.
This small mountain resort town is located around and above 800 meters altitude.
It is surrounded by amazing mountains, covered with beautiful forests.
Since it is located between the mountain slopes, the town has a narrow and strongly elongated shape.
Sights to See
Nature of Romania is impressive.
The mountains are covered with dense coniferous, deciduous and mixed forests and the fauna is immense.
There are deer, rabbits, badgers, wild boar, and an impressive variety of birds.
Romanian forests are also home of many predators like foxes, jackals, wolves and brown bears.
Besides you can practice winter sports, you will see exceptional wildlife.
The mountains in Romania are the soul of the local culture.
One of Europe’s largest rivers is among the most important tourist attractions of Romania.
Once it takes its long journey from the Black Forest mountains in Germany, the Danube river passes through the great distance across the continent to flow into the Black Sea, forming a great delta.
Where the Danube meets the sea has shaped one of the most important habitats for birds in Europe.
The area has a typical humid micro climate and a variety of moisture-loving species.
A fact is that such places with abundant moisture close to the basins, estuaries and deltas of rivers offer incredible biodiversity.
The situation here is similar. Because of its unique nature in 1991 the Danube Delta became a part of the World Heritage by UNESCO.
If you have not yet decided from where to start your tour in Romania, Bucharest is an excellent solution. The city is considered for one of the most beautiful in Eastern Europe.
It is known as the Eastern European Paris with irresistible charm and remarkable architecture.
Although the city has suffered several decades of communist regime, it still has lost nothing of its beauty.
Today Bucharest is a symbol of class, style and grandeur in Eastern Europe.
One of the most impressive buildings in this part of the continent is the Palace of parliament or as it is also known the building – The Palace of the people.
Before to sees this landmark a man could hardly imagine its real size, but standing in front of the magnificent façade the only thing one can feel is admiration.
Besides Bucharest, Sighisoara is another place you should not miss.
Apart from the fact that big part of the city is under UNESCO protection, Sighisoara is famous with something quite interesting.
Probably everyone has heard about the legends of Count Dracula, who, according to the stories was so cruel that people were horrified by the thought to spend the night under the open sky and quick to return home before sunset.
He became famous with his unprecedented cruelty, because he used to push on a stake anyone who dare to challenge his authority.
Because of this reason he was famous also as „Vlad the Impaler“.
He lived here during the Middle Ages and his real name was Vlad Tepes.
Except for the small provincial town Sighisoara, in Romania there are other places that are associated with the personality of Count Dracula.
About a half hour drive from the city of Brasov is one more place related to Vlad Tepes – The Bran Castle.
It is suggested that Dracula has also lived in this castle which is situated in an area covered with dense forest on the slopes of the Carpathians.
The location makes legends seem even more creepy.
These dark and shady woods through which the day light passes very difficult makes tourists to shake with fear while they listened to the stories of the guide about Vlad Tepes even before they reached the massive stone walls of the castle.
Wine tourism
Like most countries in Southern Europe, Romania has great potential as regards the development of wine tourism.
Abundant sunshine and temperate climate contribute to the high quality of grapes, and therefore to the divine drink.
The wine tourism areas are scattered throughout the country, but if you try to discover some regularity you should note that in northern Romania are grown mainly white grapes and consequently are produced mainly white sorts of wines, while the southern half of the country is dominated by red varieties.
Although on the territory of present-day Romania is produced wine for thousands of years, wine tourism is quite new for this country, making it even more strange and exciting in this respect.
Rural tourism
Rural tourism is another opportunity to immerse yourself in the traditions and culture of Romania.
Like other Balkan countries, Romanian province has maintained a lifestyle that is too strange and remote to the Western tourists.
Modern society still has very little influence in rural areas of Romania.
At other times it could be a disadvantage, but today is a great opportunity to see and to get to know closely what are the traditions and the past of this old European country.
Each element of the everyday life (especially during the holidays) has its historical explanation and is usually originated somewhere back in the centuries.
Shopping
Romania is an attractive destination for the practicing of shopping tourism.
The prices in the country are still attractive compared to most of the developed countries of Western Europe.
In recent years, were built several shopping centres and malls.
The most impressive was opened in 2005 in Timisoara.
Today, this shopping center is considered to be one of the largest in Europe.
Geographic location, boundaries and size
Romania is situated in Southeastern Europe and northeastern parts of the Balkan Peninsula.
This is the largest country on the Balkans (excluding Turkey, which occupies only a small part of the area of the peninsula).
It occupies an area of 238,391 sq. km.
Romania is bordered by Ukraine to the north and northeast, with Moldova also to the northeast, Hungary to the northwest, Serbia to the southwest and Bulgaria to the south.
Most of the border with Bulgaria follows the stream of Danube river.
Relief
Romania is a country with a varied and picturesque landscape.
There are different relief forms, ranging from low coastal and riverine plains and lowlands to high mountain peaks.
The southern part of Romania is occupied by the Danube Valley.
The northwestern parts are occupied by the Pannonian plain, known for its fertility.
To the east near the Danube Delta there are marshlands and wet wooded lowlands with insignificant altitude.
The central parts of Romania are occupied mainly of the impressive mountain chain of the Carpathians.
Here is the highest point in the country – Moldovianu peak, 2544 meters high.
The coastline of Romania is slightly indented with numerous coastal lakes.
Population
Besides the largest, Romania is also the most populated Balkan country.
It is home to more than 22 million people.
The majority of the population are Romanians, but on the territory of the country also live significant number of Hungarians, Ukrainians and Gypsies.
Romania is known with the fact that together with Bulgaria and Hungary is the country with the largest percentage gypsies as a part of the total population.
The biggest cities in Romania are Bucharest (2,500,000 inhabitants), Iasi (360,000 inhabitants), Constanta (350,000 inhabitants), Timisoara (340,000 inhabitants) and Kluj-Napoka (320,000 inhabitants).
Economy
Recently Romania belongs to the group of developed countries.
However, the standard of living is still considerably lower than other EU countries.
Only Bulgaria has a lower income per capita into the EU.
In Romania itself also can be seen very large contrasts.
Often the difference in living standards between cities and countryside is striking.
Against the background of the developed cities such as Bucharest and Timisoara are very different from the economically backward province with outdated infrastructure.
Romanian economy is variously developed, but one of the most important sector is the agriculture.
To the south in the Danube Valley is among the most important grain productive regions in Europe.
We must mention also the well developed tourist industry.
In this country one can practices winter, summer, rural, cultural and many other types of tourism.
Today, the official currency of Romania is still the Romanian Leu, but the country gradually make steps towards joining the Euro zone and the adoption of the euro as official currency.
This process is lengthy and is therefore necessary for Romania to meet a number of economic factors and many requirements.
