Travel guide – romania
romania
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Overview
Romania is slowly emerging from the effects of being one of the most repressed countries under communism and having suffered the megalomaniac dictatorship of Nicolae Ceausescu whose rule left the country in the depths of poverty. Travel in Romania is rewarding yet habitually challenging as much of its charisma lies in the more remote regions, and optimistic plans are often frustratingly slowed down by practical realities. Despite this, Romania is rapidly regaining its identity as a popular tourist destination and has plenty to offer the international traveller.
The charms of Transylvania lure people with the imagery of haunted forests, medieval towns, vampires, turreted cliff-top castles, and the legends of Dracula. In addition to its medieval castles and enchanting historic towns, the region also offers the dramatic alpine scenery of the Carpathian Mountains with spectacular skiing and undisturbed hiking opportunities.
The country's geography is diverse: from mountains, rolling hills and rural farmlands to white sandy beaches and resorts along the Black Sea Coast. Dotting the natural landscape are rustic villages where local people live as they have done for the past 100 years. There is an abundance of religious architecture – including the exquisitely painted monasteries of Bucovina – and there are ancient churches and cities bursting with historic architecture. The capital city, Bucharest, is re-inventing itself following decades of neglect by the ruling communists and its damaged architecture is slowly being restored to its original glory. It has elegant restaurants, a revitalised nightlife and cultural attractions that are becoming integral to this new image.
A visit to Romania will leave few impassive, offering a refreshingly different culture to elsewhere in Europe. The mix of quaint medieval towns and castles, drab cities striving for Western modernism, and the diverse rural landscape seemingly untouched by modern history, offers a fascinating kaleidoscope of opportunities to explore. Romania appeals to visitors because it is so different. It has one foot firmly placed in the past while the other one is stretching forward in an effort to keep up with the progress of the modern world.
Regions and cities within Romania...
Bucharest
Transylvania
Southern Bucovina
Climate
Romania has a temperate climate with four distinct seasons. Spring and autumn are cool and pleasant, making May and June, and September and October the best months to visit. Summers are hot from July to August and winters are harsh and very cold between December and March, with snow falling throughout most of the country. Spring and summer are the wettest seasons, but rain can be expected throughout the year.
Health
Medical facilities in Bucharest are good, but poor in the smaller towns and basic medical supplies are often in short supply. A reciprocal health agreement exists between the UK, USA, Canada and Australia that entitles nationals to free emergency medical care, but health insurance is strongly advised. There have been a number of Hepatitis A cases in Romania and visitors are advised to seek medical advice about inoculations before travelling. Visitors should drink only bottled water. Stray dogs carry rabies and tick-borne African Typhus disease, and should be avoided. In October 2005, cases of Avian bird flu were reported in a poultry farm in the Danube Delta, but no human cases have been reported. The risk for travellers is very low, but visitors should avoid any contact with domestic, caged or wild birds and ensure that eggs and poultry dishes are well cooked.
The basics
Time
Local time is GMT +2 (GMT +3 between the last Sunday in March to the Saturday before the last Sunday in October).
Electricity
Electrical current is 220 volts, 50Hz. Two-pin European-style plugs are standard.
Language
Romanian is the official language, but English will be understood in Bucharest and other tourist areas.
Tipping
A service charge is included in restaurant bills but a further 5 to 10% tip is expected. Taxi drivers expect good service to be rewarded. Tipping is not common in Romania, except in large hotels and restaurants frequented by tourists, where anything between 10 and 20% is expected.
Safety
Visitors should take normal precautions to keep their valuables safe and should be aware of pickpockets and scam artists in major cities. Corruption is rife and visitors should be cautious of policemen demanding fines for spurious offences, or asking to see documents as a way of stealing cash; if approached in this way visitors should offer to go with them to the nearest police station before handing over any money or documents. Valuables, including passports, should not be left in hotel rooms.
Communications
The direct dialling country code for Romania is +40, and the outgoing code is 00. There are numerous area codes applying to cities, towns and villages. The country is well covered with two GSM 900 mobile phone networks. Email and Internet are freely available in the cities and larger towns.
Duty Free
Travellers to Romania do not have to pay duty on 4 litres of wine or beer, 1 litre spirits, 200 cigarettes or 200g tobacco products; perfume, medicines and souvenirs; 200g cocoa and 200g coffee; 2 cameras, 1 small movie camera, 24 cassettes, 1 portable radio, 1 TV set, 1 tape recorder, 1 pair of binoculars and 1 typewriter; and gifts to the value of €175. Jewellery and art objects should be declared on customs declaration forms. Prohibited items include uncanned goods, meat or dairy products.
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