A Weekend in Bucharest

Eastern EuropeEuropeTravel
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Bucharest is a city torn between two worlds - one with a dark history and one reaching back to the royal days whilst looking ahead to the future.

Logistics:

Because Bucharest is the capital of Romania, there are plenty of options within the city. Here is what we did!

Our Transylvania Roadtrip

If you want to read about our excellent roadtrip, here are our other days

By Plane

Because we flew from Istanbul, I have to say it was very easy to find connections. In fact, I believe there were many options even from London! The airport is serviced by the major destinations in Europe, but mostly with budget airlines such as Wizz Air. Inside the airport, it is very small so it is very easy to navigate!

By Public Transportation

From the airport, the bus system is rather simple especially if you don’t mind the long drive into the city. While I have heard that the bus can take ages in rush hour, we were there within 45 minutes! 

Once you’re inside the city, I believe it is rather easy to use the metro, tram, or bus system although we had no need to use them as most of our activities were near Old Town.

Between Romanian cities, there are plenty of trains and buses. We used the train station once and it was an… interesting… experience! I used seat61.com for all my train questions!

By Private Hire

I highly recommend renting a car to reach the amazing Transylvanian villages. Click here to read about our experience!

Lodging

A tale of two cities also leads to a tale of two very different experiences. As we were traveling from Turkey, we decided to self-quarantine for two days when we first arrived in Romania. Thus, we booked an excellent Old Town AirB&B with a great view and within reach of all the great restaurants (from which we could order online!). While the floors creaked and the entrance was hard to find, we enjoyed the large space complete with kitchen and washer machine. 

Upon our return to Bucharest, we stayed at the lovely Intercontinental. While the hotel was really swanky, the location has a lot to be desired. However, we enjoyed our free stay that included a great view. If we had to do it again, I would stay at the Hilton Garden Inn which was located in the middle of Old Town!

Food & Drinks

As the main capital, the food and drink is crazy good - if only places were open...

Top Recommendation:

Boutique du Pain: After landing and taking the bus, we stopped at Boutique du Pain for a tasty breakfast whilst our AirB&B was getting prepared. As we contemplated our possibly quarantine, we enjoyed hot coffees and tea - especially as it started to rain! For my breakfast, I had a wonderful eggs benedict while MF had shakshuka. I guess I wanted a more American breakfast while MF wanted to stay in Turkey! Both were equally good and we were very happy to be here!

Formizza: On our second evening in Bucharest, we treated ourselves to a tasty few pizza pies from Formizza. Unfortunately, I failed to get any pictures because we were so hungry! We split a salami and normal margarita pizza. I would definitely recommend!!

Borsalino: After arriving back from our Transylvania trip, MF hyped Borsalino in the car as the best Italian restaurant in the city. Therefore, we had high expectations! However, when we arrived at 11am, they informed us that they won't serve food until 12pm... Thankfully, we ordered hot coffee and tea because the weather had turned and it was quite cold.  Once 12pm arrived, we immediately ordered! I had a great gnocchi ragu whilst MF had a disappointing lasagna... She was dreaming of her fine Italian food in Sibiu, but it came up short...

Caru' cu Bere: Found in almost all travel blogs, Caru has a great reputation. Whilst reservations may be required in normal times, we easily walked in for a great lunch deal! For only 20LEI, we had a three course meal that easily could have fed a crowd. We each ordered vegetable soup, tomato and cucumber salad, and chicken schnitzel with fries. Oh my. We barely made it through the soup! Each dish was really flavorful and tasty. And for only 20LEI, it was a great deal!

Mara Mura: In the new Old Town is possibly my favorite shop in Bucharest! Usually slammed busy, Mara Mura is a specialty dessert shop that sells some of the best tasting and looking desserts in the capital! For our first visit, we purchased an extremely rich dark chocolate cake whilst MF had a cake pop. I clearly won - although I couldn't move afterwards! On a calmer Monday afternoon, we ordered a double mousse and MMMM cake. Each bite was rich and wonderful! While the double mousse was very rich, we struck a nice balance with the MM cake which was much lighter. We could have eaten a few of the MM cake!

M60 Coffee: If Mara Mura's cakes put you to sleep, M60 has great coffee to wake you back up!

Click here for our Romania Google map pins for all of our hard research of the top food and drink spots!

Activities

  • Bucharest Walking Tour
  • Palace of Parliament
  • Stroll through Old Town
  • Food Tour

Fixed Costs:

  • Bus from Airport to city center:
  • Old Town AirB&B: 24GBP per night
  • Intercontinental: Two Free nights with gift certificates!
  • DIY Walking Tour: FREE

Onto Bucharest

Leaving Istanbul on the first (and only) flight to Bucharest was quite an adventure. First, Mary Frances was questioned at the Istanbul airport for the knives in her suitcase. Next, we were literally the last people on our flight because our American passports caused many questions. Lastly, we were again questioned at the Romanian border regarding our travel and sadly ended up on the required quarantine list.

From the airport, we took the cheaper and empty bus to city center. Because we were practically the only people on the bus, we felt very safe! As we approached city center, the skies opened up and it began to rain... of course!

Thankfully, we rested at Boutique du Pain for a tasty French-styled breakfast. Unfortunately, this is where our fears were confirmed. Before we arrived, I read the COVID restrictions and it was very unclear on the restriction level in the capital. At breakfast, as we sat outside underneath an umbrella in the cold rain, we realized that all dining had to be outside and most places were takeaway only... Oh boy!

A Romanian Quarantine

Compared to Istanbul and Ukraine, we were in for a surprise for our Romanian quarantine. After we checked into our B&B, we debated endlessly on what to do next as we could not stay in a tiny flat for 14 days straight. I researched several mountainside retreats in the Transylvanian mountains, but every place had cons between being in the middle of nowhere or nothing in the city was open.

After resting, researching next steps, and enjoying the Romanian cityscape from our B&B window for two days, we heard that Ukraine, the country causing our quarantine, was taken off the Romanian list! Thus ended our Romanian quarantine!

"New" Old Town

In Bucharest, there are two "old" towns - there is one that is the traditional old town that has been completely taken over by restaurants, nightlife, and chain stores. Whilst the streets and building architecture are delightfully charming, the nonstop rows of pubs and bars is certainly demoralizing. Although we found great food options, the atmosphere wasn't as charming and the prices were often higher.

Regardless, one of my favorite things to do was to wander through their Old Centre. While COVID has put a damper on Romanian nightlife, the streets are best in the morning when there aren't many people around and the bars haven't opened. In the daytime, it wasn't the best place to be as the commercialization can be overwhelming especially compared to New Town!

New Town

Located just north of the Old Town boundaries, I particularly enjoyed walking around the New Town because this part of town had more of a Romanian charm with tiny restaurants and boutiques. In face, my top two places were M60, a great coffee shop, and Mara Mura, a speciality dessert shop. In fact, on my first mini walking tour, I (intentionally) discovered these places and enjoyed a terrific dessert and coffee.

Revolution Square

Nestled between New and Old Town is Revolution Square - famous for the beginnings of the 1989 Revolution. While I do not want to recount this turbulent history, visiting this square is very impressive! Between the stunning and massive architecture and modern artwork, I even feel inspired by history's events here! The older architecture is definitely more royal and impressive than the modern pieces. For the modern pieces, people call them the "donut on a hole" or "olive on a toothpick". Both names pretty accurately describe the monument.

Do-It-Yourself Walking Tour

Because COVID and possibly IT issues ruined our free walking tour experience, we did a do-it-yourself walking tour of the city using the Internet and Google Maps!

New St George Church

Nestled on one of the main streets and across from Old Town, St George is a hidden gem for an Orthodox Church. Decorated in beautiful mosaics on the exterior, the interior is just as stunning. Unlike Catholic churches, I haven't quite gotten tired of these churches just yet. The mosaic artwork is stunningly colorful and tells a beautiful story - probably more than stained glass!

Insta-Bookstore

In Old Town, there is a fantastic bookstore that is perfect for taking insta-pictures! Inside Carturesti Carusel are dazzling white staircases . Whilst I loved the interior decor, we particularly liked going through the various books and finding any goodies - that weren't in Romanian...

Palace of Parliament

Built in the 1980s as a celebration for the Romanian dictator/president, the former president's palace is now the house of parliament. Because the architecture style is classic modern and Soviet, the building towers and looms over the bare parking lot and surrounding gardens. In fact, they built a series of water fountains that are always on despite the cold weather!

While I loved the look of this palace, it is extremely extravagant and the building and its construction has a very dark history. Because of the exorbitant cost, the people suffered tremendously during its construction as billions were spent on the building rather than the population. Moreover, Old Town buildings were destroyed and people displaced to make room for this monstrosity.  Because the president was toppled five years into construction, the interior is still not yet finished so it might hold the record for longest construction project! (Just kidding it isn't!).

Cismigiu Gardens

One of the largest parks in Bucharest, Cismigiu reminds us of Hyde Park! With plenty of trails, homeless people, grass, pigeons, and a large pond in the middle, we enjoyed our late afternoon stroll in this beautiful park. During non-COVID times, I am sure the park is packed with people as it is tranquil despite being in a crazy busy city!

Krezulescu Church

As we exited the park and walked towards Revolution Square, we stumbled across a beautiful brick church in the middle of stone or concrete buildings. According to our walking tour guide, there is nothing truly remarkable about the church - only that it represents old versus new.

Revolution Square

Near the Old Town is the now famous Revolution Square. After the former president made a speech on top of this building, he was tried to escape to his countryside estate. Rather than solely focus on the "donut on a pole" or "olive on a toothpick," we gazed at the amazing architecture and statues surrounding the square. The buildings remind us of the Louvre and the old buildings in the Paris! Appearing grand and magnificent, we now were at the art museum, university, and ministry of justice.

Roman Athenaeum

A short distance from the Revolution Square is the Roman Athenaeum! Hosting summertime concerts, the beautiful rotunda is a great addition to old town. Whilst we could not go inside, we admired it from the gardens and wished it was summertime!

(Late) Afternoon Delight

After our wonderful walking tour, we stopped at Mara Mura for a great slice of cake! Because it was a random Monday afternoon, we were able to grab a table under the heater. In a way, we were toasting our final evening in Romania.

The UnChartered Summary

As I mentioned earlier, Bucharest is a tale of two cities - one stuck in the Soviet past twisted with the royal days whilst one foot reaching out to the future. We enjoyed strolling through the lovely Old Town as we walked through the Soviet era to get there.

  • I would stay in Old Town as it is definitely preferable. There are plenty of boutique AirBnBs and even Hiltons!
  • Similar to France, we enjoyed the Bucharest food scene - although COVID was definitely a buzzkill since eating in cold weather is not that great...

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