I love Bucharest but sometimes it’s good to get out of the city. Here are four of my favourite day trips from Bucharest, all to historic destinations and reachable by public transport.
Snagov
Snagov is a popular lakeside resort 40 km north of Bucharest. It is set in Snagov Forest, the last remaining section of the huge Codrii Vlăsiei forest that once surrounded Bucharest and covered much of southern Romania. The trees started to be felled in the 19th century when the land was wanted for agriculture. The remains of Snagov Forest are now a protected area.
The village grew up around Snagov monastery, built in the 14th century on a small island in Lake Snagov. The monastery is believed to be where Vlad the Impaler, the inspiration for Bram Stoker’s Dracula, was buried. The main mint of the medieval Wallachia principality was located on the island, and later an important printing press was set up there.
During communist times, the monastery was used as a retreat by Romanian leader Nicolae Ceaușescu. After the collapse of communism, the Romanian government briefly considered building a Dracula theme park in Snagov, but the plans were dropped in 2006.
Lakeside resorts
The swanky Snagov Club, which descries itself as a “relaxation oasis”. The resort has pool bar with palm trees, a spa centre and three separate restaurants, as well as luxury hotel rooms.
Aleea Nufarului 1B, tel: +40 21 352 60 79, 0372 746 862 (club), 0736 862 119 (restaurant reservations);
email: reservation@snagovclub.ro; website: http://www.snagovclub.ro
Dolce Vita is another luxury resort set on the shores of Lake Snagov. It offers accommodation, a restaurant, a children’s playground and outdoor barbecue. There’s fishing and team sports for those looking to be more active.
Parc Ponton 800
tel: 0723.580.780, 0786.251.029; email: dolcevitasnagov@yahoo.com, rezervaridolcevita@gmail.com; website: http://www.dolcevitasnagov.ro
How to get there
Numerous minibuses leave the public transport terminal at Piata Presei Liberei in Bucharest for Snagov every day. Take maxitaxi 443 to Siliştea Snagovului for the monastery; it takes about one hour. The lake is about a kilometre from the bus stop, and you can cross the bridge or take a boat to the island. Check when the minibus will return to Bucharest to avoid getting stranded in Snagov.
Mogosoaia Palace
Located just outside Bucharest on the shores of the Mogoșoaia lake, Mogoșoaia Palace is another of my top picks for day trips from Bucharest. The palace was built by the Wallachian prince Constantin Brâncoveanu at the turn of the 18th century. It was named after the widow of the Romanian aristocrat, Mogoș, who owned the land where it was built.
Brancoveanu didn’t get to enjoy the palace for long. He and his entire family were executed by the Ottomans in 1714, after which his palace was turned into an inn. However, Prince Stefan Cantacuzino later purchased the palace and returned it to Brâncoveanu’s grandson Constantin.
The building was virtually destroyed during the Russo- Turkish War of 1768-1774, but later rebuilt. In the 1920s and the 1930s, the palace once again became the centre of local and international high society and a location of political intriguing. Nationalised in 1945, the palace was turned into a museum 12 years later.
Details
Opening hours: Tues-Sun 10.00-18.00
tel: 021 350 6619
How to get there
To reach the palace from Bucharest take bus 460 from outside the Parc Bazilescu metro station. Get off at the Mogoșoaia Palace stop.
Bran Castle
Towering dramatically over the Burzenland plain, Bran Fortress’s stone turrets are as imposing now as they were centuries ago when this hilltop fortress repelled invaders from the south.
Teutonic knights originally built the wooden castle of Dietrichstein at the site in 1212, and it was replaced with a stone castle after being destroyed by Mongols invaders. It guards the old border between the mountains of Transylvania and Wallachia, the southern part of Romania that was under Ottoman rule until the mid 19th century.
Bran has been dubbed “Dracula’s Castle”, even though there is no evidence that the author Bram Stoker knew anything about Bran and its connections to Vlad the Impaler are tentative. In fact, Stoker was later found to have been thinking of a mountain far away in Moldavia when he envisaged Dracula’s castle.
However, the castle was the favourite home of another famous Romanian, Queen Marie (1875-1938), and contains art and furniture collected by the queen. There is also a small open-air museum park displaying traditional Romanian peasant homes and barns from across Romania.
The debate over the ownership of Bran Castle erupted after the Romanian government passed a law allowing restitution claims on properties that were illegally expropriated by the communists in 2005. The following year, Bran was given back to Dominic von Habsburg, the son and heir of Princess Ileana, though this was later disputed by some MPs. More recently, there were reports that the castle had been put up for sale for €5mn.
Details
Opening hours: April 1-September 1: Mon 12.00-18.00, Tues-Sun 09.00-18.00; October 1-March 31: Mon 12.00-16.00, Tues-Sun 09.00-16.00
Str. General Traian Mosoiu 24, Bran
tel: 0268 237 700, 0268 237-702; email: office@bran-castle.com; website: http://www.bran-castle.com
How to get there
To reach Bran from Bucharest by public transport, take the train to Brasov then a bus from bus terminal No. 2. Buses go every 30 minutes on weekdays and hourly at weekends, and the journey takes about 45 minutes. It’s also possible to take a taxi from Brasov for around €20. Bratax.ro run a professional taxi service with English speaking drivers – tel: 0268 315 555, 0726 315 555.
Peles Castle
The favourite home of Romania’s King Carol 1 and Queen Elisabeth (Regina Elisabetta), Peles Castle, the fourth of my recommended day trips from Bucharest, is a somewhat bizarre mix of the neo-renaissance and gothic revival styles set amid the towering peaks of the Carpathian Mountains.
Carol is believed to have built the palace, designed by German architect Johannes Schultz, after falling in love with the surrounding scenery – and it’s easy to understand why.
The interior is just as lavish as the outside and almost oppressively ornate at times, with a mishmash of European styles from German to Italian. Schultz’ original idea was apparently a huge version of an alpine villa.
Next to Peles Castle is the smaller Pelişor Castle, the home of King Ferdinand I and Queen Marie.
Details
Opening hours: Mon-Sun 09.30-16.30
Aleea Pelesului 2, Sinaia
tel: 0244 310 918, 0244 312 184; email: peles.ro@gmail.com, contact@peles.ro; website: http://www.peles.ro
How to get there
Sinaia is a 1.5 hour train journey from Bucharest, and it’s possible to walk uphill to the castle, with much of the route up flights of steps set into the hillside. Otherwise, take a taxi from outside the station.
Your day trips from Bucharest
Readers, have any of you made these day trips from Bucharest? Or perhaps you prefer different destinations. I’d love to see any of your recommendations for day trips from Bucharest in the comments below.
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