You will likely arrive in the capital city of Bucharest . Ceausescu tried to have bulldozers destroy much of the French flavor of the ancient city with his grotesque Communist state-inspired architecture, but restoration is underway to recapture some of the old flavor of Bucharest.
Bucharest boasts five train stations, of which Gara de Nord, the biggest and the ugliest, is your most likely arrival point from such cities as Belgrade, Munich, Sofia, Vienna, and Budapest (the most likely point of departure).
Allow at least a day to see the monuments and to partake of some of the city's lively new restaurants and burgeoning nightlife. You can't see it all in a day but you should definitely see the attractions we list below if your time is limited. Biserica Stavropoleos, Strada Stavropoleos, is uniquely Romanian, the best example of what is known locally as Brancovenese architecture, a curvy style created in both stone and wood and blending late Renaissance with Byzantine motifs. The remarkable church, with its fresco-adorned walls and impressive dome, was constructed between 1724 and 1730.
For the best introduction to the varied architecture of Romania, head for Muzeul Satului, a village museum at Sos Kiseleff 28-30, filled with workshops of craftspeople, old churches, and the most typical of regional housing, each furnished authentically. Another folkloric museum is Muzeul Taranului Roman, a Romanian regional museum with nearly 100,000 artifacts on display at Sos Kiseleff 3. The 19th-century Palatul Cotroceni, Blvd. Geniului 1, was the home of the royal family from 1893 until they were chased out by the communists in 1947. Rebuilt after a 1977 earthquake, it is lavishly furnished containing many personal items left by the fleeing royals.
Finally, you might want to go by Palatul Parlamentului or the Parliament Palace, Calea 13 Septembrie, a mammoth contemporary structure that can be blamed on Ceausescu's megalomania. It is the second largest building in the world, a true Stalinist monstrosity that has 7 of its 3,000 rooms open to the public. Yes, that's 24-karat gold on the ceiling.
The true charm of Romania lies not in Bucharest but in its countryside, especially a trip to Transylvania to call on Count Dracula. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Danube Delta (Delta Dunarii), is Europe's largest wetland reserve, embracing an area of 3,604 square miles (5,800 sq. km) and sheltering some 300 species of birds and 160 species of fish. One of the best centers for exploring the delta is Tulcea, lying 163 miles (263km) northeast of Bucharest, reached by daily express train (trip time: 5 hr.).
The western province of Romania, Transylvania, the land of the fictional Count Dracula, continues to spark the imagination of the world. It is a land of forest-covered mountains, historic villages, fortified churches, and an unspoiled landscape. The best way to see this province is to take one of 13 daily trains out of Bucharest and make the 3- to 4-hour trip to Brasov, a medieval city that's an ideal Transylvanian gateway. From Brasov, your itinerary can continue west to Sighisoara and Sibiu and north to Cluj before pressing on to Deva, Hundedoara, Arad, and Timisoara. The old Roman colony of Sibiu is another good base city and a good place to get information about traveling in Transylvania (see below). As the ancient capital of Transylvania, Sibiu, is serviced by 5 trains per day from Bucharest; the trip takes 6 hours.
Romania's northeastern province of Moldavia is visited mainly for its fabled monasteries. Regrettably, reaching these major attractions by rails is too cumbersome a process to recommend.
