BEST TRAIN JOURNEY IN ROMANIA

Let me tell you - when I was a student, we went by train almost every summer weekend: we got on the train in the morning, bound for the mountains (Sinaia, Bușteni or Brașov most often), we looked for two seats by the window and enjoyed a good book , while the landscape was changing completely. There we visited something, walked around, enjoyed the view and the coolness, ate something good and returned to Bucharest in the evening. Relax completely. Well, I miss that feeling.

That's why I started looking for places you can get to by train from Bucharest - I found a lot of ideas

Prahova Valley : - I start with the famous Vale a Prahova – that's because even though I've visited it dozens of times, I still enjoy coming here and enjoying the scenery over the Bucegi, the hikes or the castles here.

Our favorites are:

Sinaia – here you can visit the Peleș Castle and the Pelișor Castle, you can take a hike on the Royal Path to the Franz Joseph Rocks and then to Stâna Regală, then you can climb up to Cota 1400 or Cota 2000 and enjoy a superb panorama. Also in Sinaia, you can visit the Memorial House of George Enescu - it is of incredible simplicity and good taste.

Bușteni – here you can visit Cantacuzino Castle (the view over Bucegi is brilliant), Caraiman Monastery (and the view here is WOW), you can take the cable car to Babele and then hike for about an hour to Crucea on Caraiman or just in an easy hike to the Howling Waterfall.

A train journey from Bucharest to Valea Prahova takes a little over 1 hour and a half, and a train ticket Bucharest – Sinaia/Bușteni costs 36 lei/person CFR. However, I recommend the RegioCălători private trains, where a ticket costs 18 lei/person. Other options are Softrans, where a ticket costs 35 lei/person or AstraTransCarpatic, where a ticket costs 40 lei/person.

Brașov : - What can you visit in Brașov in a single day or a weekend? In addition to the Old Center, where I recommend not to miss the Black Church, the County Museum of History (in the Council House) and Strada Sforii, you can take a tour of the Bastions and Defense Towers around the city, where you can learn both the medieval history of the cities , but you can also enjoy a beautiful panorama of the city. And if you want to admire Brașov from a height, go up to Tâmpa (either in a hike of about an hour or by cable car).

A train journey from Bucharest to Brașov takes 3 hours, and a ticket costs 48 lei/person at CFR, 24 lei/person at RegioCălători and 43 lei/person at Softrans.

Râșnov: - If you have already visited the above destinations (most likely you have), you may want to visit the surroundings as well – a very good option of a cool place you can reach by train is Râșnov, famous for the citadel of the same name, but also for Dyno Park (must be visited especially if you go with children). Even if it is not a direct route, but you have to change in Brașov, I say it is worth it.

There are many RegioCălători trains to Râșnov from Brașov Train Station, and a journey takes about 20 minutes and costs only 4 lei/adult.

Făgăraș : - I think Făgărașul is one of the most underappreciated mountain towns in Romania, and it's a shame when it has such a view over the highest mountains in Romania.

What can you visit in Făgăraş? First of all, the Făgăraș Castle - strategically built in the 15th century on the trade road between Sibiu and Brașov, it looks like the ones from the movies with knights and damsels - it is surrounded by a water channel and has thick defensive walls. A ticket to visit the fortress costs 15 lei/person.

The train on the route Bucharest – Făgăraș takes 4 hours 20 minutes, and a ticket costs 60 lei/person.

Sighișoara : - Yes, I know, you will say that it is quite far from Bucharest and that you do more on the road than staying there - but Sighișoara is a perfect weekend destination. Even when I was a student, I went back and forth to Sighișoara in one day - we left Bucharest at 6 o'clock in the morning, spent a few hours in Sighișoara and returned to Bucharest at 11 o'clock in the evening.

What can you visit in Sighisoara in a weekend? Almost... everything that can be visited. It starts with the Clock Tower, symbol of the city, from which you can learn the history of the fortress, but you will also have a great panorama, and then continue with a walk on the cobblestone streets, among the colorful buildings. Inevitably you will end up in front of the Students' Staircase, the already famous covered staircase (it was also a filming location for several Romanian videos), which leads to the Hill Church.

A trip by train Bucharest – Sighisoara takes 5 hours 40 minutes and costs 66 lei/person.

Sibiu : - About SIbiu, everyone knows that it is one of the most beautiful cities not only in Romania, but even in Europe - it was not for nothing that it was the European Capital of Culture in 2007. What to visit in Sibiu? It starts with a visit to the Evangelical Cathedral, where you can climb the tower and admire the city from above. Continue with the Bridge of Lies, Piața Mică and Piața Mare and don't forget to take a look at the roofs of the houses - you will discover the "Eyes of Sibiu" (that is, those elongated glass eyes that seem to be looking directly at you). Don't miss the Astra Museum either - it's my favorite among the open-air museums in Romania - you can get here by public transport. I recommend giving it at least 3-4 hours, because it's huge, and all the houses are very well-kept and have their own story.

The train on the route Bucharest - Sibiu takes almost 6 hours (without a few minutes), and a ticket costs 72 lei/person.

Târgoviște: - Let's go back to destinations closer to Bucharest - in less than 2 hours you can reach the former capital of Wallachia, Târgoviște. Here the main attraction is the Royal Court, where you will also find the symbol of the city: the Chindiei Tower. Be sure to climb into it and admire the city from above. A ticket to visit the Royal Court in Târgoviște costs lei/person. In addition to that, in Târgoviște you can also visit a lot of new museums: the Museum of the Evolution of Man and Technology in the Paleolithic, the Museum of the Romanian Police or the Museum of Printing and Old Romanian Books.

In Târgoviște we also have a recommendation for a super good place to eat: Tower's Pub.

The train on the route Bucharest - Târgoviște takes 1 hour 40 minutes, and a ticket costs 18 lei/person

Slanic Prahova: - It also takes a little over 2 hours to travel by train to the largest salt pan in Europe - Salina Slănic. Yes, many people probably don't know this, but the salt pan here has the largest volume of excavated salt (approx. 3 million cubic meters) – which means the surface of the salt pan is over 88,000 square meters, divided into 14 rooms. In addition, here you can also enjoy the cleanest air on the planet, without pollution or radiation!

A train journey on the Bucharest - Slănic route takes 2 hours and 10 minutes and involves changing trains in Ploiesti Sud (I recommend traveling with Transferoviar Călători (TFC), as they have close connections), and a ticket costs 17.5 lei/person.

Buzau: - Most likely you will say that you have nothing to visit in Buzau - well, let me contradict you. The city, even if it is a small one, is only suitable for a one-day getaway from Bucharest - you can visit the Marghiloman Mansion, recently renovated, Crâng Park or you can also take the train along the route along the Buzău River to Nehoiașu - from Nehoiașu Station there is also this photo (Source: Facebook Transferoviar Călători).

The train on the route Bucharest – Buzău takes just under 2 hours, and the price is 40 lei/person with CFR or 22 lei/person with TFC.