“So resplendent are Sighişoara’s pastel-coloured buildings, stony lanes and medieval towers, you’ll rub your eyes in disbelief. Fortified walls encircle Sighişoara’s lustrous merchant houses, now harbouring cafes, hotels and craft shops. Lurking behind the gingerbread roofs and turrets of the Unesco-protected old town is the history of Vlad Ţepeş, the bloodthirsty, 15th-century Wallachian prince. He was allegedly born here, in a house that is visitable to this day. Ţepeş is best remembered as Vlad the Impaler, or Dracula, fuelling a local industry of vampire-themed souvenirs.” – Lonely Planet 

“Sibiu is awash in aristocratic elegance. Noble Saxon history emanates from every art-nouveau facade and gold-embossed church. Renowned composers Strauss, Brahms and Liszt all played here during the 19th century, and Sibiu has stayed at the forefront of Romania’s cultural scene through its festivals of opera, theatre and film, as well as rock, jazz and more. The country’s first hospital, school, library and pharmacy were all established here, and locals are justly proud of the spirit of enterprise that endures to this day.” – Lonely Planet

Check out my Romania travel guide for more general information on traveling Romania such as visas, money, Covid updates and more.

“Romania’s capital sometimes gets a bad rap, but in fact it’s dynamic, energetic and lots of fun. Many travellers give the city just a night or two before heading off to Transylvania, but that’s not enough time. Allow at least a few days to take in the very good museums, stroll the parks and hang out at trendy cafes and drinking gardens. While much of the centre is modern and the buildings are in various stages of disrepair, you’ll find splendid 17th- and 18th-century Orthodox churches and graceful belle époque villas tucked away in quiet corners. Communism changed the face of the city forever, and nowhere is this more evident than at the gargantuan Palace of Parliament, the grandest (and arguably crassest) tribute to dictatorial megalomania you’ll ever see.” – Lonely Planet

“Romania’s third-largest city (after Bucharest and Cluj-Napoca) is also one of the country’s most attractive urban areas, built around a series of beautifully restored public squares and lavish parks and gardens. It’s known as Primul Oraş Liber (the First Free City), for it was here that anti-Ceauşescu protests first exceeded the Securitate’s capacity for violent suppression in 1989, eventually sending Ceauşescu and his wife to their deaths. With western Romania’s nicest hotels and finest restaurants, it makes a perfect base for exploring the Banat region.” – Lonely Planet