✈️ TLV to Bucharest - Otopeni (OTP)
Romania
Bucharest
CityOTP
IATA1590.2 km
Distance2h 29m
Flight TimeCoordinates: 44.5722, 26.1022
Airlines:
About Bucharest
Weather in Bucharest
Understand
Bucharest is the primary entry point into Romania , and the most important industrial and commercial centre of the country. With more than 2.1 million inhabitants in its urban area, Bucharest is one of the largest cities in Southeastern Europe. Bucharest is a booming city with many large infrastructure projects changing the old face of the city, which used to be known in the past as "The Little Paris". Bucharest has benefited from an economic boom along with the EU grants that have helped rebuild parts of the city, including the revamped old town. Those who have known Bucharest in the past will be surprised by the changes that are taking place. The largest finished project is the impressive Basarab overpass, which is Europe's widest cable bridge.
Climate
Bucharest, like most of Romania, has a temperate-continental climate with hot summers and cold winters. This region of Romania gets all four seasons, although spring is brief and falls mainly in April. The average high daily temperature in summer is about 29 °C and in winter about 2 °C. It can get really hot and dry during the summer (30 °C) and really cold during the winter (-20 °C), even though temperatures below -12 °C are extremely rare. Best time to visit is April through June, September through October and early December.
Talk
The official language is Romanian , a Romance language which claims to be the closest currently-spoken relative to Vulgar Latin, but contains around 20% of loan words from Slavonic languages. Most younger educated people will speak English reasonably well and will likely be proficient in one or more second Romance languages; most educated people born before about 1980 will speak French, Spanish or Italian reasonably well. The Roma people (Gypsies) speak their native Romany, as well as Romanian, and sometimes English as well. Beyond that, as in any major city, there will be a smattering of other languages like Chinese, Arabic, Turkish, Hungarian and German.
Do
There are two free weekly guides published in Bucharest featuring all the events of the week, as well as listing the addresses of most restaurants, clubs, pubs, bars, cinemas etc. in the city. One is Şapte Seri (Seven nights), the other 24-FUN . They have small sections in English available.
Walking and recreation
A walking tour is a good way to get accustomed with a new city. You can find free guided walking tours of the city centre, this being an option for budget visitors, youth and backpackers. Usually, you have to book the tours, but in the high season there are tours organized every day, rain or sun. There are also paid tours to be found, in this case booking being necessary at all times. Access the free Audio Guide with GPS on smartphone for most relevant tour (17 attractions) on http://IZI.travel (IOS, Android, Windows). Then consider other tours with Audio Guides in Bucharest and surroundings. For example: "Bucharest - Old City Centre" (with 40 included attractions) or related to the nearby protected natural area from Snagov lake and forest. 44.604638 26.082543 1 Therme București . Huge thermal water park. ( updated Feb 2016 ) 44.437136 26.090597 2 Cişmigiu Garden ( Centre ). This a lovely small park; it's the oldest in the city (designed 1845-1860). Has boat rental in summer, ice skating in winter time, reasonable restaurants and more specially a French restaurant in Trianon Hotel and several bars. 44.47921 26.08169 3 Herăstrău Park . The largest of several parks around man-made lakes on the Colentina River running through the city’s north and east side) houses the Village Museum, an open-air theater, various sports grounds, an amusement park and numerous restaurants and clubs. Has boat rental and boat-trips in summer. 44.4379 26.063647 4 Botanical Gardens ( near Cotroceni Palace ). 08:00-20:00 daily in summer . Established in 1860, displays a variety of plants from all over the world. The greenhouses are wonderful but have limited opening hours, and are closed Monday, Wednesday and Friday 10 Lei . ( updated Sep 2019 ) 44.4275 26.087222 5 Carol Park ( one subway station south of Piaţa Unirii ). Designed in 1906, Carol Park has an open-air theater replicating a Roman arena and another construction replicating a medieval fortress. It houses the tomb of the Unknown Soldier as well as an infamous mausoleum built for the Communist nomenclature. 44.4075 26.1056 6 Tineretului Park . It has a large multipurpose building (Sala Polivalenta) used for concerts, sporting events, exhibitions, etc., an amusement park for children, boat-rental, several restaurants and bars. 44.42305 26.15673 7 Titan Park ( I.O.R. Park ). A green oasis among Communist-era high-rise apartment buildings in the eastern part of the city (Titan metro station), has a charming wooden church as well as several lakeside clubs.
Buy
Major brand-name shops and upscale boutiques are concentrated along the main boulevard from Piaţa Romană to Piaţa Unirii and on the small streets adjacent to this boulevard, but also on Calea Victoriei, on Calea Dorobanţilor (the part between Blvd. Iancu de Hunedoara and Piaţa Dorobanţilor) or on Calea Moşilor's section between Blvd. Carol I and Piaţa Obor.
Drink
44.430784 26.101903 1 1974 Niște Domni și Fiii . ( updated Mar 2015 ) Absintherie Sixtină ( Sixtine Absintheria ), Covaci 6, 1st floor , ☏ +40 21 3103566 . Classic style bar with reasonable prices. The absinthe is served with a slow drip fountain. Beer O'Clock , Gabroveni 4 and Villacrosse passage (near Police Department) . Bar with several types of Belgian, Czech and Slovak beer. 44.444237 26.096626 2 Camera din Față . Cafe/tea house ( updated Oct 2015 ) Curtea berarilor ( The Brewers Court ), Selari 9-11 , ☏ +40 723 279620 , +40 21 3137532 . Su 12:00–24:00; M-W 13:00-01:00; Th-Sa 13:00-4:00 . Pub in old center having mostly Timişoreana beer. ( updated Apr 2017 ) 44.43329 26.094903 3 Energiea . ( updated Feb 2017 ) 44.456945 26.105714 4 Ganesha Cafe . ( updated Nov 2015 ) Green Hours , Calea Victoriei 120 , ☏ +40 722 234356 , +40 788 452485 . A quiet club which often hosts jazz concerts. Interbelic , Intrarea Selari 1A ( near Lipscani ), ☏ +40 722 681618 . Daily 17:00-last . Cocktail bar; fine spirits, great nights. medium . 44.433211 26.095261 5 Origo . ( updated Feb 2017 ) 44.444421 26.101118 6 Piua Book Bar . ( updated Mar 2017 ) BEAT bar umanist , Strada Robescu F. Constantin 14 , ☏ +40 748 110 388 , beatbarumanist@gmail.com . Nice cosy bar near Unirii/old town. Hard Rock Cafe , 32 Kiseleff Avenue , ☏ +40-21-206-6261 . Favorite of both locals and tourists, the Hard Rock Cafe makes its home on the shores of the lake, just a few short steps from the landmark Triumph Arch. Mancave , Economu Cezarescu 61 ( (near Grozavesti) ), ☏ +40 764574623 , admin@themancave.ro . M-F 7:30-00:00 S-S 10:00 00:00 . Gaming venue that also has boardgames, specialty coffee and drinks. ( updated Feb 2020 )
Stay safe
The emergency number in Romania is 112 . Bucharest is one of the safest capitals in Europe, far safer than Berlin, London and Rome. Nevertheless, violence is not uncommon , as there have sporadic but noteworthy attacks from local gangs towards foreign-looking people (minorities, out of place individuals, etc.) in clubs, particularly those playing ethnic music, especially when drinking and after hours are involved. Avoiding any conflict would reduce your chances to almost zero. The crime rate is low, but a traveler must always be cautious. Violent attacks are very low, but if attacked just yell, "Ajutor!" or "Poliția!"
Go next
The most attractive area of Romania is Transylvania, with its mountains and well-preserved medieval towns. Closest to Bucharest, 160 km north, is Brașov . Beyond it lie Sibiu , Sighisoara , Targu Mures and Cluj Napoca . Constanța , 225 km east, is a beach resort on the Black Sea coast. Frankly it's seen better days. Ski resorts include Sinaia , Poiana Brasov , and Predeal . The scenic road Transfăgărășan is not very far away. On the way you can visit also the cities Curtea de Argeș , Pitești and Ștefănești . A day's journey takes you out of Romania into the neighbouring countries. The star destinations, which you'll want to visit more than once, are Budapest in Hungary and Istanbul in Turkey. Also worth seeing are Belgrade in Serbia, Sofia and Plovdiv in Bulgaria, and Kyiv and Odesa in Ukraine. Chișinău in Moldova doesn't take long to see but you might need to stop-over on the way to Ukraine. Some kilometers southwest is Măgurele , a small town that houses many institutes.