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Revolution Square (Piata Revolutiei): In December 1989 thousands of Romanians gathered here to demonstrate their opposition to the regime of Nikolae Ceausescu. This was the beginning of the end for the Communist leader. The name of the square commemorates this historic moment, although for local people the square also has cultural connotations, its environs are home to the former palace and the National Museum of Art.

Arc de Triomphe: Built in 1922 to honour the courage of the Romanian soldiers who fought in the First World War, the arch is the work of architect Petr Antonescu and is a replica of the Arc de Triomphe on the Champs Elysées in Paris.

Parliament Building: Work began on the former Palace of the People, a gigantic, controversial edifice covering a surface area of 330,000m2, in the early 1980s, but it was never completed in line with the original design, owing to the collapse of the Ceausescu regime. It is the world’s second largest building – only surpassed by the Pentagon – and has a total of 3,100 rooms, now housing the offices of the Parliament and Senate. The building is open to the public, who can join a guided tour.
Address: Calea 13 Septembrie 1, Intrarea A3, tel.: +40 (0) 21 311 36 11

Cantacuzino Palace: This is one of the city’s most impressive buildings, combining neoclassical and art nouveau features, and was built in 1900 as the official residence of the Prime Minister, Grigor Cantacuzinos. It now houses the George Enescu Museum, which celebrates the life and work of George Enescu, the great Romanian violinist and composer of the famous Romanian Rhapsodies.
Address: Calea Victoriei 141, tel.: +40 (0) 21 318 14 50

National Museum of Art: This is Romania’s largest museum, founded in 1948 to house the main collection, featuring works of Romanian and European art from the 15th to the 20th century. The museum has its home in a four-storey neoclassical building, part of the Royal Palace, and the collection consists of more than 100,000 works by such major artists as Grigorescu, Andreescu, El Greco, Rembrandt, Brueghel, Cezanne and Rubens.
Address: Calea Victoriei 49-53, tel.: +40 (0) 21 313 30 30, www.mnar.arts.ro

Museum of Art and History: The museum is housed in the neoclassical Sutu Palace (1834) and is home to a collection of 300,000 exhibits, among them a document dated 1459 which contains the first official reference to the name of the city and is signed by the Prince of Wallachia, Vlad Tepes, aka Count Dracula!
Address: Blvd. I. C. Bratianu 2, tel.: +40 (0) 21 315 6858

National History Museum: The impressive former Central Post Office (1899) is home to 600,000 exhibits which tell the story of Romania from prehistoric times to the early 20th century. You should definitely visit the treasure rooms, which contain golden items from a 4th century Gothic hoard discovered at Pietroasele.
Address: Calea Victoriei 12, tel.: +40 (0) 21 315 82 07

Romanian Peasant Museum: The traditions and culture of the Romanian countryside are presented here through more than 100,000 exhibits, including agricultural tools, ceramics, costumes and household utensils. The museum sustained heavy damage during the revolution, but in 1996 was awarded the title European Museum of the Year.
Address: Şoseaua Kiseleff 3, Sector 1, tel.: +40 21 317 96 60.

Stavropoleos Church: This strange but delightful little church, a unique combination of Byzantine and Romanian architectural styles, was built in 1724 by a Greek monk, Ioannis, Bishop of Stavropolis.
Address: Stavropoleos 4, tel.: +40 (0) 21 313 47 47, www.stavropoleos.ro

The Metropolitan Church: Built on the top of a hill, the Metropolitan Church or Cathedral of Bucharest was the centre of Romanian Orthodoxy until the end of the 17th century. The church, all of white stone, is dedicated to Saints Constantine and Eleni and was constructed in 1656-1658 by Constantine Serban Vsarav, Prince of Wallachia. The exquisite Byzantine decoration, the impressive altar screen and the carved pulpits are all excellent reasons to visit this imposing monument to the Orthodox faith.
Address: Aleea Dealul Mitropoliei

Romanian Athenaeum: The city’s main venue for musical events, home to the George Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra, this imposing concert hall in the form of an ancient Greek temple first opened its doors to the public in 1888. Built of marble, with a circular ground plan and external colonnades, rich frescoes and unrivalled acoustics, this is one of the most important and impressive buildings in Bucharest. Look up at the ceiling in the foyer – it’s decorated with genuine gold leaf!
Address: Franklin 1-3, sector 1, tel.: +40 21 315 2567, http://fge.org.ro/ro.html

Lipscani: The picturesque, historic centre of Bucharest is a bustling urban village, located between Calea Victoriei, Bratianu and Regina Elisabeta Boulevards, and the River Dambovita. In the 15th century this was the city’s main market, with stores and workshops employing a whole host of Romanian, Greek, Austrian, Jewish, Bulgarian, Armenian and Serbian craftsmen. The area is still fizzing with life, with excellent restaurants, little bars and interesting galleries.

Herestrau Park: This is Bucharest’s answer to Central Park covering an area of 1.1km, it is a forest in the centre of the city, with a large lake of the same name, on which boats are available. The verdant park also features tennis courts, lakeside restaurants, the fine Village Museum and the Aquarium, as well as an open-air sculpture gallery with numerous statues of famous artists and personalities from all around the world – including Michael Jackson, to name but one!

The shopping opportunities in Bucharest will impress you. Just a short distance on foot in the areas around the centre you will find fantastic bargains, particularly in antiques, furniture and folk art. You can find CDs of gypsy violinists on the third floor of the Unirea Department Store, next to the square of the same name, which houses 200 different outlets. In the years since 1999 the city has begun to acquire some large commercial malls. One of these is the Bucharest Mall, while the Plaza Romania is even larger. The Hanul cu Tei district in Lipscani is a paradise for those seeking antiques and works of art; there are numerous shops where real bargains are to be had. In the Artizanat stores, scattered around the city, you will find lots of folk art items at good prices.

Rich and fascinating, Romanian cuisine is an amalgam of influences from the Hungarian, German and Turkish culinary traditions. The foundations of local cuisine are found in its soups, meat dishes, dairy products and vegetables. You should try to sample everything, but don’t miss the saramura (smoked carp), the tocanita (meat soup with lots of different spices and seasoning), and the ghiveci (more than twenty different vegetables cooked in oil). Also worth trying are the sarmalutze, or cabbage rolls accompanied by zmidina, or yoghurt sauce and pureed corn, the local burgers known as mititei, and the patricieni, the sausages sold in the open-air markets. Another popular treat are the papanasi, or doughnuts with cream and cheese. Bucharest is also famous for its nightlife. The tourist renaissance has led to all sorts of new entertainment opportunities in the city, with many of the new venues comparable in quality to their western counterparts – but at much lower prices. You will find really nice places near Revolution Square, in Lipscani, in Calea Victoriei and in Herestau Park.

• International George Enescu Festival: One of the city’s major cultural events, the festival is held each September and features famous orchestras, chamber ensembles and opera companies in classic masterpieces. Accompanying the programme there are also piano, violin and singing competitions. The events take place at various venues around the city, like the Romanian Athenaeum, the Opera House and Palace.
• Cinema: April is a big month for movie fans, with two major film festivals: the Next Festival and the International Bucharest Film Festival.
• Music: The May International Jazz Festival brings a host of jazz fans to the city, while in June the Rock the City Festival attracts younger fans of rock music. There is also an event that appeals to a more specialist audience, the Early Music Festival in October, featuring works from the Baroque and Renaissance periods, as well as Byzantine music and Gregorian chants. In the same month, for dance enthusiasts, there is the International Festival of Contemporary Dance ‘Let’s Dance’.

Transport from the airport

Aegean Airlines flights land at the Henri Coanda International Airport in Bucharest, which boasts duty free shops, restaurants and cafes, banks and bureaus de change, as well as a post office and free WiFi. The airport is 16.5km from the city centre. You can get into town on buses 780 or 783, or take the train that links the airport to the main Bucharest rail station.