Tips

These few tips will help you keep your smile during your visit in Romania.

Bucharest is connected with the world’s major airports by regular and charter flights of Romanian air carriers (notably Tarom, the national carrier) or by the foreign airlines with offices in Bucharest (KLM, Air France, Lufthansa, Swiss, Turkish Airlines, Alitalia, British Airways, Australian Airlines…).

Actually, there are low cost companies operating in Bucharest, Cluj Napoca, Iasi and Timisoara, as well as other smaller cities.

Among the biggest international airports in Romania are the Henri Coanda Airport in Otopeni (18 km from Bucharest city center), Avram Iancu Intl. Airport in Cluj Napoca, International Airport in Iasi and the International Airport in Timisoara.
Transfers from the airport can be made by train (in Bucarest), airport shuttle bus or by taxi.

All taxi companies have their prices written on the car but if you want to make sure, you can verify the price of the transfer with the taxi driver. Check this with your travel agent. Tour operators provide transfers at very competitive rates.

International express trains connect the main central European capitals with Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca and other main cities in Romania.

For timetable see www.cfrcalatori.ro or the Austrian one www.oebb.at 

The principal access routes into Romania are: Berlin, Warsaw, Budapest-Petea E81; Wien, Prague, Budapest-Bors E60 or Nadlac E64 or Varsand E671; Trieste, Belgrade-Moravita E70 or Portile de Fier E70; Athens, Tirana, Sofia-Giurgiu E85; Istanbul, Sofia-Vama Veche E87; Moscow, Kiev, Chernovitz-Siret E85. All roads are marked in accordance with the international regulations.

When crossing the border, don’t forget to purchase the ROVIGNETA – the compulsory road tax for the use of all national roads and the motorways !!!

Actually you may buy it online on the website www.roviniete.ro

In the last years, general climate has changed.
Those who are thinking to visit Romania in the Summertime may expect temperatures up to 40°C in the South, and up to 30 in the other regions. Sometimes, you may have rather hard storms, but not tornadoes.
In winter, snow of about 15-25 cm, but not lasting more than two weeks, and temperatures up to 15°C below zero.

Driving is like in Continental Europe (on the right side of the road and overtaking on the left). When driving on international roads, your lights should be on during day time too.

An international driving permit (IDP) could be mandatory or at least useful if your driver’s license was issued outside of the EU. If you don’t have one and plan to drive in Romania, please make sure you check in advance if an IDP is mandatory in your particular case. Drivers with driving licenses that do not show a photo of the holder have been known to upset traffic police; try to get an IDP before you arrive.

– 50 km/h inside built-up areas (towns and villages)
– 90 km/h on main roads
– 100 km/h on national and European (E) roads
– 130 km/h on highways
There are fix and mobile speed cameras (speedometers) inside localities, as well as outside.

A road tax vignette (ROVINIETA in Romanian) should be bought after crossing the border from petrol stations. It allows you driving on national roads. For the moment, there are no highway taxes.

You may buy all sorts of fuel, including GPL, in all major petrol stations. Major fuel distributors are present in Romania, as well as in towns and along the roads.

The accepted alcoholemy is 0.00 !

Take care especially when driving through villages!
You can meet on the road hen, geese, different animals (cows, dogs, sheep etc.), bicyclists, carts etc. Frequently in the afternoon and in the evening, sometimes even by night, the main roads in the villages are quite populated. Driving slow in villages is also a matter of respect to local people…
Don’t believe all stories about driving on Romania roads! It’s true we have a latin spirit in driving, but don’t imagine that if you want to visit Romania and drive a car in Romania will be your worst decision you’ve ever made….

Besides Romanian (the official language), most of young people speak English, French, Spanish or Italian. In Transylvania, many people speak Hungarian or German too.

EU and American citizens don’t need any visa for entering Romania. An ID card is required for EU citizens. For non-EU citizens you will need to present a valid passport to enter the country.
All those having valid passports recognized by the Romanian State might obtain entry or transit visa from the Romanian diplomatic and consular offices abroad. Applicants must prove they have the means to support themselves financially for the period of their stay in Romania.
Full updated information about visas can be found on the web site of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Romania

National currency is LEU (plural LEI).
All major currencies are accepted in exchanges and banks. US$ notes issued before 1992 are accepted with difficulty.
Marked, torn or very used bank notes are often refused at the exchanges. Please ensure that every currency you bring is in good condition.

You may cash them especially in banks (the exchange is open currently till 4pm).
Many merchants, including hotels and restaurants, do not accept travellers cheques.

Visa and Mastercard/Eurocard, are accepted in most hotels, restaurants and some important shops. American Express is rarely accepted. You usually have to show your passport. It is however advisable to check in advance.

The ATM network is expanding rapidly. Depending on the bank that owns the ATM, but also your bank, there may be a daily or weekly limit  for cash withdrawals. 

If you want to withdraw money there are plenty of ATMs in towns, both at banks and other public places. In the villages there are rarely ATMs.

Actually, you may find in Romania most of medication for common use. As brand names differ, it could be wise to bring your own medication.

No special vaccination required.

The international country code is 0040. A landline always starts with a 02 or 03 while a mobile number always starts with a 07.

Your mobile phones work in Romania, provided that roaming is activated. Otherwise, one possible solution is to buy prepaid cards in Romania (Vodafone, Orange, Telekom). The only condition is that your mobile phones are not coded in another network.

You should know that in Romania there are no longer public telephones.

The national emergency number (Police, Ambulance, Fire Department) is 112. 

In most hotels, restaurants and cafés you will find free Wi-Fi hotspots.

220V/ 50 Hz AC, European plugs with grounding (SHUKO).