Local Information
Bucharest Museums
- Art Museum: http://www.mnar.arts.ro/
- Popular Art Museum: http://www.muzeultaranuluiroman.ro/
- Village Museum: http://www.muzeul-satului.ro/
- Enescu Museum: http://www.muzeul-enescu.ro/
- Natural Science Museum: http://www.antipa.ro/
- Cotroceni Palace: http://www.muzeulcotroceni.ro/
Interesting things and other information regarding the surroundings
There are just too many interesting things and places to see and try in Bucharest to fit in just one list. Therefore we recommend the following sites as search base for additional information:
- Bucharest tourism: http://www.romaniatourism.com/bucharest.html
- Bucharest guide: http://www.romaniatourism.com/bucharest.html
- Bucharest travel guide: http://wikitravel.org/en/Bucharest
- Bucharest interactive map: http://www.salutbucuresti.ro/harta/?lang=en
- Bucharest events: http://www.sapteseri.ro/
- Bucharest events: http://www.afterhours.ro/
- Cotroceni Mall: http://www.aficotroceni.ro/
- Unirea Shoping Center: http://www.unireashop.ro/
Bus & trams. Bucharest has hundreds of bus (and trolleybus) routes and tens of trams, serving every part of the city as well as a number of suburban villages. Most services are very crowded, and you should keep your wits about you, as well as your hand on your wallet at all times: pickpockets are rife.
Buses and trams run from very early in the morning (around 04:30) to around 23:00 (earlier at weekends), after which the night buses takeover. These serve all areas of the capital throughout the night, with all routes depart from Piata Unirii. Most night bus services run at hourly intervals.
In order to ride Bucharest's buses, trolleybuses or trams, you need to buy an Activ or Multiplu card in advance. Both are available at the little RATB kiosks which can be found next to major bus and tram stops.
The Multiplu card (which is blue and white) costs 1.60 lei and needs to be loaded (when purchasing) with two to ten journeys (which each cost 1.30 lei). You can also choose to load it with a pass valid for one day's unlimited travel on all buses, trolleybuses and trams for 8 lei. After the initial purchase, the Multiplu card cannot be topped-up. The green and white Activcard costs 3.70 lei but can be topped-up with anything from 2.60 to 50 lei at a time.
When boarding buses, trolleybuses and trams you need to validate your Multiplu or Activ card at one of the orange machines dotted around the vehicles. Just wave the card next to the machine until you here the beep: the screen will tell you how many journeys or how much credit you have left.
Metro. Bucharest's metro has four lines, with a fifth currently under construction. Although relatively modern (the first section opened only in 1979) many of the network's stations are shabby and in need of refurbishment. Fortunately, most of the metro's actual trains are new and the system is cheap, reliable and quick.
The line of most use for short-stay visitors to the Romanian capital is the north-south M2 line (going from Pipera to Berceni) which stops at Piata Victoriei, Piata Romana, Piata Universitatii and Piata Unirii, as well as at Aviatorilor (for Herastrau Park). Services on line M3, which serves Gara de Nord and many residential areas, can be infrequent, as can line M1, which runs on a similar yet circular route and stops at Gara de Nord.
Tickets for the metro can be purchased at all metro stations. Tickets valid for two journeys cost 5 lei, while tickets valid for ten journeys cost a bargain 20 lei. You can also buy a daily ticket for 8 lei, while a weekly season ticket costs 25 lei.
Taxi. Taxis are the other alternative for urban traveling. The important thing to remember when getting into a taxi in Bucharest is that there are two kinds: those which are operated by a tried and trusted taxi company (good) and independents (usually bad, often very bad).
By and large, trustworthy taxis are easy to spot as they are emblazoned with the name and phone number of the company they are associated with (such as AS, Cobalcescu, Confort, Cristaxi, Meridian, Mondial, Pelican and Speed). To counter this, some dodgy taxi drivers plaster copy-cat logos all over their cabs: logos that look cunningly like those of decent taxi companies. The best way to avoid being ripped off however is to pay careful attention to the tariffs, displayed on the driver and passenger door of all taxis. There should just be one single tarif displayed, and anything higher than 1.69 lei per kilometre should start alarm bells ringing. Indeed: never pay more than 1.69 lei per kilometre. Be extra careful when getting into a taxi around Gara de Nord, Baneasa Airport, Bucuresti Mall, Piata Universitatii, Piata Unirii and the Old Town/Lipscani area, especially at night. When leaving a hotel or restaurant, always have the concierge or waiter order you a cab. At Otopeni Airport, ignore any taxi drivers who approach you in the arrivals hall, and use the new taxi ordering system.
As an alternative to the standard taxis, there are also now a couple of companies offering a more professional service - and smarter cars - than a standard taxi. One of these is VMS CityShuttle, a taxi service which offers cabs at much the same price as standard taxis, the only difference being that there is a fixed price. They also offer airport transfers and run tours of Bucharest and its surroundings, as well as the Prahova Valley and southern Transylvania. See the website cityshuttle.ro for more details.
Uber is also now present in Bucharest, so if you have an Uber account and the app your phone you can use it while in the city. Prices are much the same as standard taxis, except that there is a minimum fee of six lei.
*The information is provided from "inyour pocket"