Visiting Targu Jiu: Things to Do, Best Hotel & More

Targu Jiu is a hidden gem in Romania, although it shouldn’t be. Everybody should know about this city and visit it, as it was the home of Romania’s famous sculptor Constantin Brancusi and the city itself has a lot to offer.

We visited Targu Jiu after many years, hopping in the car and driving for about 1.5 hours from Drobeta Turnu Severin. There aren’t great train connections from other major cities, but if hopefully today’s article will help you decide that you have to do all you can to visit it.

I can say that I was really impressed with the city, especially the central areas that we roamed around. A really pleasant surprise to see that Targu Jiu grew up so nicely since my last visit many years ago.

So let’s find out more about Targu Jiu in today’s article: top things to do and see, where to stay (hint: an AMAZING hotel!) and some personal impressions on this hidden gem in Romania.

Where to stay in Targu Jiu?

Without a doubt, the best hotel in Targu Jiu is Hotel Anna. You must check it out – although it’s a three star hotel, it is better than most I have visited in Romania, no matter their star rating.

anna hotel targu jiu

Amazing room designs (although the rooms are a bit on the small side), comfortable large beds, extremely clean and with very friendly staff. This is difficult to find no matter the cost, but Hotel Anna is actually fairly priced!

It’s also located close to the city center and the main attractions in the city, right across the street from a supermarket. I am sure you’ll love this place, even though it doesn’t look like much from the outside – it’s worth at least checking it out.

Click here to check out Anna Hotel in Targu Jiu

Targu Jiu: Top Things to See and Do

Targu Jiu might be a great place for expats to settle in or a quiet & nice retirement spot since it’s a bit off the beaten path – a city that you never see mentioned in travel brochures, unfortunately.

Also, for a short visit (a weekend or at least a full day), Targu Jiu has plenty to offer, especially if you’re into nature and art.

I told you that Romania’s greatest sculptor, Constantin Brancusi, lived here, so you can check out some of his art for free in various places in the city.

The city is beautiful even during the colder days of fall...
The city is beautiful even during the colder days of fall…

Targu Jiu has some of the most important works of Constantin Brancusi on display, for free: the Kissing Gate and the Table of Silence can be seen in the Constantin Brancusi park in the center of the city, while the Endless Column is just 10 minutes of walking away in the Endless Column Park.

Because of this, I am actually surprised that Targu Jiu doesn’t make it on many (if any) lists of places to see when in Romania – especially since it has more to offer than just the said sculptures.

Check them out below, as we saw them during our visit:

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The kissing gate (and Baby Romanian)
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The silence table and a nice view of the park
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The endless column

In the center of the city you can also find a nice pedestrian street with a lot of green areas, surrounded by shops, bakeries and pubs.

Strangely, restaurants are not as many as one would expect in this somewhat touristy area, but there are at least a couple of good options, so you won’t go hungry.

Or if you have some extra time on your hands, you can hop into a car and drive a few kilometers to the nearby village Cornesti where this insane-looking Castle-Restaurant (named Perla Restaurant) awaits:

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We just stopped for a photo: I initially thought, when I saw it from afar, that it’s a real castle and I was surprised with its great condition.

But when we got there and saw it’s a restaurant, we decided against entering as we had just eaten and had no reasons to fill our bellies some more.

So I can’t say if the food’s good, but apparently the interior is designed to fit its medieval theme, so it should be considered an interesting experience to say the least.

In the central area that we spent most of our time in, things looked really nice. A lot of options when it comes to shopping and sightseeing, plus you have the Jiu river going right through the middle of the city and offering great views as well.

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Targu Jiu is also spread on a larger area, so I doubt that it ever gets too crowded. There are many beautiful homes away from the city center, with nice gardens and pretty quiet too.

It did seem very chill and laid back – it could be the fact that it was a Sunday that we visited, but I doubt it gets too insane at any given moment of day or night.

All in all, I was really impressed with the city and, even though it could’ve been the fact that it was something I hadn’t seen for a long time, I considered it at least a bit better looking than Drobeta Turnu Severin, the city where I live in and a smaller city to retire to that I highly recommended.

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The city is home of numerous sculptures created by artists from all over the world
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There are indeed some beautiful sights here!

One of the biggest problems for Targu Jiu, however, is that it is a bit away from the major travel routes in Romania, the closest major cities being Craiova, Ramnicu Valcea, Drobeta Turnu Severin or Deva so not really the cities at the top of the “must visit” lists.

However, for those looking for something away off the beaten track and an otherwise beautiful city near the mountains, it would definitely be a great choice!

Things to know about Targu Jiu

This city existed even when the Dacians roamed the lands, even if it was just a small village back then. It is situated near the beautiful Jiu river – hence its name which translates as Jiu’s Fair – and close to the Carpathian mountains.

Around 82,000 people call it home at the moment, so it can be considered a decently-sized city.

Many of the people living there are or were coal miners as the areas around Targu Jiu are rich in coal deposits.

However, recent years have seen numerous layovers and coal mining is starting to grow less and less popular, with other job opportunities taking their place.

One of the best things you should know about Targu Jiu is the fact that it’s the birth place of Constantin Brancusi, the founder of modern sculpture and one of the most important sculptors of the 20th century. And, of course, one of Romania’s biggest personalities.

However, he lived much of his life in France and a few years ago the Romanian government managed to make fools of themselves after failing to buy one of his most important works of art – Wisdom of the Earth.

The piece was on sale by its owner and even though a donations campaign was set up and tens of thousands of Romanians contributed to raise money to buy the sculpture, they still didn’t manage to raise enough.

The sculpture that couldn't be bought
The sculpture that couldn’t be bought

The campaign, which ran under the motto “Brancusi is mine” apparently ended about $4 million short of the $11 million asking price of the sculpture, with donations rounding up to just $1.2 million, while around $6 million were offered by the state.

But at least some of his larger pieces of art can be seen for free in the city. Here are a couple more photos of them:

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Conclusion

Those looking for cities in Romania that are not as popular as the major ones, but are still charming and have a lot to offer – both for long term living and a quick visit of 1-3 days, Targu Jiu is a hidden gem you should discover.

Calin
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11 thoughts on “Visiting Targu Jiu: Things to Do, Best Hotel & More”

  1. That does indeed look like a nice place to settle in away from the maddening crowds. I love the Endless Column and the Kissing Gate. Doesn’t Bay Romanian look so cute right there? I like that the city has a lot of art and it looks like you can actually “breathe” there. I’m not too fond of huge cities where everything is so tightly packed. Great suggestion for someone looking for a bit off the beaten path. Nice one!

    Reply
  2. Hi Calin: Lovely pictures. So, no snow, yet? Are you expecting a white Christmas?
    I like this article because it was so inclusive. Who knew about Constantin Brancusi, the founder of modern sculpture and one of the most important sculptors of the 20th Century along with the failure of the Romanian Government to buy one of his most important works of art – “Wisdom of the Earth”?
    I definitely like all the green space. Also, “river cities,” are usually very attractive.
    I know VAT is added to most everything, but do different cities add local taxes (As they do in USA)?
    Also, does this city have “heating” issues, as your city DID?
    I wonder what the menu was in the Castle-Restaurant? (Did you hear what the new in-dish in Moscow is Rat Burger–Ugh!!!)
    Looking forward to more city reviews!
    ~Teil

    Reply
    • Hello Teil,

      We went to Targu Jiu in late October, actually, so it might look a bit different now. It actually snowed a little bit in my city (and all over Romania), so we’re definitely hoping for a White Christmas (Baby Romanian the most).

      Regarding the city, there are no city-added taxes that I know of in Targu Jiu or in Romania. I know that a few years ago you had to pay a very small fee to enter the Mamaia resort, but that was about it. I am not even sure if that “tax” still stands and if it’s something that you only have to pay during the summer. And regarding the heating issues, I don’t think that Targu Jiu had any problems – I haven’t read anything in the papers about it.

      Regarding the menu in the Castle-restaurant, I have no idea, but hopefully they didn’t serve ratburgers, although there are plenty of those in Romania as well, most likely 🙂

      Reply
  3. I have never been to Targu Jiu. I was very impressed with your pictures of the city. It looks close to the mountains and has pretty good train connections with Bucharest. The video had me dancing in the teacher’s room here in Japan. Regarding the statue “Wisdom of the Earth,” I think the price is a bit stiff. This statue is again private property that was confiscated during the communist period and then returned to the heirs after the Revolution. They have promptly decided to cash in. I think some nominal compensation, maybe even 1 million euros, is due the former owners but 12 million Euros???? That strikes me as very greedy, and I can think of many other things Romania needs besides this relatively small statue. Judging by the donations so far, most Romanians seem to agree with me.

    Reply
    • Exactly! The owners might be a bit greedy, but they are allowed to do whatever they feel is necessary. The whole thing was a poor attempt at making something happen. With so many people having to worry a lot about that they’re going to eat and how are they going to pay their bills, few still care about art, let alone expensive art. But indeed, they could find better ways to spend that amount of money!

      Reply
  4. This is a great article, thank you! I really want to visit Târgu Jiu as a day trip from Drobeta-Turnu because of Brancusi! Do you happen to know if there is a bus between the two towns? I will only have my bicycle (as we are cycling along the Danube) and it is a bit far to cycle as an excursion! Thank you so much for any help you might be able to give me.

    Reply

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