Romania has much more to offer than beautiful villages in Transylvania or vampires! Its beaches along the Black Sea coast are beautiful and, for the most part, underrated gems waiting to be discovered.
Today, I will help you discover them by sharing the best 12 beaches in the country – from popular, well-known ones to quiet, wild, and lesser-known beaches. After all, I spent 2 years living in Constanta, next to the beach, and I loved exploring everything that Romania has to offer.
The good news is that you can basically check out all of these beaches in one day if you have a car and quickly travel from one to another to pick your favorite. Or simply choose any of the ones below – I’m sure you will still be amazed.
With all these in mind, let’s waste no time and instead let’s check out Romania’s best beaches below!
- Best for Families: Eforie Nord, Neptun, Venus
- Best for Parties and Young People: Costinesti, Vama Veche
- Best for Quiet Nature Lovers: Vadu, Corbu
- Best City Beaches: Zoom, Modern Beach
- Unique Experience: Gura Portitei, 2 Mai
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12. Corbu Beach
Until recently, this was a wild beach, but new constructions – restaurants and taverns mostly – have started to pop up.
Still, the Corbu beach (located near the village with the same name) is still generally off the beaten path, pretty much wild, offering privacy and, surprisingly, silence.
Even though weeds are growing here and there and the beach itself is not as maintained as others on the list, it’s perfect if you’re looking for a beautiful spot a bit off the beaten path.
Location: Google Maps link.
11. Vadu Beach
This is the second wild-ish beach in Romania, but also one of the last that hasn’t seen massive construction projects yet.
As a result, it’s silent and off the beaten path – something you rarely can find in the country.
A bit secluded – only accessible via a dirt road, 9km away from the Corbu village and a stone’s throw away from the Vadu village, the beach still offers some fine, nice sand and shallow waters.
This is the place that you must visit if you want silence, total relaxation and a deeper connection with nature. But don’t expect any amenities nearby (no shops, no restaurants).
Location: Google Maps link.
10. Zoom Beach in Constanta
Since moving to Constanta, I’ve started to appreciate the beaches in the city a lot more than before.
Zoom Beach is a really large and nice sandy beach situated in the Northern part of the city.
It shares some sand with the nearby beach – Three Slippers – but it is the fortunate one, being larger and having better water (more shallow).
The main advantage here is that it is right in the city, so if you are staying in Constanta, or even Mamaia it’s easy to get here. Make sure to also read my recommended neighborhoods to live in Constanta, since we’re here…
Location: Google Maps link.
9. Modern Beach in Constanta
Another beach that is located in Constanta, the Modern beach used to be considered dirty and crowded, but the truth is that in recent years things have changed a lot and this beach is now clean and beautiful.
It does get crowded, as the people living in Constanta choose it as their main destination – and also those traveling to the city without a car – but it can also be surprisingly empty during the weekdays when the locals are at work.
This is also the place where the Neversea festival is taking place (one of Romania’s biggest and best music festivals), so it can be an added bonus if you’re here in early July.
The biggest con of the beach is that it was recently expanded (like most beaches in the country) and the new “sand” they brought in is not fine at all – on the contrary, it’s full of relatively large shells which make wearing slippers or water shoes a must.
Still, the area close to the water is still fine sand.
Location: Google Maps link.
8. Neptun Beach
Offering the largest stretch of sandy beaches from the Olimp to Saturn resorts, Neptun Beach is a stretch of various private beaches, one better than the other.
I actually prefer the Northern part, near the aptly named Neptun Lake 3, a beach that is a bit less crowded and especially a bit more silent than the others. You have the lake to one side, the sea to the other… it’s really beautiful!
If you enjoy the crowds and the party vibe, go down South to the Space Beach area, where you will have more people, more amenities and a lot of music.
In all cases, the sand is fine and the beach itself wide, with nice, shallow water, as well as long piers to walk on if you need to do some extra exercise.
Location: Google Maps link.
7. 2 Mai
A small, beautiful beach, 2 Mai is a haven for naturists. But worry not, if that’s not something you plan to do – there’s a regular beach too!
I took the photo above from a pier looking at the naturist beach, but the regular one is at the back and positioned in such a way that you can’t really see from one part to the other.
As a bonus, the water here is extremely shallow and clean (and extremely warm since it’s in a small gulf), and you even have small huts you can rent on the beach if you want to spend a few nights there.
Location: Google Maps link.
6. Vama Veche Beach
This is one of those places where legends were written. Located close to the border with Bulgaria, one of Romania’s neighbors, Vama Veche beach was initially the place for nature lovers and rockers to meet and enjoy the sea, good music and abuse substances of all kinds.
That’s where you could see nudists mixed together with people wearing leather jackets and boots, people sleeping in tents nearby and exchanging drinks with people they don’t know.
Vama Veche was actually different and special… but like most things today, it became more and more popular because of the stories you heard about things happening there, so now many of the original Vamaiots (this is how the people going there were called) are complaining that things are no longer the same.
And while Vama Veche has indeed changed, it still is a place where open minded folks gather, sing songs together, mingle and enjoy life.
The beach and the sea are not as important when you visit Vama Veche – the beach area itself is relatively small, but the experience matters. Obviously, the place is not really suited for kids, although you will see plenty there as well.
Location: Google Maps link.
5. Eforie Nord
This resort is considered to be most suitable for families, so expect to see here fewer younger people and more families with kids, although it is growing in popularity each year.
Older people choose it as well for the nearby treatment facilities – seeing them covered in mud and baking under the sun is not an uncommon sight here.
This is actually the place we have visited the most since our son was born (and before moving to Constanta) and we all had great fun in Eforie Nord.
Yes, the beaches are crowded (I feel like I’m starting to sound like a broken record, but this is the truth) and noisy, but also more affordable.
And if you get tired of the sand or the water, there’s a large water park (also on the beach) where you can spend a nice day or just a few hours.
Eforie Nord has seen massive investments recently and as a result (combined with the lower prices) it was the most popular beach in over the Romania past couple of years, taking the crown from Mamaia.
Location: Google Maps link.
4. Costinesti Beach
The student capital of Romania’s beaches, Costinesti is all about affordability and youthful energy. Expect nonstop music, plenty of pubs, cheap drinks, and lots of fun.
You will still see families here, but it’s the area with the lowest average age on the Romanian side of the Black Sea coast. I have to admit that I haven’t been to Costinesti in quite some time, and the time spent there last is mostly a blur, but I do remember enjoying it as well as the beach – but mostly the parties.
It’s also the place where you have the famous shipwreck (pictured above) – a place where the bravest swim to, climb up on and jump in the water from to prove their bravery.
And, for a few years now, it’s also home of the Beach, Please Festival – one of the biggest and most popular in Romania.
Location: Google Maps link.
3. Venus Beach
Part of the set of resorts with their names coming from the Greek gods, Venus is the place that grew the most in recent years. It’s still not as popular as others and not as party-oriented, so better for relaxing.
The place itself is not very big – on the contrary – but it has its charm and the water is really, really nice, just as the sand.
You can basically walk on the beach to nearby Saturn to the South or Cap Aurora to the North and not really know that you’re not in Venus anymore… but that’s exactly part of the charm.
When in Venus, we stayed at Hotel Dana – which we highly recommend, even though it’s not very close to the beach itself.
Location: Google Maps link.
2. Gura Portitei Beach
My only recommendation that’s actually in the Danube Delta and not a traditional summer resort. If you’re looking for a truly special experience, this is it!
You can only reach this location by boat, but it’s totally worth the “trouble” of getting there. It’s the only resort in Europe where the Danube Delta meets the Black Sea. And it’s spectacular!
The beach itself is extremely beautiful, you have the delta behind you, a lot of wild life (especially birds) nearby, but also golden sands and a perfect sea.
Location: Google Maps link.
1. Mamaia Beach
It’s almost cliché to rank Mamaia first in any kind of top list related to the Romanian beaches, but the truth is that it is considered the best place for all the right reasons: it’s the place where the biggest amount of money was poured in and you can see that.
Mamaia beach is also the most expensive resort in Romania (but prices are still affordable by Western standards), with a nice, long beach and many hotels offering breathtaking views of the sea.
I’ve recommended the best hotels in Mamaia in a previous article – make sure to check them out as well.
The good thing is that you can skip the higher prices and the luxury amenities on the beach by going a bit up North to Mamaia Sat.
Now, there are plenty of private beaches in the area and I am marking my favorite below – but do have in mind that due to a recent investment to expand the beach, the quality of the sand (which used to be fine) went downhill and is now full of large seashells and difficult to walk on.
So I recommend bringing a pair of water shoes, as it’s going to take years before the fine sand will be back. This goes for the entire area of the Mamaia beach, not just my favorite one recommended below.
Location: Google Maps link of the beach we usually visit.
Things to know about the best beaches in Romania
Initially, I wanted to stick to a more regular “top 10” list, but the truth is that I simply couldn’t. Therefore, we have 12 amazing Romania beaches that you should check out when traveling here.
Before checking out the actual list, it’s worth saying that one of the longest stretches of sand and beautiful places for you to soak in the sun and enjoy the Black Sea actually begins to the South of Constanta in Olimp and stretches all the way down South to Saturn, with Neptun, Jupiter and Cap Aurora in between.
There are basically 5 resort towns sharing this uninterrupted beach – which remains equally impressive anywhere you go, so this is the area you should check out if you really want a ton of options.
It’s also a must say that the beaches in Romania are usually extremely crowded, despite their size and unfortunately very noisy with pubs seemingly competing for the “I can go louder” award or something…
I prefer to hear the waves and relax, but in most of these places you’ll have music blasted through huge speakers, with terraces competing against each other in a battle of the decibels…
Add to that the fact that you have people roaming the beaches, yelling and screaming to advertise the products they sell – sometimes with huge poems that are supposed to be funny and which many people appreciate.
Sure, it is much better if you manage to get closer to the sea – but you should expect to have to go early in the morning to catch a spot there.
Plus, most of those premium areas are filled with lounger chairs and umbrellas that have to be rented (prices ranging between 5 – 10 Euros per day per lounger).
This is definitely something you can grow used to – you don’t have another choice, actually, and it’s not really that bad: there are still areas on these popular beaches where you won’t hear the music (as much) so you have some options… but be prepared for a lot of noise and huge crowds of people.
All in all, I really believe that even if you end up with a coin toss, choosing any of the beaches recommended above will result in a perfect experience. Or at least paint a clear picture of what to expect from basically any beach in Romania.
Do you have a favorite beach in Romania? Let us all know by sharing your thoughts down below.
Having lived in Romania for over 4 decades, I am here to tell you everything about this beautiful country. I hold a bachelor’s degree in Journalism, I love traveling and I’ve been writing about Romania since 2013. Currently living in Constanta.
It’s funny, even before reading about the Vema Veche beach, I guessed it was a naturist beach or was at one point. It just had that vibe to me.. hahah! Since l’m not really a beach person, I wouldn’t really mind any of them. Once in the water, I like the beach, but then l worry about all my stuff on the sand. We live even closer to the beach now, and didn’t go even once this past summer. He hates to go alone, and l hate to go :-). I will make the effort the coming summer though. I need to start enjoying it.
I was thinking about that: the idea of living near the beach always sounds so good for people who live anywhere else… but I was thinking if the ones there won’t get bored of it eventually. I personally like to hear the waves more than the sand itself or even the water… and this is one of the reasons why I don’t really like many of the beaches in Romania: the music blasting from the speakers takes that joy away from me 🙂