A little while ago I shared with you a list of the best hotels in Mamaia, but the truth is that your visit to Romania might not always take you to the seaside, but instead in the huge and crowded Bucharest, Romania’s capital city.
And of course, if it’s a short stay that we’re talking about, you can easily find a hotel for your stay, but I would personally suggest you take the different route and look at AirBnb where you can find some short stay apartments in Bucharest – in the heart of the city, get a better price and a local experience.
Plus, it’s safe and you will meet some really nice Romanian people along the way.
Although prices in Romania are relatively low compared to the rest of the world, Bucharest is pretty expensive, especially when it comes to accommodation. You could find a nice hostel for cheap (but share the room), or a hotel which would be pretty expensive.
And until I publish a list of the best hotels to choose in Bucharest, let’s check out my findings on AirBnb for a short stay vacation in Bucharest.
I have only selected entire apartments for you below, but if you do your own research, you can easily find a shared room for a much better price. But if you want your privacy and a house all for yourself, these are some great options.
Also, I only went for the central areas (again, if that doesn’t matter that much to you, you can find some better deals):
Brand New Studio Heart of Bucharest
You can find it here, it usually is around 30 Euros per nigh.
Unirii Square in Old City Center
Although this is probably the least impressive on this list, the apartment is in a prime location and it has great reviews. Plus, it usually goes for less than 30 Euros per night, which is great!
Central Bohemian Studio Old City
Not only that this one is also usually under 30 Euros per night, but it also has a hidden extra bed. It’s in a prime location (not that it matters, but I spent a few years in the area myself because my University was close by) and also close to the US embassy – if that matters. If not – it’s central, close to the metro station and all the nice life in Bucharest. Check it out here.
Chic and central at Cismigiu Park
You know you’re going to stay in a nice place if it has been featured in a magazine here in Romania. It’s a bit more expensive at around 40 Euros per night, but it looks great and it’s right near the Cismigiu Park. Click here to check it out.
Elegance Studio – Cismigiu Gardens
Another one situated near the Cismigiu park, this one will really let you live like many Romanians and experience cooking on the balcony (in order to save space, many people have turned their large balconies in small kitchens). Check it out here to see for yourself.
2 Rooms- Unirii Square / Old City#1
I am not a fan of leather sofas, but for some reason this apartment clicked with me, so it might do the same with you. Plus, it has an old audio station in case you have some audio cassettes that you need playing. Check it out here and it could be yours for about 35 Euros per night.
City Center – Superior Apartment
Find out more about this apartment here.
So… these are my picks. There are a ton more on AirBnb, and all you have to do is search and find the one you really like. I would suggest, if you don’t go with any of my recommendations, to check out the reviews of the place and make sure that you are in a good area. Basically, a long as you are near the metro, it’s all good – you can get to the city center or other major locations really easy.
Also, if you want to go over my budget of 40 Euros per day, you can find some really luxuriant places for truly unforgettable stays. If not, the ones above are really good, I’d say!
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Wow! A lot of these look really cool. I would never have pictured it, and the prices are reasonable. I did see once on Househunters International, a couple that did the balcony kitchen thing. I didn’t realize it was that common. Good choices 🙂
Yes, it is pretty common. I personally don’t like it, because you don’t have enough space for a full kitchen, but when the space is small, you have to compromise a little.
Oh, and I absolutely love House Hunters International – however, it’s impossible for me to watch it online in Romania as it’s locked to the US and we only have one TV station that airs the same two (old) seasons over and over again.
Have you tried downloading hola? It’s free, and works with google chrome browser. You can “choose” what country you want to be from. It’s how l watch my Netflix
I’ll give it a try… I only found House Hunters International on Amazon Prime, though and I don’t think I will be able to fool them, but it’s worth trying 🙂
There are some episodes on hulu.com using hola for free. There are also a bunch of episodes on Vimeo.com for free.
Calin:
Yes, the rooms look most inviting. I presume there are kitchen facilities included for those of us who want to save some money and cook for themselves. (I always look for a way to save my shekels. I reckon discounts are applied for longer stays, also?)
From what I’ve seen Bucharest could be much more attractive if they’d stop with the humongous billboards (covering the buildings). It actually makes me nauseous looking at these:
http://ts1.mm.bing.net/th?&id=HN.608052028237613476&w=300&h=300&c=0&pid=1.9&rs=0&p=0
http://ts1.mm.bing.net/th?&id=HN.608035969352469746&w=300&h=300&c=0&pid=1.9&rs=0&p=0
http://ts1.mm.bing.net/th?&id=HN.608041913595266099&w=300&h=300&c=0&pid=1.9&rs=0&p=0
http://ts1.mm.bing.net/th?&id=HN.608051341045402546&w=315&h=300&c=0&pid=1.9&rs=0&p=0
I understand Bucharest is very safe, and walking alone at night isn’t much of an issue (unlike most every major city in the USA). I know Bucharest is a very “happenin’ place,” but I couldn’t imagine living there–it’s too hectic and frenetic for this old guy. I figure maybe a week to check it out, then visit the more attractive places in your country. Give me the beauty of Piatra Neamt;-)
http://www.govoyage.ro/Cazare/albume/15122/Piatra-Neamt-11.jpg
Have you ever heard of “Rick Steves’ Europe”? He’s a popular American travel guide who has shown us, on TV, most of Europe. He’s done episodes on Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Slovakia, Slovenia, etc., but for some reason he has not done Romania. He disses Bucharest on his site, though. That pi**es me off because he’s not giving Romania a “fair shake.” There’s obviously A LOT more to your lovely country than just Bucharest (with it’s nauseating billboards;-).
Thanks for your insights!
~Teil (USA)
Yes, Teil, this is the advantage of getting an apartment – they all have kitchens so you can save a lot on cooking. The prices are for tourists, since you can easily rent a place like the ones listed above for 3-400 Euros per month 🙂 Still, they are better than hotels especially because of the fully equipped kitchens, plus the fact that they are in very central locations.
The big billboards on the buildings are mostly just in the city center and mostly in Unirii Square – the rest of the city is pretty much free of these huge ads covering the buildings 🙂
Piatra Neamt is considered the greenest city in Romania, with my home city – Drobeta Turnu Severin – coming in at second. On the other side, these two cities are at the bottom of the “best cities to live in” because of the lack of jobs and in my city’s case, also the lack of entertainment options (we still have no cinema and the main theater is under repairs for a couple years already). So… you win some, you lose some (but you really lose the least by not relying on an income from the country).
As my husband said, Teil, the pictures of the billboards are on the Unirea shopping center. THE CENTER of all centers 😛 You can find pretty pictures with Bucharest too. Here is a view of another centered location, it is called the University, and the high building is the biggest hotel in town, the Intercontinental hotel: http://www.independent.co.uk/incoming/article9218775.ece/binary/original/bucharest.jpg
You can see the billboards are missing here, and you can also see the biggest theater in the city, the white building with the brown rooftop.
This is a view of one of our main avenues, no billboards here, only apartment buildings, that leads to the Parliament Palace : https://bogdanphotos.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/dsc09544.jpg
A closer and daily look here: https://unknownbucharestdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/unirii-boulevard-view-to-the-parliament-palace-bucharest.jpg
And here: http://cache.marriott.com/propertyimages/b/buhro/phototour/buhro_phototour115.jpg?Log=1
And the Dambovita river runs down the middle: http://imgc.allpostersimages.com/images/P-473-488-90/40/4053/YKILF00Z/posters/marco-cristofori-dambovita-river-bucharest-romania-europe.jpg
And here: http://mw2.google.com/mw-panoramio/photos/medium/6295257.jpg
And this is the old center, the place you want to go for fun, drinks and food: http://www.goldentulipbucharest.com/sites/default/files/styles/hero-image-slide/public/thumbnails/imageold_city_center.jpg?itok=CgsuKXPf
This too: http://www.google.ro/imgres?imgurl=http://www.winerist.com/images/uploads/Bucharest_Old_City_Center.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.winerist.com/tours/romania/romanian-wine-path&h=445&w=880&tbnid=YxSySG8u_CdDVM:&zoom=1&docid=S8n-fhr7vp8Q0M&ei=R0joVJ6fF4baPb27gIgF&tbm=isch&ved=0CDEQMygSMBI&biw=1350&bih=632
I’m not trying to convince you that Bucharest is the place to be, it’s not if you don’t want busy life and A LOT of entertainments and distractions in the center. You can also find quiet areas, and I bet it’s a HUGE difference than what you would expect an American city to be like when you say “loud and busy”
Wow! Absolutely beautiful!!!!
Wow, C – some absolutely gorgeous places here, and pretty inexpensive too! I love seeing all of the different decors at each place. Thanks for sharing. 🙂
Unfortunately, not all the places here look as nice as those recommended in this article, but these are indeed good!
Wow, you found some very, very beautiful places! Thank you for that article! Great!
I am happy you enjoyed them. Thanks for stopping by!