Three Weeks in Romania – Our Expenses

Three Weeks in Romania

After Turkiye, we decided to spend about three weeks in Romania. Our flight from Antalya via Istanbul arrived in Bucharest around 8:30 PM. Since we needed to pick up a rental car, it was best to spend the night in Bucharest before driving to Brașov 3 hours away.  Therefore, we found a cheap hotel near the airport to get a good night’s sleep. We could then take a nice slow drive the next day after getting a local SIM card for our internet connectivity.

We had never been to Romania and didn’t know what to expect. However, we were pleasantly surprised by the friendly people, great food, and ease of communication. Luckily, we only ran into two people that didn’t speak English or enough to communicate easily. One of them was working at the ticket office of a fortified church we visited, the other one was working at a grocery store. The lady at the ticket office spoke German so that worked for us. I think the one at the grocery store didn’t want to speak English, she was a little grumpy or tired as it was almost closing time.

After spending time in Georgia, we were concerned the roads would be similar in condition. Luckily, they were in very good condition for the most part. However, the drivers were a little aggressive, not like Georgia, but somewhat aggressive.

Where Were We?

We were based in Brașov for 12 nights and Bucharest for 7 (including our arrival night). However, we only had the car for 16 days, so we did day trips when possible. Unfortunately, I did not get permission to cross borders with the rental car, so we could not go into Bulgaria. However, we went to Ruse on the Romanian border with Bulgaria and had lunch on the Danube River. Ruse was only an hour’s drive south of Bucharest so it was an easy day trip. The last few days in Bucharest we did not have a car and relied on our feet and Bolt/Uber to get around. That was a good decision as parking was limited around the apartment and it was all paid, no free parking.

We did eat out more than usual and only cooked a few times. Since we were in more touristy areas, it was more expensive which is reflected in the dining costs below.

Itinerary

* indicates where we stayed at least one night

Bucharest *

Brașov *

Bran (Dracula’s Castle)

Brașov *

Bucharest *

Ruse

Bucharest *

Budget for Three Weeks in Romania (estimated)

Please check out my videos on YouTube from this and other trips.