Things to Know Before Visiting Cluj-Napoca

​If you haven’t visited Cluj-Napoca in Romania, then it’s time to start planning your next trip! I visited Cluj for the first time and loved everything about it. The city is easy to navigate with beautiful architecture, the cafes and restaurants have well thought-out décor, and the surrounding landscape is stunning. But most of all, the people are so friendly and welcoming!

​Traveling to Cluj is easy and here are a few things to know to make the trip even smoother.

Getting to Cluj

​Cluj international airport is not big, but it flies to several major European hubs like Frankfurt and London. Once you land in Cluj, you can rent a car or take a taxi or Uber to downtown. It’s about a 20-minute drive with moderate traffic, but can be longer during rush hour.

The main square in Cluj, Piata Unirii.

Getting Around Cluj

​Within downtown, everything is walkable. Union Square (Piata Unirii) is at the center and most things are within a 5-minute walk. There are also taxis and Ubers that you can take to go places further away.
 
To visit attractions outside of Cluj, it’s most convenient to rent a car. There are public buses too, but having a car gives you the freedom of stopping on the roadside to take photos. Note that there may be unpaved dirt roads but I didn’t have any issues.

Where to Stay

​I recommend Airbnbs because they feel the coziest and the host can share tips on what to do around Cluj. My Airbnb studio was only $20 per night in a great location. 

The old town district is lined with restaurants and people socializing on the streets.

Safety

​The city is extremely safe. The people are friendly to tourists and never at one point did I feel unsafe. At dinner one day, I saw someone leave their luggage unattended at the restaurant lobby and enjoyed dinner a few tables away. Obviously still be cautious when traveling, but generally Cluj is safe.

Cost

​Cluj has the lowest cost of living in Europe and things are inexpensive compared to US standards. A typical meal is about 10 leis (~$2.50 USD) and a fancy meal will run about 40 leis (~$10 USD). Coming from the US, this was a shocker to me! One thing I did find surprising was that coffee and ice cream still cost about $2-3 USD despite everything else being so cheap.

Cabbage rolls stuffed with minced pork. Sooo delicious!

Food

​The food is amaaazing! There are a ton of highly-rated restaurants serving anything from Italian food to local Romanian cuisine. Cabbage is big in Romanian cuisine so you’ll find cabbage on almost any menu – Cabbage a la Cluj, stuffed cabbage, cabbage soup, cabbage everything! Mici, Romanian sausages, are also delicious.

People

​Clujians, as they call it, are extremely welcoming and friendly to tourists. People at restaurants and bars are always curious where visitors come from and open to have a conversation. Most of them also speak English which makes communication a lot easier. 

​I had a great time in Cluj and hopefully this will inspire more people to visit!