Bucharest, Romania isn’t often listed among the beautiful capitals in Europe. You will more likely find descriptions of grey, uninteresting city, and when I see those I keep wondering if the author actually had a chance to visit Bucharest.

I personally believe the capital of Romania is one of the most underrated places in Europe and one of the must-visit destinations in Romania. The city that offers so much, for each taste.

I’ve been there twice and it was not enough to enjoy all the great things to do in Bucharest, there are so many of them! This city is like a matryoshka, once you scratch the surface and uncover one layer there are so many more Bucharest attractions that it seems at first!

But today, instead of telling you what to see in Bucharest, I just want to show you how pretty this city is and share some of my favorite Bucharest pictures I took during my trips there. Because this city really is pretty!

Why you should travel to Bucharest

Bucharest reminds me of Warsaw and Belgrade a bit. Many people claim those cities are uninteresting and ugly which is not true.

They all are a peculiar mix of architecture, from beautiful to ugliful that only connoisseurs (like me) would appreciate. Those three capitals are difficult to define and that’s what makes them so special.

You might have heard that Bucharest is often referred to as “the little Paris”. This title was given to the city around 1900 mostly for its elegant, Paris-alike architecture that you can find in Bucharest still today.

There are plenty of beautiful buildings and palaces around the Old Town and central Bucharest, you can find them randomly when wandering around the city. There is even the Arch of Triumph similar to the one in Paris!

At the same time, there are also many interesting buildings in other styles. My favorite ones are those in what I call Romanian style – I haven’t seen it anywhere else and it somehow reminds me of the monasteries that you can find in the country (even if these are just regular buildings, not religious ones).

Bucharest is also home to the Romanian Palace of the Parliament – the World’s largest civilian building with an administrative function. It is really enormous and no picture can show how grand it is. While it looks impressive from the outside, the interior is simply mind-blowing with all the marble and rich decoration.

There is a tragic story behind the building – it was the creation of a madman, Nicolae Ceaușescu who ferociously ruled Romania for during the communist times. A big part of central Bucharest had to be demolished to make space for the Palace of the Parliament, destroying the beautiful cityscape.

Still, the building itself is a good reason to visit Bucharest as this is a real architectural and design masterpiece.

But there are more stunning interiors in Bucharest that will make your jaw drop. You can find so much beauty hidden from the street view! Some of the buildings, like my absolutely favorite Romanian Athenaeum, are even used as the filming locations – I was so surprised when I saw it in “Killing Eve”!

If you are looking for Instagrammable places in Bucharest there are plenty of them too, including the umbrella lane that is popular all over the world (and it sure looks cute!).

And then there is a very cool ethnographic museum near the center! Yet another reason to visit Bucharest!

Best Bucharest photo locations

Now, if you want to take some good pictures of Bucharest here are some of my favorite Bucharest photo locations (that will surely look good on Instagram too!):

• Palace of the Parliament, both inside and outside
• Old Bucharest
• Embankment between Piata Unirii and Calea Victoriei
• Romanian Athenaeum, especially inside
• Macca – Vilacrosse Passage
• Umbrella lane at Victoria Passage
• Museum of Bucharest, especially inside
• Cărturești Carusel bookstore at Strada Lipscani and at Strada Verona
• Cișmigiu Gardens
• “Dimitrie Gusti” National Village Museum

But there are so many more picturesque spots in Bucharest! Sometimes a random street view or a building can intrigue and impress you – that’s why I enjoy taking pictures in Bucharest so much!

Bucharest pictures

And here is a bunch of Bucharest pictures to show you how pretty and diverse this city is. You will quickly see that you should visit Bucharest too!

Further reading

I published many articles about Romania that you might find useful when planning your trip there. Here are some of them:

• 25 Best Places to Visit in Romania
• 23 Great Things to Do in Bucharest, Romania
• 10 Awesome Places to Visit on Day Trips from Bucharest
• 15 Best Things to Do in Brasov, Romania
• How to Get from Bucharest to Brasov
• Visit Sinaia, Romania – home to the amazing Peles Castle
• 9 Great Things to Do in Cluj-Napoca, the Vibrant City in Romania
• Why you should visit Timisoara, Romania
• and many more!

If you are looking for articles about a specific destination – check out the map with all the articles I’ve published (and their locations). You can also join my Facebook group about traveling in the Balkans and ask your questions there.

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For the end I left a few announcements that might interest you:

• Sign up to my newsletter or follow me on Bloglovin to get updates about the new posts
• Join my Facebook group about Eastern Europe, the Balkans and former USSR and connect with fellow travellers and enthusiasts of these regions – just click here!
• I’ve included a few handy links of services and products I personally like and use so you can plan your own trip to Romania too. They are often affiliate links. This means I will get a small commission if you book/purchase anything through my links, at no extra costs for you. Thank you!

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