Visit Sinaia

A taste of Sinaia

Sinaia is one of the most beautiful mountain destinations in Romania — a green Belle Époque resort wedged into the steep wooded slopes of the Bucegi Mountains, at the bottom of the Prahova Valley between Bucharest and Braşov. The headline sight is the magnificent Peleș Castle, the 19th-century summer residence of King Carol I of Romania, designed in 1873 in an extravagant German neo-Renaissance style with carved wooden staircases, frescoed reception halls, and one of the finest collections of European arms and armour outside Vienna. The visit (with mandatory guided tour) is one of the most evocative palace experiences in Eastern Europe. The smaller, more intimate Pelișor Castle next door was the residence of King Ferdinand and Queen Marie. Above the palaces, the Sinaia Monastery (founded 1695 by Prince Mihai Cantacuzino on his return from the Holy Land) is the spiritual heart of the town. Take the cable car up to the Bucegi plateau (around 2,000m) for the panoramic views, the famous Sphinx and Babele rock formations (wind-eroded into uncanny human shapes), and brilliant high-altitude hiking. Sinaia is also one of Romania's main ski resorts — the cable cars connect to Cota 1400 and Cota 2000, with reliable snow December to March.