Bucharest Transportation Tips by iwys Top 5 Page for this destination

Domestic & international trains Trains & train stations Review

For train travel to and from Bucharest from other major cities, such as Sibiu and Brasov, and international trains to Moscow, Istanbul, Sofia, Chisinau etc use Gare de Nord A Station. It has its own Metro station so it is easy to get to. When you enter the station, the big hall to your right is where you purchase same day tickets. I have always found them very efficient. Also, the trains to and from Bucharest are remarkably punctual, or maybe I have just been lucky. There is a big electronic board in front of the line of platforms which tells you which platform to go to. It's very straightforward.

Typically, a second class ticket on one of the best trains costs about 30 - 40 lei to most major Romanian cities. Sighisoara is 39.90 lei and Brasov 33.90 lei. Your ticket will show you your carriage number and seat number. If you show it to one of the guards on the platform, he will direct you to the correct compartment. The seats are comfortable with plenty of legroom.

To purchase an advance ticket and for all international tickets, you should use one of the two CFR Agentie de Voiaj offices. Office No. 1 is in the city centre on Strada Domnita Anastasia. The nearest metro station to it is Universitate. Office No. 2 is just round the corner from Gara de Nord, next to the Ibis Hotel, on Calea Grivitei.

Mode: TO

Type: Train

Website: http://www.infofer.ro/

Metro Metro (Subway) Review

The Metro is the best way to travel around Bucharest. It opened in 1979 and is efficient, cheap and reasonably clean. It's not perfect though. You often have to wait for more than ten minutes for a train, especially late at night and on Sundays. The trains stop running at 11.30pm. The Metro stations can be really hot and stuffy in the summer months, but pleasantly warm in winter.

Probably, the main problem is that there aren't enough stations and the network isn't extensive enough, although it is being extended. There are four lines: M1, M2, M3 and M4. There is no station in the south-west of the city, so you can't use the Metro to go to Steaua Bucuresti's Ghencea stadium, for example. The most useful line for most visitors is M2, which runs north-south through the centre of the city, with stations at Piaţa Aviatorilor, Piaţa Victoriei, Piaţa Romana, Universitate, and Piaţa Unirii.

The Bucharest Metro operates from 5:00 to 23:30, every 8-16 minutes off-peak and every 4-5 min. during rush hours. The Metro is run by Metrorex RA and carries some 250 million passengers a year.

You buy your ticket from a booth after you have descended the steps down into the station. You then place your ticket in a slot in the turnstile to go through to the platform. A 2-trip ticket costs 2 lei while a 10-trip ticket costs 7 lei. There is also a one-day ticket for 3.50 lei. I buy a monthly ticket, which costs 22 lei. It is valid for one month from the day you start using it. If you want one, ask for an abonament lunar.

Mode: AROUND

Type: Subway/Metro

Website: http://www.urbanrail.net/eu/buc/bucurest.htm