Churches & monasteries
Painted monasteries, fortified Saxon churches, wooden churches and cathedrals that few travellers visit. Each page tells the story and shows what else is nearby.
Map: © OpenStreetMap contributors
47 places
Antim Monastery
Bucharest · 1715 monastery with carved stone and a snail emblem
Arbore Church
Suceava · small painted church built in 1502
Biertan Fortified Church
Sibiu County · Saxon church fortress, UNESCO site
Bistrița Monastery
Neamț · Moldavian princely monastery near Piatra Neamț
Bogdana Monastery
Rădăuți · oldest church in Moldavia, princely tombs
Borzești Church
Bacău · Stephen the Great’s church, built where an oak stood
Budești Josani Church
Maramureș · UNESCO wooden church with a 26 m tower
Cârța Monastery
Sibiu · medieval Cistercian abbey with a Gothic choir
Cernica Monastery
Ilfov · lakeside monastery where a poet was a monk
Cetățuia Monastery
Iași · fortified monastery on a hill above the city
Church of the Holy Archangels, Rogoz
Rogoz · UNESCO wooden church with 1785 murals
Church of the Presentation of the Virgin in the Temple in Bârsana
Bârsana · UNESCO wooden church, moved twice
Cozia Monastery
Vâlcea · fortified monastery and tomb of Mircea the Elder
Curtea de Argeș Monastery
Argeș · Neagoe Basarab’s church and royal necropolis
Dârjiu Fortified Church
Harghita · UNESCO Székely church with 1419 frescoes
Dealu Monastery
Dâmbovița · royal necropolis and cradle of printing
Densuș Church
Hunedoara · medieval church built of Roman stones
Dobrovăț Monastery
Iași · late foundation of Stephen the Great, frescoed church
Dragomirna Monastery
Suceava · narrow 42 m church inside fortified walls
Fortress Church, Târgu Mureș
Târgu Mureș · late Gothic church inside the citadel
Golia Monastery
Iași · walled monastery with a 120-step tower
Horezu Monastery
Vâlcea · UNESCO monastery in the Brâncoveanu style
Humor Monastery
Suceava · UNESCO painted church with red frescoes
Ieud Hill Church
Maramureș · UNESCO wooden church with painted walls
Kretzulescu Church
Bucharest · Brâncovenesc church by Revolution Square
Lainici Monastery
Gorj · Orthodox monastery in the Jiu Gorge
Esmahan Sultan Mosque
Mangalia · Romania’s oldest mosque, from 1575
Moldovița Monastery
Bukovina · fortified nunnery with UNESCO frescoes
Neamț Monastery
Neamț · medieval monastery of manuscripts and books
Nicula Monastery
Cluj · Marian pilgrimage site and glass-icon school
Prejmer Fortified Church
Brașov · UNESCO Saxon church with about 270 refuge rooms
Probota Monastery
Suceava · fortified UNESCO church and princely tombs
Putna Monastery
Suceava · Stephen the Great’s tomb and trail start
Radu Vodă Monastery
Bucharest · monastery on a hill settled since prehistory
Roșia Fortified Church
Sibiu County · Saxon Romanesque basilica with a Baroque altar
Sâmbăta de Sus Monastery
Brașov County · Orthodox monastery, destroyed in 1785 and rebuilt
Săpânța-Peri Monastery
Maramureș · 78 m wooden church by the Tisza
Saschiz Fortified Church
Mureș · Saxon fortified church with a Sighișoara-style tower
Sinaia Monastery
Prahova · the monastery that named the town of Sinaia
Snagov Monastery
Ilfov · island monastery tied to Vlad the Impaler’s tomb
Stavropoleos Monastery
Bucharest · 1724 Brâncovenesc church and nuns’ monastery
Sucevița Monastery
Bukovina · fortified convent with a UNESCO painted church
Trei Ierarhi Monastery
Iași · the church with façades carved like lace
Valea Viilor Fortified Church
Sibiu · Saxon fortified church with a defensive choir tower
Văratec Monastery
Neamț · Romania’s largest community of nuns
Viscri Fortified Church
Brașov · UNESCO-listed Saxon fortified church
Saint Parascheva Wooden Church, Desești
Maramureș · painted wooden church, UNESCO site