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 Sinaia

REGIONS
In County Prahova

Royal Peleş Castle 
in the Royal Domain
at Sinaia


The photo immediately preceding this notice is Copyright (C) 2005 - 2008 Rest Romania SRL, All rights reserved. Photo: © REST ROMÂNIA
 
 
/\  Băicoi  Buşteni  Câmpina  Ploieşti  Sinaia

 

Sinaia in County Prahova
County Prahova is in the Muntenia region

Sizzling Sinaia!

The Royal buzz is hard to miss in this winter ski resort and summer wonderland, full of jetsetters from Germany and the UK, flocking to the the Royal Domain with it's castles and chateaux.

Whilst not as popular as Buşteni with Romania's own burgeoning middle class, Sinaia is the closest full-service mountain resort to Bucharest.  Just two hours away by car or train with frequent services in all classes.   Read more in the Sinaia Transportation section below

 Reserves and Preserves

 Sinaia’s reason for being is surely the stunning surrounds as gateway to the Prahova valley. 

As home to Romania’s Royal residence for over a century, Sinaia has always had strict laws to maintain it’s beauty, with the felling of trees or even picking the tempting flowers, from peonies, and Edelweiss to the golden gentian, are long forbidden.  

The Bucegi National Park

In addition to tracts of dense fir and spruce forest, Sinaia is blessed with the spectacular Bucegi Natural Park, which surrounds the valley on the western side, covering a total area of   

Golden Peak (Vârful cu Dor), the Ant (Furnica), and Burnt Rock (Piatra Arsă) all feature prominently on the mountain skyline.   Read about the Bucegi National Park here

 Between Two Worlds

Sinaia is situated in the Prahova river valley which climbs up into the Carpathians which form the border between Wallachia and Transilvania.
Read more in our Sinaia Geography section
Just past the Wallachian foothills and well into the Bucegi mountains, Sinaia has long been on the main trade route coming out of Braşov down to Bucharest and the rich alluvial plains below.

Romania's Royals, King Mihai I and Daughter and Heir to the throne, Princess MargaretRomania's Royal Family

He is one of only two of Europe's monarchs on the throne during WWII and today.  HM King Michael I returned to Romania after the Revolution in 1989, and lives primarily at Pelişor castle in Sinaia.

Read more about the Royal Residence below, and about the King and the Communists in History.
Sinia has been home to Romanian royalty for over a century, the serene beauty of the location having captured the heart of Romania's first King.
Daughter HRH The Princess Margarita of Romania has been named as heir to the throne, thanks to recent liberalisation of the laws of succession.  She and husband HRH Radu, Prince of Romania represent the fifth generation of Romanian royalty. 
Map:  The cable car ride from Sinaia is beautiful, going up to 2000m on the Bucegi Plateau
Use the scrollbars to see the full area around Sinaia, and click on any Feature to see more info!
The Royal Train Station
Dignitaries and now common people alike have been received at these stately monuments, built in 1913 and 1939.
The Sinaia Park Statues

Arriving in Sinaia

Sinaia’s unique attractions are conveniently arranged in a gentle line wending it’s way up from the valley floor where the river, road and rail lines run. 

If you have sensibly hired a nice Romanian guy to drive you for your Romanian tour, you can have him park at the train station, or if you are equally sensibly using the train to get around Romania, you’ll be delivered to the right spot.  
Even if you’re only in Sinaia for a matter of an hour or two on your way to Braşov or Bucharest, the park and buildings near the train station hold enough interest to make your stop worthwhile.

The Royal Train Station

Sinaia’s train station was built in 1913, and whilst similar to the one in Buşteni, is a bit more delicate. 

Due to Sinaia’s Royal connections, both the Simplon Orient Express and the Arlberg Orient Express from Calais and Paris stopped here on their way to Bucharest (then known as “Little Paris”).  The original station was built in 1913, with an additional Neo-Romanian style Royal station added in 1939, adjoining just 10 metres away.

Both of the buildings were where Europe’s royalty and dignitaries were hosted by 20th-century Romanian Kings (Ferdinand I, Carol II and Mihai I), and where U.S. President Ford was received by Ceauşescu in 1975.  

Don’t miss the mural of the mistress of the hunt in the main station salon, depicting a life-size scene with Prince Basarab from the 14th century.
After WWII, service continued in various forms until 1992, with the Orient Express today terminating in Vienna.   See more on our Romanian Rail Services page now.
There is still a great square opposite the station which once hosted the arrival and departure ceremonies befitting great heads of state, sadly also used by the Nazis during WWII for their little marches and rallies.

The Dimitrie Ghica Park

Just up from the train stations is the Dimitre Ghica park, with all the expected park amenities from fountains and benches, and also a unique collection of statues commemorating historical figures important to Sinaia and Romania. 

The park is home of the Prahova Natural Sciences museum.  Surrounded by parklands created in 1881, the county museum is housed in a fabulous Brâncoveanu style building.  You will have seen examples of these around Bucharest, but this one is truly iconic.

The Brâncoveanu Effect

Brâncoveanu was a Wallachian prince who oversaw a rich period of cultural growth in the late 1600s in Wallachia, including this signature architecture which is a successful and distinctive mix of Renaissance and Byzantine influences, known today as the Brâcoveanu style of architecture.   
Featuring columns and arches along walkways, balconies, loggias, and verandas, the look is charming on large and small scales, and remains one of Romania’s most pleasing contributions to the world of architecture.

The Bucegi Reserve Collection The museum is open 9am – 7pm Tues – Sun

In addition to photos of the building itself, inside you’ll find a section on the Bucegi Reserve, with collections of flora and fauna of the Bucegi mountains.  The museum plays a very important role in preserving and cataloguing many of the endangered and critical species from the nearby mountains, where new strictly controlled reservations preserve areas of significance.   There is also a temporary display room for touring exhibits. 
The Casino at Sinaia
Thankfully still in use today, the younger set can find some games here to spend time while the oldies investigate the Sinaia Monastery museum up the hill!

The photo immediately preceding this notice is Copyright (c)2005 - 2008 Rest Romania SRL, All rights reserved. Photo: © REST ROMÂNIA
The Fallen Eagle
At the entrance to the cemetery, the great Romanian Eagle spreads it's wings to protect the war dead, with a dedication to 1916-18 heroes who fell during the invasion by Austrian and German forces down through the Prahova valley, seizing 80% of Romania. 
Read more on WWI and Sinaia here

The photo immediately preceding this notice is Copyright (c)2005 - 2008 Rest Romania SRL, All rights reserved. Photo: © REST ROMÂNIA

The Sinaia Casino

Just up from the museum is another of the crown jewels of Sinaia architecture, the Royal Casino, designed and building supervised by the architect Petre Antonescu under decree by Romania’s King Carol I. 

 The casino was indeed well managed, with the main shareholding being the same Baronet de Marcay who was also with the Casino of Monte Carlo.  It opened along with the train station in 1913, and is another prime photo opportunity, set so calmly in it’s surrounding parkland. 
The Casino today is home to conferences and international events, and houses exhibits from time to time for modern arts, photography and crafts, so check in to see if there is an exhibit on.   The younger crowd can also find billiards tables and games here to while away their time whilst parents enjoy a museum or two!  

The American War Memorial

You never know when those Americans will show up unexpectedly, and south of Sinaia, the Yanks rained down bombs from the skies in their attempt to thwart the Nazi occupation and oil production during WWII.  

Ironically, the Romania's military was larger than America's before the USA entered the war in 1941. 
The memorial in the military cemetery up from the Casino is dedicated to “Operation Tidalwave”, the ambitious August 1943 bombing campaign by the U.S. Army Air Force.   B-24 Liberator crewmembers flew from Benghazi in north Africa in the first large-scale, low-altitude attack.  It was also then the longest distance air crews had ever travelled to reach a strike zone. 
The bombers managed to swoop in at low altitude runs to drop over 250 tonnes of ordinance in their bid to rob the Germans of their single largest source of oil (by 1941) which came out of the oil refineries at the industrial centre of Ploieşti, about an hour from Sinaia. 
 

Peleş Castle, American Infirmary

Peleş castle was home to many recuperating American airmen recovered after Operation Tidal Wave, with young King Mihai thanking the Americans for not bombing the civilian population (the low level bombing at Ploiesti was tightly targeted on pipelines, cracking towers and means of production only).
Americans also helped Romania in July 1944, with P51 Mustangs and P38 Lightnings swooping in to strafe the Nazi airfields northeast of Ploieşti at Bacău and Zilistea.  Bacău remains a major airport to this day, despite the efforts of the cousins across the pond.

Sinaia Monastery:  The Pearl of the Carpathians

Whilst you may think you’ve had your fill of monasteries in Romania, it’s undeniable that each on has it’s own particular charms. 

The Sinaia monastery is indeed the “pearl of the Carpathians”, being the first structure built in this part of the Prahova Valley, and today is indeed the cathedral of the majestic Bucegi mountains. 
Mural with King Carol I
Commemorating the ascension to the throne of Romania's first monarch on the walls of the Big Church at the Sinaia Monastery

In addition to it’s thoroughly charming yet authentic Brâncoveanu style, built in 1690, the Sinaia monastery has two Last Testament friezes, one originally built in the older part, and a newer one from the mid 1800s (arguably a bit more photogenic at least).   Originally built to serve just 12 monks (the number of the apostles of Jesus), it expanded steadily as the importance of the town and trade route grew.  

The Little Church

The Little Church at the monastery was founded at the behest of Mihai Cantacuzino in 1695, giving the church and the community it’s present-day name of Sinaia, after the Sinai mountains he’d seen on his pilgrimage to Jerusalem and Nazareth.   According to an inscription in Slavonic (the old church language) over a doorway, the church is dedicated to Saint Sava of Palestine.   The tableaux inside were painted by the famous painter Parvu Mutu.  
Occupied in the late 1700s by the Austro-Hungarian empire (who did not share the Orthodox faith), the monastery became a military camp for 400 soldiers who tried unsuccessfully to defend the position from the Ottoman Turks, who slaughtered the soldiers and took the monastery as an administrative headquarters.

The Big Church

The Big Church was build under the abbots Ioasaf (Joseph) and Paisie for three years until 1846 under the local lord Bibescu Voda, and was the first church to use electric lighting in Romania.   
As with the museum down the hill, the Brâncoveanu style is in full flourish here, with the columns sculpted and adorned with floral and vegetal motifs, with the same type of ornamentation found along the window frames and door lentils.
Open Daily, 1E entry donation
The monks here are usually dressed in traditional garb, and are a bit of fun to talk with if you can find one confident with English (many also speak German, a few French). 

The Sinaia Monastery Museum

The Sinaia Monastery Museum was the first religious museum in the country, constructed initially to temporarily house the royals as they built their Royal Domain just up the hill from the monastery in 1895, which also coincided with the bicentenary of the monastery. 

The museum today comprises two halls with a great map of County Prahova in the first one showing the influences of the Cantacuzo family, along with a sketch of the Traian Column, engravings showing the monastery through time, an epitaph in Archaic Romanian embroidered in gold and silver thread on silk, vestments of the clergy from centuries past, gold leaf illustrations in old books, Romania’s first printed bible, as well as money and other artefacts used at the monastery over the last 415 years.
  The second hall has Romanian and Russian icons depicting St. Nicholas and St. Sergei, gifts from Czar Nicholas II.    There are also four portaits of Pirvu Mutu (the painter), and various books and other churchly objects.

Sinaia Belfry Tower

Adjacent, the Belfry Tower of Sinaia went up in 1892, with a bell taken from the Coltea tower in Bucharest, which was cast in 1775, and re-cast again in 1914, singing out today with 1700kg of ringing power.
 

Peleş

 

 

The Royal Castle Peleş

Peleş Castle is the crowning glory of the Royal Peleş Domain at Sinaia.

The Royal House of Romania has the smaller and decidedly more habitable Peleşor castle as it's official residence, with the Foişor hunting lodge hosting state events and as accommodation for visiting dignitaries. 
Following the wishes of His Majesty King Mihai I, most of both Peleş and Peleşor will remain functioning museums through 2010. 
Read more below on Peleş Castle
 


Peleş Castle
with with superb
views across
the Prahova Valley
The photo immediately preceding this notice is Copyright (C) 2005 - 2008 Rest Romania SRL, All rights reserved. Photo: © REST ROMÂNIA

Building Peleş

Staying overnight at the Sinaia Monastery in 1866, Romania’s future King Carol I fell in love with the peaceful valley, which reminded him very much of his homeland (Carol was Prince Carol of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen at the time). 
He never forgot the site, and in 1872 bought and commissioned a German architect, Wilhelm Doderer, to design his future summer palace in the mountains.

Peleşor Today

All on the Royal Domain:

Barracks, mess and administrative offices for the Royal Guards were built nearby as were the Royal Mews for the dozens of horses needed for the estate.
 A commissary store (“economat”)  was stocked to provision estate workers with dry goods and personal requisites.  
The castle continued to grow and change between it’s first official completion date in 1883, and it’s final form as today which was largely realised by 1914, by then under the auspices of the Czech architect Karel Liman. 
The charming little “Spout House” (“Vila Şipot”) was also designed and built by Karel Liman, the Czech architect, after the main castle and outbuildings were completed.  Once the site of a forceful little natural spring found to proudly spout out year-round, Spout House is today a hotel, offering reasonable rates to travellers wanting a slice of history with their stay in Sinaia.

Romania's Royal Domain

It looks like a castle from a book your grandmother would have read you, and the fabulously ornate fairy-tale castle looks very much like Disney designed it!

Frankly, on your first view as you come through the Royal Domain (the estate and parklands), it’s impossible not to grin as you realise that this castle is for-real, and you are here to witness this spectacle which speaks far more to the Saxon ancestry of nearby Transilvania than the more Romanian styles of the nearby monastery.
Nonetheless, Peleş is still a Romanian Royal castle, and features wide Italian Renaissance-style terraces, studded with fountains, statues, decorated columns, and more rococo features which hint at the far more diverse styles used in the interior.

The Rooms of Queen Elizabeth

Romania’s first Queen, Elisabeta, wife of King Carol I was responsible for the ornate and lavish décor across 160 rooms.   Favouring split walnut veneers, crystal, ivory and ebony, leathers, fine silks, and a myriad of inlays and trim work, to say the interiors of her castle Peleş are lush is an understatement.
Whilst largely under the umbrella of the German Renaissance movement, the interiors borrow heavily here and there from English, Rococo and Baroque styles, resulting in a deliriously fun and sometimes whimsical effect, reflecting the diverse tastes of the Queen.
Your English-speaking guide will host your tour through 16 of the best rooms in the palace.
If you think you can guess what is around the corner at Peleş, you’d be sorely mistaken, for a left turn can mean stepping into an Alhambra-like Moorish grand hall, and a right can mean falling into one of two rooms dedicated to Venice, complete with fairly outlandish chandeliers and furnishings.
Amongst the don’t-miss rooms include the Hall of Honour, with it’s rich walnut panelling, complete with the requisite family coats of arms and regalia.   The Arms Galleries, Council Chamber, and Old Music Room offer interesting insights into court life in the early 1900s.    Delight too in the Turkish Room, the Banqueting Hall, the Theatre, Concert Hall, and the Stairway of Honour, amongst some great passageways, views and endless antiques and furniture.

Little Pelişor Castle

King Carol and Queen Elisabeta lived in Peleş and their heir, the Prince Ferdinand and his English-born consort, the Princess Marie, lived in Peleşor castle (“Little Peleş”), just up the hill in the Royal Domain. 

Really, it’s not that little, and having been built a couple of decades later (ground broke in 1899), it had a few more of the modern conveniences and a more cohesive interior design scheme, with Tiffany and Lalique dotting the largely art nouveau and arts and crafts interior, despite the more staid German Renaissance exteriors (to better match it’s bigger namesake down the hill presumably). 
Peleşor is destined to remain open until 2010, although it is now the Royal Residence of King Mihai I of Romania. 

The Foişor Hunting Lodge

Indeed a bit more cosy than the castle, Foişor was first a hunting lodge for the royals but quickly became a residence for relatives. 

In 1914, because home to Queen Elisabeta and her children when her son Ferdinand moved down to Peleş when he ascended the throne.  
Queen Elena was already pregnant when she first decorated Foişor  in the 1920s as she and Ferdinand’s son Carol too moved into the little chateau, where they remained until he ascended the throne in 1930.  Today’s gardens and parkland around Foişor are at least partly due to Queen Elena’s fine efforts to redesign and remodel the grounds. 
The current King of the Romanians, Mihai I was born at Foişor to his mother the Crown Princess Elena (of Greece) and his father, Prince Carol, at the time son of King Ferdinand I.  
You can admire the lodge from the surrounding parklands on the Royal Domain, which are open to the public Wednesdays to Sundays until 4pm. 

 The Royal Peleş Domain

The Royal Peleş Domain, comprised of the Peleş, Peleşor, and Foişor castles, were returned to the Royal House in early March 2007, after being "looked after" for 60 years by the Romanian government.

In fact, the entire Domain was appropriated by the then-Communist government in 1947 when they forced His Majesty King Mihai I to leave the country. 
These old castles are monuments to Romania's regal history, testaments to the 140 years since Carol I ascended the throne of Romania, proclaiming a sovereign state on May 10, 1866; and 125 years since the declaration of the Kingdom of Romania by King Carol I on May 10, 1881.

The Royal House of Romania has Peleşor castle as it's official residence.  

The King formally offered return the main tourist draw, Peleş castle to the state (the government had the right of first refusal anyways according to their 2001 legislation).   The older part of Foişor remains a protocol residence (used by the Government for state events and accommodation of visiting dignitaries). 
Additional areas at Ceramica and Stavilari under the auspices of the board of Sinaia European Culture Centre were also returned in early 2007.   Following the wishes of His Majesty, most of both Peleş and Peleşor will remain functioning museums through 2010. 
 

The Royal House Today

The Royal House of Romania, through it's visits, agenda, and participation in events domestically and throughout Europe, actively embodies and symbolizes Romania's obligation to Europe as well as the nation's traditions, stability and continuity.

 Princess Margarita

First as Her Serene Highness Margarita, Princess of Hohenzollern, and now Her Royal Highness The Princess Margarita of Romania, she is the eldest daughter of The King and of the Queen Consort, Anne of Bourbon-Parma (Ana). HRH The Princess Margarita is 82nd in line of succession for the British throne and, by Royal House Law, heir to the leadership of the Royal Family.  With no children, her sister Princess Elena of Romania is next in line for the throne.  
However, since the royal constitution of 1923 only provided for male heirs, the Romanian Parliament will eventually need to amend that law to codify the King's decision for his eldest daughter to assume the Romanian throne when the monarchy is formally restored by Parliament.

The Restoration

HRH Radu, Prince of Romania
HRH The Princess Margarita of Romania
The fifth generation of Romanian royalty continue to serve all Romanians as special representatives.

 
The Enescu Memorial House
Home to Enescu and Yehudi Menuhin, one of his many famous pupils at his Sinaia home.

Photo: The Sinaia Mayoralty
Family Fun in the Sinaia Snow

The photo immediately preceding this notice is Copyright (c)2005 - 2008 Rest Romania SRL, All rights reserved. Photo: © REST ROMÂNIA
The View from Cota 2000

The photo immediately preceding this notice is Copyright (c)2005 - 2008 Rest Romania SRL, All rights reserved. Photo: © REST ROMÂNIA
 
The Old Women
This famous formation, the "Babele" feature prominently on the escarpment slopes above Sinaia.
The photo immediately preceding this notice is Copyright (c)2005 - 2008 Rest Romania SRL, All rights reserved. Photo: © REST ROMÂNIA

As with so many of the royal houses of Europe, Romania's Royal House had it's share of challenges through two world wars, occupation by both Nazi and communist governments, as well as the instability of multi-party coalition governments. 

It should be noted that King Mihai is one of only two surviving European monarchs still alive, who reigned during WWII.  Whilst the king was forced to leave Romania, there was never an official abdication, as no heir and successor was ever crowned.

Romania's Royalty, Popular and Reserved

Whilst the monarchy in Romania is universally popular from a standpoint of national pride -- the Royal House did after all manage to survive in exile through the sad communist years -- the in-built mistrust of any form of authority makes a full-fledged resumption of traditional royal institutions and habits less appealing to the populace in general.
With ambivalence on many matters, the Royal House has taken a steady and cautious approach to regaining stature, respect and even adoration from the Romanian population, which likewise is recovering from decades (some say centuries) of abuse by it's own rulers.
The current heir to throne (King Mihai's supposed abdication under the communists was well outside the Romanian constitution; even if Mihai had abdicated legally, a succession legally should have taken place), HRH Radu, Prince of Romania, was born in 1960 in Iasi, and is husband of HRH The Princess Margarita of Romania. 
More on the Royal Family Here

Romania's Violinist

Americans are surprised sometimes to learn their primo violinist, Yehudi Menuhin once had a rather famous Romanian tutor!

Menuhin studied in Sinaia, and refined much of his art under the kind tutelage of Romania's George Enescu, who conducted at the New York Philharmonic orchestra in the late 1930s.  
The Enescu Memorial House, the Villa "Luminis", is just north of Sinaia, and well worth a look.  The comfortable villa has great views of the mountains, and is crammed full of fabulous furniture, his piano and countless photos and artifacts from his great career. 

The house itself was built in the 1920s and is a real gem of Romania architecture of the period, with Turkish and Brâncovean influences. 

You'll fall in love with the man and his music as you tour this time capsule of culture!  Enesecu was a keen friend of Romania's Queen Marie, and he married a friend of hers, Maria  Rosetti, who had married into the Cantacuzino dynasty, gaining Enescu the use of the city palace in Bucharest as well.   Lucky guy!
The house itself is north from the train station about 5 minutes, in the Campetu quarter, the only part of Sinaia which is on the eastern side of the Prahova River. 
 

SKI TIME!

Romania’s Aspen

The reason Americans refer to Sinaia as Romania’s Aspen is mostly due to the celebrity factor here. 

With it’s proximity to Bucharest (and hence, the international airport), as well as it’s stunning beauty and royal residence, Sinaia is a natural choice for the discerning fun-seeker.
A uniform layer of snow is deposited usually in November and it melts from March to April, sometimes at the beginning of May. The thickness of the snow layer varies between 20 centimeters and 3 meters in higher elevations.

Apres-ski is it’s own little industry in Sinaia, which puts quality before quantity in the overall experience.

Due to the annual winter influx of Germans, quite a few restaurants offer reasonable German fare on top of the myriad of Romanian cuisine restaurants.  Romania actually does sport it’s own “whole” cuisine, see our Food and Dining section for more information.
And of course, where you have Germans, you have beer, so there are good German pubs catering to this crowd, along with bars, the Blue Angel and Black Horse discos, as well as games places with billards, table tennis, video games, internet cafes, and all the requisites a resort town normally offers. 
If you would like to play roulette, blackjack, stud poker, or feel the need to have a go with a slot machine (or “pokie” as Australians say), head to the Casino Maxim, which has table gaming rooms open evenings (6pm – 3am, 5am Fri/Sat) for Euro players and local Lei players.

The Slopes of Sinaia

South from the train station and park, just up the hill from the market and town hall is the Hotel Montana, behind which you can catch the cable car up the mountain. 

The view from the end of this line (which is about 2/3 of the way up) is stupendous, and you can either continue on up, or take the very scenic trail back down (about 2 hours).
The looming Furnica Peak to the west of town has most of the runs and lifts on it, with 3 telecabinas (gondolas) going up to the level first, and then continuing on up to .   With total of pistes, and one run, Sinaia is well-developed and every bit as good as most of the resorts at Tahoe or Breckenridge, with an annual metre of snow on average. 
With mostly intermediate runs, Sinaia does have 3 difficult runs, “Carp”, “Papagal – Târle, and “1500” (using the Cota 1500 chair lift).   The Carp slope from Furnica Peak and Cota 1400 runs a cool down a healthy drop, great fun for experienced skiers. 

For a bit of fun, Sinaia also offers bobsledding runs (over a drop) complete with graded turns, running for .  

Even if you’re not up for a walk in the mountains, a stroll around some of the back streets of Sinaia show off the villas of the aristocracy from the early 1900s, and worth a few photos too. 
 

Read more about Skiing and Hiking in our Special Bucegi Natural Park Section

For more great things to do, see also County Prahova and the Muntenia region

Listed below are some local agents who can help you with bookings and organize local tours in the Sinaia area.

Mervani Travel, B-dul Ferdinand Hotel Paltinis, cam.506 - 507 in Sinaia
+40 (244) 311200  FAX: +40 (244) 311211 
Mervani Travel, B-dul Ferdinand nr.4 in Sinaia
+40 (244) 312763  FAX: +40 (244) 311211 
Sinaia, Bd. Carol I, nr.8 (Hotel Sinaia) in Sinaia
+40 (244) 430290  FAX: +40 (244) 311898 
Sinaia, Bd. Carol I, nr.8 (Hotel Sinaia) in Sinaia
+40 (244) 430290  FAX: +40 (244) 311898 
International, Str. Avram Iancu nr.1 in Sinaia
+40 (244) 311399  FAX: +40 (244) 310470 
Cladis Tour, Bd Republicii nr.29 in Sinaia
+40 (244) 311896  FAX: +40 (244) 311896 
Sipesin Turism, Str. Avram Iancu, nr.14 in Sinaia
 +40 (244) 312667  FAX: +40 (244) 312667 
Palace, Str. Octavian Goga nr.11 in Sinaia
 +40 (244) 311542  FAX: +40 (244) 310625 
Alca Tour, Bd Carol I, Nr. 27 in Sinaia
 +40 (244) 311 910  FAX: +40 (244) 311 910 
Artmedia Group Travel, Str. Octavian Goga nr.11 in Sinaia
 +40 (244) 310692  FAX: +40 (244) 310692 
Artmedia Group Travel, Str. Octavian Goga nr.11 in Sinaia
 +40 (244) 310692  FAX: +40 (244) 310692 
Luxor, Bd. Carol I, nr.22 in Sinaia
 +40 (244) 314124  FAX: +40 (244) 314051

 

 

Click here for a larger version, or CLICK ON TOWNS

for info on each town in County Prahova.

 
    See a Road Map of the Sinaia Area

 

 

See More Maps of Romania and Sinaia at

  


See an Area Map of County Prahova


See a Street Map of Sinaia

 

See More Street Maps of Sinaia at

Geography

See maps of Sinaia above
 

Wallachia or Transylvania?  

Since the 1300s, the administrative capitals of Romania have migrated from the mountains, to the foothills and slowly down to the great Wallachian plain, where Bucharest is today.

Sinaia, nestled firmly on the southern edge of the mountains, perches high enough to avoid the worst of the summer heat, and low down enough to avoid the heaviest snowfalls in winter.  

 Whilst administratively part of Wallachia, and the last northern outpost of Wallachian culture and history, Sinaia cannot help but be influenced the equally rich Transilvanian culture just up the valley.  

Between Two Cultures
Roughly a third of the way up the Prahova Valley, Sinaia was a natural crossroads between the Wallachian and Transylvanian cultures.

Image: © REST ROMÂNIA
Your Mountain Transport
You're more likely to catch a Telecabina cable car up the mountain than a train in this snowy paradise!

The photo immediately preceding this notice is Copyright (c)2005 - 2008 Rest Romania SRL, All rights reserved. Photo: © REST ROMÂNIA
Great Heights!
The massive staunchions of the cable cars at Sinaia

The photo immediately preceding this notice is Copyright (c)2005 - 2008 Rest Romania SRL, All rights reserved. Photo: © REST ROMÂNIA
Without the dramatic mountain passes further up the mountains, Sinaia was not a heavily fortified town and never had a functional castle such as Bran or Poienari controlling trade at this wider area of the Prahova valley, although in the early Sinaia monastery church did serve to protect the main trade route. 

 

Transportation

Train

Getting to Sinaia is made easy by train, since it is on the main line between Bucharest and Brasov. All trains that go to Hungary pass Sinaia, as to those that service Oradea, Brasov and Cluj-Napoca.   There are also many trains to and from Sighisoara, Timisoara, Iasi and Arad.
Click here to see more about this great primer for anyone travelling to Romania!From Mike Ormsby's new must-read book 'NEVER MIND THE BALKANS, HERE'S ROMANIA!', with a laconic English perspective on life in Romania and the Romanian people
Read More Here

The Mystery Train

I walk through Gara de Nord feeling older and wiser.  The big railway station looks so different today – modern, revamped. Shiny kiosks bulge with glossy mags, rows of chocolate and stacks of snacks.  Men in suits chat on mobile phones.   Glamorous girls laugh and joke, swig Fanta.   Ticket collectors amble in smart uniforms, hats perched at a rakish angle. 
I can hardly believe my eyes.  It seems a so modern.  The steel body shines with immaculate paintwork; the windows are wide, slightly convex and made of thick tinted glass.  Rugged steps and chrome handrails gleam invitingly in the early morning sun. 
I board the train in Bucharest's main railway station.   Inside, the pale grey vinyl floor is surprisingly free of chewing gum.  I choose a seat by the window.  It feels well-designed, covered in bright blue fabric, firm but comfortable.  I watch passengers walking along the platform outside. 
Soon the carriage begins to fill up.   A middle-aged woman sits down opposite me, hair frosted like a cake, fingers dripping gold.  I can almost hear the wheels grinding at her head: he's not Romanian.  It must be my green rubbery skin, bulbous purple eye and furry antennae. 
The train pulls out of the Gara de Nord, slowly picking up speed, clickety-clack.  I watch as dilapidated apartment blocks sail pass; a kid leans perilously from a rusty balcony.  A skinny woman in a headscarf pins sagging sheets to a washing line. 
It still looks like Romania out there, apart from the snarling yellow diggers and new roads with sleek cars.  But in here, I feel shot forward in time.  I fold my arms and marvel.  It's a bit of a mystery, progress.
-- from the tales "Not so Lucky" and "Mystery Train"
 

Maxi-Taxi and Busses

Sinaia is also accessible by intercity coach from Brasov, but train is the better option.  

By Air

The closest airport to Sinaia is Bucharest, alhtough there are plans to open an international-capable airport at Braşov at some point in the future.

 

Weather

Milder than Most in Sinaia

The climate is a characteristic of low-altitude mountain passes. Annual average temperature: 8°C; Average temperature in June: 15°C; Average temperature in January: -4°C.

Summers are bracing and very rainy in the beginning of the season. Winters are relatively mild, with heavy snow. Average annual rainfall is 900 mm. The maximum registered rainfall was in June (173 mm/m˛). The minimum rainfall was recorded in September (55 mm/m˛) and February (40mm/m˛).

A uniform layer of snow is deposited usually in November and it melts from March to April, sometimes at the beginning of May. The thickness of the snow layer varies between 20 centimeters and 3 meters in higher elevations.

In recent years, Sinaia has felt the effects of global climate change – change that has meant shorter summers, with temperatures frequently over 30°C, a slight reduction in the length of spring and autumn, and relatively longer winters (end of October – beginning of May), colder winters with entire weeks dominated by frost ( -19°C to -25°C) and numerous blizzards.

See Other Towns in County Prahova Here

The Park Hotel at Sinaia
The photo immediately preceding this notice is Copyright (c)2005 - 2008 Rest Romania SRL, All rights reserved. Photo: © REST ROMÂNIA

It's Rich, It's Stunning, It's Sinaia!

A lot of the hotels in Sinaia are ridiculously sumptuous for the average Romanian, a clear signal that there is a lot of European and even American traffic through this increasingly cosmopolitan and always trendy little resort town.  

There are also a fair few mid-line rooms in the town, although you can get the same thing for a lot cheaper at Buşteni, which is more favoured by Romania’s booming middle class.  In addition to being top of the line, many of the hotels are really quite huge, although most blend fairly well thanks to being dwarfed by the mountains, or clad in the period facades of the older sprawling hotels.

Listed below are some local hotels, B&Bs and other accommodation in the Sinaia area.

Vila Tudor, Cartier Cumpatul in Sinaia
The villa is perfect for those who love nature, being placed in the middle of the forest.
722 391094  
Vila Valea Iancului, DN1 in Sinaia
The pension offers 6 doubles and 4 rooms for 3 persons each.
744 552211  
Vila Raoul, DN1 in Sinaia
Comes to your needs offering accommodation in Sinaia with a special comfort and in an unforgetable ambiance.
722 544130  
Vila Marald, Strada Theodor Aman 23 in Sinaia
The modern services and qualified personnel will make your vacation a memorable one.
244 311331  
Vila Leonardo, DN1 in Sinaia
If you want to spend some quality time away from the daily stress, dust and crowded places, here is the place.
722 198016  
Pensiunea Gabriel, Strada Mihail Kogalniceanu 35 in Sinaia
The pension is placed in the central area of the oldest touring resort from Prahova Valley.
244 311169  
Vila Flavia, Strada Republicii 14 in Sinaia
The pension has 3 romms with 2 beds each and a washing machine.
721 550439  FAX: 244 313479 
Vila Calin, Cartier Cumpatu in Sinaia
The Cumpatu neighbourhood is a residential, quiet place, only with holiday houses.
722 391094  
Vila Ariesul, Strada Ferdinand 34 in Sinaia
The Ariesul Villa was among the first constructions built in Sinaia resort.
722 355561  
Hotel Smart, Strada Theodor Aman 16 in Sinaia
The comfort, elegance and services' quality recommends the hotel as the perfect location for spending the vacation.
244 312288  FAX: 244 312248 
Hotel Rowa Dany, Strada Carol I 46 in Sinaia
The 30 rooms are very skittish and hospitable, having an intimate ambiance to make you feel perfect.
244 310629  FAX: 244 314752 
Hotel Riviera, Strada Brasovului 8 in Sinaia
The Riviera Hotel offers dining and accommodation services that will make you come back.
244 310140  FAX: 244 310152 
Pensiunea Stâna Regala, Strada Poiana Stânii 7 in Sinaia
It is placed at the feet of Piatra Arsa mountain, isolated of the rest of Sinaia resort.
745 588225  FAX: 244 310164 
Vila Piatra Soimului, Strada George Enescu in Sinaia
The Piatra Soimului Villa is placed in a perfect location, offering irreproachable accommodation services.
244 310302  
Pensiunea Thomas, DN 1 in Sinaia
The pension has 13 rooms with queen bed.
244 310937  FAX: 244 310937 
Pensiunea Boema, Strada Alunis 6 in Sinaia
The pension was built in 1928 and completely restored in 2004.
244 310400  
Hotel New Montana, Strada Carol I 24 in Sinaia
The placing in the centre of the Sinaia resort, the warm atmosphere and the highest-quality services makes the New Montana hotel the best destination spot for relaxation.
244 312751  FAX: 244 312754 
Motel Izvorul Rece, DN1 Km 117 in Sinaia
The motel is a good option to spend a few great vacation days.
244 314881  
Vila Tui, Strada Aosta 5 in Sinaia
The villa is placed very close to the telecabin station.
244 311797  
Hotel International, Strada Avram Iancu 1 in Sinaia
The International Hotel was built in 1893 and brought to the actual standards in 2001 - 2003.
244 313851  FAX: 244 313855 
Hotel Tanti, Strada Octavian Goga 35-37 in Sinaia
The hotel has 18 doubles and 5 singles, plus a bar.
244 314698  
Hotel Sinaia, Strada Carol I 8 in Sinaia
The hotel is placed right in the centre of the Sinaia resort, offering excellent conditions for fun and spending the free time.
244 302900  FAX: 244 311898 
Hotel Paltinis, Strada Carol I 65-67 in Sinaia
The hotel is placed in the centre of the "Pearl of the Carpathians" resort, Sinaia.
244 314651  FAX: 244 313234 
Hotel Alpin Cota 1400, Strada Drumul Cotei, cota 1400 in Sinaia
The hotel is placed at an altitude of 1400 metres, having a great view and a lot of ways to spend the free time.
244 314990  
Hotel Anda, Strada Carol I 30 in Sinaia
The comfort, elegance and quality services satisfies even the most pretentious requests.
244 306020  FAX: 244 306025 
Complex Turistic Hedy, Strada Gârbovei 31 in Sinaia
The complex is placed in a select neighbourhood of Sinaia, next to a fir forest.
244 313760  FAX: 244 313760 
Motel Cristian, Strada Walter Maracineanu 1-3 in Sinaia
The complex has 6 rooms, a restaurant with a terrace, a general store and a gas station.
244 313959  FAX: 244 310458 
Hotel Cerbul, Strada Carol I 19 in Sinaia
The hotel is placed in the centre of the resort, near the Ghica park.
244 310290  FAX: 244 311018 
Pensiunea Casa Soarelui, Strada Cuza Voda 22a in Sinaia
Modern, comfortable and ellegant, the Casa Soarelui Pension fulfills all your needs for a perfect vacation.
244 314168  FAX: 344 814274 
Pensiunea Casa Noastra, Strada Republicii 9 in Sinaia
The pension is placed at an altitude of 850 metres, in a superb scenery.
244 314556  
Vila Casa Galbena, Strada Platou Izvor 2 in Sinaia
Placed in the gorgeaus landscape of Prahova Valley in the famous resort, also called "Carpathians' Pearl", Sinaia, Casa Galbena offers you accommodation in a modern ambiance.
722 893914  
Pensiunea Alex, Strada Theodor Aman 9 in Sinaia
The pension is placed on the road towards Cota 1400, in a dreamlike landscape.
244 315497  FAX: 244 315497 
Vila Maria, Strada Octavian Goga 1a in Sinaia
The Maria Villa is the ideal place to spend unique moments of relaxation and quietness.
244 312254  
Vila Narciselor, Strada Narciselor in Sinaia
The Narciselor Villa awaits you to spend unforgetable times at the feet of Bucegi Mountains, on Prahova Valley.
722 597239  
Hotel Mara, Strada Toporasilor 1a in Sinaia
The Mara Hotel, opened in 1996, is one of the best accomodation places in the country.
244 310440  FAX: 244 310551 
Hotel Furnica, Strada Furnica 50 in Sinaia
In the hotel you will find a friendly and warm atmosphere.
244 311851  FAX: 244 311853 
Hotel Economat, Strada Pelesului 2 in Sinaia
The Economat Hotel is placed next to the Peles Castle, it has a great view and western services.
244 311151  FAX: 244 311150 
Hotel Marami, Strada Furnica 52 in Sinaia
The Marami Hotel is recently built in the architectural style of the royal area of Peles.
244 315560  FAX: 244 315563 
Vila Camelia, Strada Mihail Cantacuzino 5 in Sinaia
The villa has 18 rooms, in the middle of the nature.
244 312381  
Vila Alunis, Strada Furnica 13 in Sinaia
The villa is placed close to the Sinaia Monastery.
244 311651  
Vila Home, Strada Privighetorilor 38 in Sinaia
It is placed in a quiet placed, solitary, surrounded by trees.
721 647993  
Pensiuna Casa Felix, Strada Mihail Kogalniceanu 44 in Sinaia
The pension offers you the desirable comfort and quietness for an ideal vacation.
244 314926  
Vila Zambila, Strada Furnica 50 in Sinaia
The pension offers high quality services in a superb landscape.
244 311850  
Vila Smarald, Strada Moroieni 54a in Sinaia
The villa is newly built, placed right next to the forest.
244 312286  
Vila Sipot, Strada Pelesului 2 in Sinaia
The villa is placed right next o the Pelisor Castle, but tourists do not have access to the kitchen, wich might be a hold back.
244 311150  
Vila Irish, Strada Fundatura Vanturis 12 in Sinaia
The villa is placed close to Sinaia's centre, but in a quiet area, with lots of greenery.
727 242376  
Vila Holiday, Strada Carol I 27 in Sinaia
The pension is placed in a quiet area, in the middle of the nature.
244 311349  
Vila Floare de Colt, Strada Plevnei 10 in Sinaia
Placed in an exceptional natural environment, Floare de Colt offers you a unique view over the Bucegi Mountains.
244 311410  
Vila Condor, Strada Bucuresti 48 in Sinaia
The villa offers accommodation in 5 rooms and an apartment, and a playground for children.
244 312498  
Pensiunea Casa Teo, Strada Drumul Cotei in Sinaia
The pension is placed on the road towards Cota 1400, in a superb landscape.
244 311062  
Pensiunea Car Inn, Strada Aosta 21 in Sinaia
The pension is placed in a superb area, in the middle of the nature.
244 315177  
Motel Vadu Cerbului, DN1 in Sinaia
The motel offers accommodation in 45 double rooms.
244 312151  
Motel National, Strada Bucuresti 48f in Sinaia
The motel offers very good services, a nice place to spend your vacation.
722 765879  
Hotel Roberto, Strada Mihail Kogalniceanu 39 in Sinaia
Modern, comfortable, elegant, european-standard conditions, every tourist is a guest of honour.
244 315275  
Hotel Palace, Strada Octavian Goga 4 in Sinaia
The Palace Complex is known country-wide for the quality services it offers.
244 310122  
Hotel Intim, Strada Furnica 1 in Sinaia
The hotel is placed near the Sinaia Monastery.
244 315557  
Hotel Cristal, Strada Bucuresti 22 in Sinaia
The hotel, placed near the stadium, offers 30 doubles, 2 singles and 4 apartments.
244 315475  
Hotel Caraiman, Strada Carol I 4 in Sinaia
The hotel is placed at the entrance in Sinaia as you come from Brasov, next to the George Enescu museum.
244 313551  
Hotel Bulevard, Strada Carol I 65 in Sinaia
Here are welcome the nature and history lovers to spend days of enchantment, relaxation or fun.
244 315556  
Hotel Bastion, Strada Pelesului 2a in Sinaia
The Bastion Complex opens its royal gates so that the tourists can spend a dreamlike vacation.
244 315595  
Hostel El Dorado, Strada Avram Iancu 14 in Sinaia
The hostel offers room with 4 beds and apartments.
244 312667 

 

See also County Prahova for accommodation in other nearby towns

The area code for County Prahova is (2AA) or (3AA)

Early Sinaia History

Sinaia Monastery

 

The photo immediately preceding this notice is Copyright (c)2005 - 2008 Rest Romania SRL, All rights reserved. Photo: © REST ROMÂNIA
The Nazis and the Throne
Young King Mihai (R) was forced into cooperation with the Nazi puppet regime, here in 1941 with de facto Romanian leader General Antonescu.

Once only known as the Prahovan Fields, the area was once just meadows, which stretched lazily from the Spring River, up to Predeal. 

 Due to restrictions getting into the fields, the area was uninhabited.
The St. Nicholas hermitage was the first permanent settlement of any size in Sinaia, around Molomot just north of the Furnica quarter today.    It was mentioned by Prince Mihnea in 1581 and the monastery workers built the first road by widening the existing path to take oxcarts from Posada through the narrows and into the monastery compound.

The road network through Sinaia was further improved by the Austrian army from their Transilvanian province to the north. 

The Austrians realised they needed a well maintained route to supply and quickly transport their troops from Braşov to fight the Turks on the wide Wallachian plains below.    With the main route established by the late 1690, the road was fully operationally by the 1736 campaigns.  
The road quickly gained fame as being the shortest route between Bucharest and Braşov, even though it was not as easy to traverse as the more traditional route through the Rucăr pass to the north-west. 

Just north of Sinaia, the Stony Porch Inn at Buşteni, and the Râşnov Gap Inn at Predeal were open in the 1750s (see more in Buşteni History here).

With increasingly more valley inhabitants, by the late 1800s, Sinaia had it’s established it’s own wayside inns, from the Forest Clearing Inn (Hanul de la Gura Padurii), the Iancu Valley Inn, and later on, the Setu Inn, which is the Coldspring (Hanul la Izvorul Rece) Inn today. 
The hamlet of Springville (Catunul Izvor) appeared in 1783 when Mihai Sutu, the local lord, took some of the serfs and their families from the Sinaia monastery settlement up into the foothills along the Goldspring river valley (valea raului Izvorul Dorului). 

Sinaia was included in the newly created township of eagu’s Bridge (Podu Neagului) in 1852.

This new administrative commune unified the area from the Lespezi hermitage at Comarnic, with the villages of Posada, Springville, Buşteni, and up the Prahova Valley to Predeal.  
If you’ve read our section on the charming seaside village of Eforie Nord, you’ll know the name comes from the Eforia Spitalelor Civile, a medical trust established by two of Romania’s aristocratic families, the Cantacuzinos and the Ghicas, in 1864.   
Bringing affordable or free medical care to hundreds of thousands of Romanians, the foundation, and in addition to their coastal spa properties at Eforie Nord, they also held the Furnica estate including today’s Sinaia Monastery.
 However, it was not until 1874 that the estate and growing community was giving the name Sinaia, presumably at the prompting of Prince Carol, the future King of the Romanians. 

As with their resort work down on the coast, the Eforia foundation realised the potential for its Sinaia estate to become a deluxe resort town, especially since Sinaia was already the summer residence of the Royal House.   

Eforia pushed ahead to provide 10 hotels, 55 large villas, 50 medium sized villas and 60 peasant houses, 2 casinos, spa baths, a zoo, walking trails, three equestrian centres including dressage schools, restaurants, ale houses, coffee shops and seasonal stores, a park with promenade, with the resort nicknamed  “The Pearl of the Carpathians”. 
The development or the Sinaia township as a tourist destination boomed starting in the second half of the 19th century, timed with the construction of the Sinaia to Braşov roadway in 1847, the railroad from Bucharest in 1879, and moreover, the Peleş Castle , which transformed Sinaia into a centre of political life with a privileged residential neighbourhoods, each with their own distinct and diverse architectures inside and out.
Sinaia was declared a town in 1880, making it one of the earliest official urban zones anywhere in the new Romanian nation.  Read more on the Sinaia website (if you read Romanian).
  
Growing up in Sinaia
The favoured residence, Peleşor, where the young Prince Mihai spent his early years.

 
Americans Bomb Romania
A thankful King Mihai I congratulated the Americans for only targeting the Nazi controlled refineries and not the civilian popluations.  See the American War Memorial in Sinaia below
Photo: America in WWII
 
The Soviet Order of Victory
Awarded by Stalin to the Young King Mihai I
 

Sinaia, Home to a Prince

Born in Sinaia, the young Prince Mihai was raised in the Prahova Valley, living at Peleş castle and going to school in Sinaia. 

His mother,  the Princess Elena of Greece, and father King Carol II did not get on well, and when his father left to live with his mistress, young Mihai acceded the Romanian throne at the age of six.
The Royal prerogative was formulated by a Regency, a troika of his uncle, Prince Nicolae, the leader of the Romanian Orthodox church, and the High Court president.   Then the first Court president on the Board of Regents died, Mihai's Grandmother, the Queen Marie (born Marie of Edinburgh), vied for the position, only to be rather rudely thwarted by the Peasant Party Prime Minister Iuliu Maniu. 

The young king attended the Sinaia elementary school, and showed an early aptitude for mechanical and electrical  skills.

These would come in handy later during the war years and as a pilot in the 1950s and 1960s. 
Mihai had firm European royalty roots, being the great-great-grandson of Queen Victoria.   His reign was interrupted by the return of his father to the throne in the 1930s, and resumed again a decade later. 

Sinaia and the Nazis

Being just north of the industrial powerhouse and oil refineries at Ploieşti, Sinaia had the further attraction of being the seat of Romania's royalty.

This made the Prahova valley, itself a fairly easily defended region, a magnate for the Nazis, who forever loved lore and any hint of Saxon ancestry.
King Mihai I himself had strong Saxon roots, which made his retention undoutedly more attractive in some ways to Hitler and his nutter cronies.

King Mihai was hardly alone in hosting wounded American airmen at Castle Peleş. 

Many in Romania's upper classes applied for visas for Spain, Turkey and Switzerland as the peasants began to pour in from Bessarabia and the Transilvanian plateau.  But those who weren't able to get out, or preferred to stay for the duration, huddled together in their villas and estates in the Prahova valley.

The Americans Arrive from the Skies

The low-level precision bombing raids about an hour south on the Nazi-run oil refineries at Ploieşti had meant very high numbers of American planes going down from anti-aircraft ordinance. 

The very low altitude bombing runs by the Americans also meant that many of the aviators survived the crashes, and were transported up to Sinaia for their medical care at the Sinaia Military Hospital.  
This influx of Americans was indeed a novelty for Romania's high society at Sinaia, and Americans were sought out to decorate dinner parties with their tales of life in their bases in Africa and life in America too.  Many from the 93rd were also buried in Sinaia.

King Carol II had to make a quick exit under pressure from Antonescu, who then installed his son, Mihai I in the top royal positon.

Mihai rightly distrusted Antonescu, and the two never had an honest relationship, with Mihai barely able to contain his enduring hatred for Antonescu.  The young king perfromed the assigned duties of his office perfunctorily, smiling in the face of the Nazi ugliness.
King Mihai finally couldn't take it any longer, and once Russian troops arrived in numbers, the King promptly had the revoltingly blithe Antonescu arrested, removed the puppet government, and quickly sided with America and the Allied Forces to rid Romanian soil of the Nazi scourge.

King Mihai was awarded the American Legion of Merit medal to show America's deep appreciation of the king's efforts to oust the Nazis.  

Not to be outdone, the main Allied force in the region, Soviet Russia, awarded Mihai the Order of Victory.  With Russia as their closest ally and neighbour at the end of the war, it was no surprise that a pro-Russian government was appointed in 1945, which began the long road to communism.  
The Puppet King
For two years, the puppet King has tried doggedly to curb the Communists, but he is their virtual prisoner in his gilt & gingerbread palace at Sinaia. Any contact between sovereign and subjects is rigorously discouraged by the Communists. His own two aunts are little better than Russian agents.
His Speech from the Throne last week, at the opening of Rumania's Parliament, was plainly dictated by Communist Petru Groza, the King's first minister and Rumania's real boss. "Friendship and cooperation in all fields with the U.S.S.R.," read Michael, "remain the very basis of Rumanian foreign policy. Rumania will seek sincere cooperation with the nations respecting the independence, sovereignty and freedom of peoples."
Newsmen reported that the King had been forced to delete a reference to cooperation with the U.S. and Britain. Michael's effective resistance seemed just about over.
   --  From Time Magazine

King Mihai attended the wedding of his third cousin, the Princess Elizabeth, soon to be Queen of England in 1947, and was thereafter forced to leave his beloved Sinaia, Peleş Castle, and his Romanian people by the incoming communist regime.

AAfter 42 long years in exile in London and Switzerland, Mihai has once again returned to the Royal Peleş Domain, settling into the delightful Little Peleş Lodge (Peleşor), taking up informal diplomatic duties and once again serving his Romanian people.
 
Read More about Sinaia at:/h6> p>TThe Sinaia town hall

Official Site of HSH Radu, Prince of Hohenzollern-Veringen  
From the Rest Romania Website at

Thanks for Reading our Information about Royal Residence Sinaia in the Carpathian Mountains!

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