With almost 80% of it's borders being water, Dobrogea
is like Romania's own paradise island. Entirely separated from
the rest of Romania by the wide Danube to the west,
the
Romanian Riviera is where the sun rises on the European Union each
day.
Think of hills, sunshine, fields and beaches, because that is what
most of Dobrogea is made up of, with the exception of the lush marshes
and reed beds of the Danube Delta.
The first rail bridge across the Danube was completed only in 1895,
and Dobrogea was given to Romania in exchange for Bessarabia to the
north after Russia defeated the Ottoman empire.
The
Ottomans had ruled Dobrogea for over 500 years; the origin of the name
is probably from the Turkish despot ruler of the 14th century,
Dobrotici.
Romania's Newest and Oldest
The Greeks and Romans flocked to Dobrogea's fertile
hilly plains and abundant sea coasts with both making the region a part
of their empires.
Great works of art are still
being uncovered throughout the region and carefully displayed in the
excellent museums and archaeological sites all over Dobrogea, from the
wonderful National History Museum in Contanţa,
to smaller collections at Mangalia, Histria, and Adamclisi.
By the first world war, the Romanians in Dobrogea nearly doubled
to 56%, from less than 20% before the handover
in 1878 as the Bulgarians, Turks and Tatars left, now combined making
up only 5% today.
Despite most of gives Dobrogea a history steeped in the rich
cultures of the Byzantine, Bulgarian
and Ottoman Empires, the Muslim
communities persist todayalong the Romanian
Riviera, with mosques built by Romania's first King, Carol I.
Today's capital of the Dobrogea region is
Constanţa, named
after the daughter of a Roman emperor, one in a long line of rulers
since the town's incept as a thriving Greek port city.
Gateway to the
Danube Delta is the town of
Tulcea in the far north
of Dobrogea, where road and rail lines end and
the long arms of the Danube snake their ways to
the Black Sea.
Dobrogea's "Venice of the East" at the Danube River
town of Sulina was a
free port and home to diplomats and a thriving cosmopolitan community
for 75 years through Romania's Golden Age until the second world war.
The luxury resort of Carmen Sylva, today called
Eforie Sud, also
had it's own casino and thriving international community. From
the
Royal Palace at Mamaia to the cosmopolitan river town of Tulcea,
Romania's Riviera
in the 1920s and 1930s was one of Europe's hotspots of culture and leisure.
Dobrogea is a great place for body, mind and spirit.
Laze on the beaches, play some beach soccer, and get tired on the fun
rides at most of the resorts.
Perfect golden sands, the warm clear water, a beach
umbrella and the sweet breezes from the Black Sea make for a truly memorable
vacation. In fact, Dobrogea is such a well-known hotspot across central
and eastern Europe for the beaches of the Romania Riviera, that we've
done a special section
on Beach Life
The Sunbaked Dobrogean Heartland
One of the hidden treasures of Dobrogea is the rich
mix of cultures still evident in the sunbaked gently rolling hills of
the Dobrogean centre, and the surprising steppe country around the
Măcin Mountains National Park in
Western County Tulcea.
Tatars, Bulgars, Turks, Russians, and German settlers for centuries
dominated the low Dobrogean plateau which formed a cultural island,
cut off by the Danube from the Wallachian plains to the north and west,
and bordered by the Black Sea, conduit for the Greeks and then the Byzantine
and Ottoman empires.
Much like New Orleans, Tulcea rests on a lazy big bend
of the Danube River with all of the town's activities and centre right
on the river, from the train station, to great hotels, restaurants,
clubs and town squares.
With a great downtown area, all of the major attractions and views
in Tulcea town are within two blocks of each other, making it quite
easy for you to hit the top four or five in an easy morning or afternoon.
From the
Tulcea Museum of Art,
Azizia Mosque, and
Folk Art Museum, to the Village Museum, and even a little beach,
Tulcea can easily keep you amused for a day or two as you rest on your
way to the Dobrogean hill country to the west, or the Danube Delta to
the east.
Tulcea is in the perfect location for exploration of the widely
varying lands laid out to the east, south and west of the city.
The Danube River splits to form the northern
Chilia Arm and the southern Tulcea Arm just north of Tulcea.
The main Chilia Arm, which has most of the river's flow, travels out
to the Black Sea along the border with the Ukraine. The
southern Tulcea Arm flows south to Tulcea, and after a few short bends,
splits again to form the
Sulina Arm and the
Sfântu Gheorghe Arm. These 3
main arms are the main transportation by-ways of the
Danube Delta, making
Tulcea an important hub for the ferries, fast river boats and hydrofoils.
Extending south-east from Tulcea a lone two-lane road trundles towards
the Delta, running along the last ground along the St. George Arm.
The City of Tulcea operates as a regional centre and market town
for the largely agrarian communities in this
Delta Margins area, which collects an assortment of Delta Russian
and Lippovan cultures and combines them with the Tatar and Turk remnant
populations. Fishing around
Uzlina in particular is nicely accessible from Murighiol.
The Highlands and Steppe
The City of Tulcea is also a highway and rail hub for southern County
Tulcea, and the mountainous
Western Tulcea region.
Featuring gently rolling hills and
wineries within a half hour drive from the Tulcea city centre, the
much dryer steppic topography and biogeography of the western portion
of County Tulcea offers unique areas where the confluence of Mediterranean,
Balcic, and Asiatic zones converge, all accessible from Tulcea City.
Cultural Mecca
Tulcea still has residual traditions from the Turkish
days, and pastries in particular can be a very pleasant surprise.
Comparison shop between a few bakeries until you find the perfect
treats. Take some photos to show the folks back home what REAL
baking is like too! During summer months, Tulcea is a very good
town to follow your nose if you're a bit peckish. Point yourself
to the riverfront, and listen for the sizzle of mici at a terasa, and
keep your eyes peeled for any flume of telltale brown smoke and steam
coming from a traditional little grill.
The area around Tulcea grow red grapes for table wines,
and a bit further to the west upriver, a few white grapes are also grown.
In the region extending down to Babadag, the
area around Tulcea along with the more well-known Murfatlar
region around Medgidia to the southmake up one
of Romania's six and most maritime vine growing regions. Ask at
the tourist centre in the ARBDD building about possibly seeing a local
grower if you're interested.
We actually decided to make a separate guide for the north-west
of Dobrogea, mostly because it really is an interesting area, so different
from the Delta or the Black Sea Coast!
This north-western area is less known by tourists than the
coastal beaches or
the Danube Delta
area of Northern Dobrogea.
Almost everyone is surprised to hear how the western Tulcean landscape
is so different when compared with the wet and green lands of the Danube
Delta!
Indeed, the most arid and oldest mountains in Romania loom high on the
horizon, home to a unique blend of animals and plants, looking more
like somewhere in Utah than the better known parts of Romania.
Curiously, tourism officials in the region tend to think that Western
County Tulcea is too underdeveloped to support a tourism trade, forgetting
that Americans, Australians, Canadians, and other are increasingly doing
their vacations by "living like the locals" wherever possible, for that
authentic touch of true culture, great photos, and lasting memories.
As a tourist, Western County Tulcea can be a deeply rewarding region
to explore, precisely because it is seldom travelled by those from outside
Romania, despite being so close to the mega-destination of the Danube
Delta.
The most amusing part about this area is that it holds no particular
snob-appeal to Romanians, and hence is off their holiday maps for the
most part as well.
Not everyone has time to combine both a seaside and mountain
holiday together, but the Măcin Mountains National
Park of Western County Tulcea can provide you with those extra experiences
and great holiday photos you need to make your friends back home ten
shades of green!
One of the floating beauties in the Delta
Biosphere Reserve
Europe's Riparian Riches
The Delta hosts over 1,200 varieties of plants, 300 species of birds
as well as 45 freshwater fish species in its numerous lakes and marshes.
The Danube Delta has been entered onto the UNESCO list of World
Heritage Sites (1991) and Biosphere reserves. Around 2,733 km˛ of it
are strictly protected areas.
This is the place where millions of birds from different places
of Earth (European, Asian, African, Mediterranean) come to rest and
eat during the migration seasons. Many others hatch here.
The Wildlife Paradise of the Delta
The Danube Delta, "one of the last sanctuaries of nature" is often
called the wild paradise. In an area with a surface of 4,200 sq. km,
the presence of 3,400 species of the aquatic fauna has been recorded
so far, amounting to 98 percent of the European species.
Out of the 280 bird species recorded in the Danube Delta, 177 nest
here, some which protected by law: White Pelican, Dalmatian Pelican,
Great White Egret, Little Egret, Mute Swan, Red Breasted Goose, Ferruginous
Duck, Avocet and many other species.
Among the mammals of delta’s ecosystem feature otter, mink, little
ermine, wild boar, wild cat, the black-bellied fox, hare, the
raccoon dog,
nutria, muskrats, and rarely, the grey wolf.
The little plauri, the floating islands of the Delta shelter
rich fauna. As a result of efforts by Jacques Cousteau among others,
and with UNESCO support, the importance of the Danube Delta as a "wild
area" has been recognized in its consecration as a Biosphere Reservation.
Having once provided a rather important service,
the lighthouse still has it's crystal in the dome and some super
views of the surrounding marshes and mudflats.
Dobrogea's eastern-most city, and where the sun rises first on the
mainland European Union, the port town of Sulina has a rich history
of pirates, as a diplomatic outpost, and was even bombed by the British
Navy!
Once a prosperous port and important shipyard, from 1856 to 1937
the seat of the Danube Commission, Sulina has become a peaceful and
remote location.
The population at Sulina has been surprisingly static, with 5,600
in 1900 and about 5,200 in 2000. It has a high population
of Lipovani people, who are ethnically more closely related to their
relatives to the north in the Ukraine.
The Danube European Commission Lighthouse
The Danube European Commission Lighthouse was built in 1869 -1870.
The building, 17,34m height, in the shape of a truncated cone, is made
of bricks, the binding material is lime mortar and it is plastered up
outside and inside.
The access to the top is ensured by a winding metallic staircase anchored
into the masonry. The ground floor has a central hall and two big rooms
which are exhibitions' spaces. One of them is hosting the work chamber
of Eugeniu P. Botez which pen name is Jean Bart. He was commissary of
Sulina harbour and in the First World War he was also military commander.
The other room is dedicated to the Danube European Commission.
Don't bother travelling to Athens or Rome if you
want to marvel in some amazing European history, because the
stunning archaeological finds from Greek and Roman days in
Constanţa rivals them all!
As the largest Romanian seaport on the Black Sea,
the de facto capital of
Dobrogea, and third-largest city in
România, Constanţa is a vibrant seaport and
regional centre since Greek and Roman times!
Marseilles on the Black Sea
European royalty have flocked to the fine sands of
the Black Sea coast since the early 1900s, when a rail line was
built from the Paris of the East, Bucharest to this sunny seaside
resort port.
Constanţa has the air of a
French seaside town in the 1950s in many ways. Even at the
height of summer, when alot of the residents go to the mountains for a
cool break or flock north or south to the adjacent resort towns of
Mamaia,
Eforie Nord and
the resorts further south.
You'll enjoy strolling through the old port part of
town, complete with a wild mix of mosques, Orthodox churches, a fine
old Catholic church, museums, and some attractive ornate
architecture.
The feel of the exotic pull of the Black Sea is strong in Constanţa. In what was once an Ottoman city of mostly ethnic Tatars and Greek
citizens, barely 1 in 20 Constanţa
residents were Romanian in the mid 1800s (now well over 90% today).
But because of this culturally rich history, Constanţa offers some architectural and
culinary delights to the traveller, from old mosques and some super
Turkish, Greek and ethnic Romanian restaurants, to just having an
authentic shaorma in the park under a cool shade tree.
Although the Turkish population has always been very low in the
city -- never more than 3%, despite the bevy of Turkish restaurants
now found in the old port town -- Constanţa has benefitted greatly
from it's long history as an Ottoman protectorate.
All this will surely settle the charm of Constanţa in
your hearts!
You can confidently compare Mamaia to the beaches of Cannes or Saint Tropez.
Fringed by wild pear trees, and renowned for its fine, soft sand,
Mamaia is Romania's oldest resort.
Mamaia was thoughtfully designed from the ground up
since 1906 when the first wooden pier went
in, to cater to all whims and
desires with the long strip of sand dotted with
luxury hotels, fun parks, shops, restaurants, and a promenade
running the entire length of the resort with annual summer events
for all ages.
Mamaia concentrates it's fun because of the 300 metre width of
the amazing sand bar which separates the large inland Lake
Siutghiol
from the sea, going north from Constanţa 8km
until it meets the mainland again at Năvodari.
The Complete Range
Through major developments throughout the past couple of years,
Mamaia has transformed itself into one of the great summer
destinations of Europe, with world-class five-star hotels resting
comfortably with a dozen 3-star hotels, over 25 two-star properties,
and even some great camping on the north end. There's a
reason Romania's royal family chose Mamaia for their seaside summer
palace!
Family Friendly Surf
In addition to beautifully low salinity and no strong currents,
the Black Sea is free of dangerous species of plants or fish, with a
gently sloping shallow coastal shelf, with waters only 1 metre deep
at points up to 100 metres out. This makes Mamaia particularly
suitable and safe for families, with beach patrols and fully staffed
aqua parks too.
Quiet little back streets meld effortlessly with a charming
promenade and beautiful sea views from the hotels and restaurants along
the low cliff which protects the golden sands of Eforie Nord.
Indeed there are quite a few reasons that relaxing little
Eforie Nord made our number one pick for your beach holiday. The
sea and beaches are cleaner than at Mamaia, it's close to the shopping
centres on the south side of Contanţa, and close
enough to rail, air and bus services.
The one possibly saving grace of the Communist era was
the lack of heavy tourist development which ravaged many a quite seaside
town in other spots throughout Europe during the 1960s and 1970s.
As we all know, some development is a good thing, too much an eyesore.
Eforie successfully maintains it's village feel.
Eforie Nord
THE COMBINATION
OF AN AFFORDABLE SEASIDE DESTINATION FOR FAMILIES AND COUPLES
ALIKE, PAIR WITH TRUE CHARM AND ATMOSPHERE, MAKE EFORIE NORD
OUR TOP PICK ON THE ROMANIAN RIVIERA
A Seaside Holiday Village
Although
Eforie Nord is number two after Mamaia in terms of popularity, the little
town offers a real Romanian seaside village feel, with year-round residents
adding to the town's amenities like easy-to-access grocery stores, chemists
and other services not as available in Mamaia's hyper-commercial atmosphere.
The bulk of the holiday accommodation at Eforie (Eforie
Nord is often "the" Eforie, with it's southern cousin a smaller centre)
is made up of the guesthouses (pensions or "pensiune"), smaller bed
and breakfast type accommodation in people's homes, and smaller hotels
with less than 20 rooms. See our
Romanian Accommodation
section for explanations of these types of properties).
Yes, there are a few of the lower 3 and 4 storey blocks intended
for working class holiday-makers on a budget, but equally there are
some four-star hotels and truly world-class restaurants.
Check it out, Eforie is a great option for all!
Mangalia has all of the features you want to find in a seaside
city -- and a few more too! A naval yard and some great
beaches make this the mini San Diego of Romania!
South of
Constanţa, Mangalia is on
the same latitude as the French resort of Nice. Mangalia also is the
southernmost city on the Romanian Riviera, and from it's beginnings
as the early Greek port city of Callatis, Mangalia is also the
oldest continuously inhabited city in Romania!
Mangalia's sister city is
Greenport, also
a
coastal village on Long Island in New York
The Pearls of the Romanian Riviera
Gracefully marching south from the trendy and
first-class resort of Neptun in the north, down to value-based
Saturn on the northern suburbs of Mangalia, the long scenic strip of
resorts here make up the "Mangalia Nord" section of the Romanian
Riviera.
Mangalia and Resorts
North
from Mangalia and Saturn to Olimp, Jupiter and Neptun just below the
horizon
Foreign tourists flock to the spas and resorts just north of
Mangalia year-round, and the resort areas feature large, fine-sand
beaches. The microclimates which form at the ends of
these beaches are full of adherents who breath in the sea breezes,
laden with aerosolised sea water charged by the sun, said to be
beneficial for a range of conditions.
Good for What Ails You!
Mangalia is a natural choice for those looking for the curative
powers of good hot mineral springs, good hot mud and a great ocean
too!
As the third- largest and second-deepest European sea, the Black
Sea offers the near perfect combiation of low salinity, a gentle
slope of 17-18 degrees along the coastline, and a summer water
temperature of 20-25C. There are no dangerous currents, plants or
fish in the Black Sea!
The main reason for so much repeat business from European
tourists are the great quality of the mineral waters which bubble up
from deep below the Black Sea shelf.
The sulphurous sparkling water, rich in calcium and chlorides
are plentiful from northern Mangalia through the beaches of Saturn
and Venus. This treatment is available at the Mangalia
Spa, Hotel Mangalia, the hotels Hora and Balada in Saturn, and the
Hotel Doina in Neptun.
The total number of available hotel rooms
during the summer season is around 100.000, spread evenly between
the resort towns. The mineral waters are also used in a
therapeutic setting at the Hydrotherapy Treatment centre near the
Mangalia Municipal Hospital.
Also very popular is the sulphurous peat
mud, rich in minerals, which is extracted from the peat bog north of
the city (expected to last another 250 years).
Distinctly
Different!
Have more info? Please Let us know!
See Transport & Trip Planning below for Tips on Touring this Region!
The
City of cONSTANŢA
Ancient
Greek and Roman Constanţa
You'll enjoy strolling through the old port part of
town, complete with a wild mix of mosques, Orthodox churches, a fine
old Catholic church, museums, and some attractive ornate
architecture.
The
Sun and Fun of Mamaia
The bulk of the holiday accommodation at Eforie (Eforie
Nord is often "the" Eforie, with it's southern cousin a smaller centre)
is made up of the guesthouses (pensions or "pensiune"), smaller bed
and breakfast type accommodation in people's homes, and smaller hotels
with less than 20 rooms. See our
Romanian Accommodation
section for explanations of these types of properties). 
Mighty
Mangalia!
