You would never know that Bucharest, Romania’s thriving capital city, was the site of a devastating revolution: It was here that protesters tore the streets apart while ousting the Communist regime from the city merely two decades ago. Today, Bucharest is a vibrant city that remembers its past while embracing the new.
The festivals that take place in the city each year showcase the plethora of artistic and musical talent cultivating in Bucharest, while Bucharest universities inject a youthful energy into the nightlife scene. All of this refreshing activity takes place alongside the solemn structures built throughout the reign of Nicolae Ceauşescu, the Communist president of Romania whose urbanization plans displaced thousands of people and forced them to move into these cold concrete buildings still standing today. Ceauşescu’s control of Romania ended with the 1989 Revolution, when he was publicly executed in the series of week-long riots and violent protests that ultimately overthrew Communism in Romania.
One of the first things travellers notice when they visit Bucharest for the first time is the city’s intense artist community: The locals’ innovative music and performance art takes place in the wake of the political turmoil the city was one burdened by.
Bucharest is famous for its house music, with clubs scattered throughout the neighbourhoods of the city blasting bass into the early hours of the morning. Most of Bucharest’s annual festivals revolve around music and celebrate music in all of its forms, from street percussion to classical voice. Regardless of when you book your Bucharest flight, you’re sure to be surprised by the artistic, creative adventures that await you in this city that spans the centuries.