It is the most significant city in the historical region of Crisana, and it is the most important cultural and commercial center.
Although in western Romania, Oradea is a city where you can easily reach by plane, but also by train/car from different areas of Romania.
The city of Oradea, the former Oradea Mare, the county seat of Bihor, is located in the west of Romania, near the border with Hungary. So, if you have decided to pay a visit, here is a list of places to visit in Oradea.
Oradea Fortress
The fortress of Oradea must be visited if you come to visit Oradea. The famous construction is of beautiful beauty and has so much story to tell you, so you have no reason to bypass it.
The fortress was completed between 1570 and 1618 by renowned Italian architects and served as a religious and cultural center for almost five centuries. Unlike the Alba Carolina Fortress in Alba Iulia, built in the Vauban style, the one in Oradea has a pentagonal shape, with bastions at the corners and a water ditch, in the Italian Renaissance style.
Until 1660 the fortress passed through several sieges, which it successfully resisted. In 1660, however, the Turks managed to conquer it, after which they managed to empty the water from the defense ditch and blew two bastions.
Nymphaea or Baile Felix aquapark
At the beginning of 2015, more precisely at the beginning of winter, the Nymphaea aquapark started to be erected, and in 2016 it was inaugurated.
The Nymphaea aquapark has an area of 7 hectares, is located on the former beach of Oradea and cost 88.3 million lei. (of which 32.3 million lei come from the European Union, the financing being non-refundable).
At a distance of 7.6km from the city, there is another essential place to visit. The Felix baths are a primary place that thousands of tourists visit and have all kinds of fun.
Among the conditions that can be treated here are those of the digestive tract and rheumatic ones.
Explore buildings on Unirii Square
In Unirii Square, numerous architectural styles are combined, embodied in individual monuments, such as Black Eagle Palace, Oradea City Hall Palace, Kovacs House, Adolf Moskovits Palace and sons, Greek-Catholic Cathedral “Saint Jerome Nicolae.”
Another architectural and religious objects that cannot be missed is the Church with the Moon, unique in Europe thanks to the mechanism of the church tower, which sets in motion a sphere of the moon shape. So do not forget the camera, because Oradea has a perfect photographic potential!
Palace of the black eagle
Hotel with 75 rooms, restaurant, many shops, cafe, confectionery, brewery, halls for various events, spaces to rent, all these were housed in this Palace, under the umbrella of a multifunctional complex.
One of the most popular and loved places by the locals is the Black Vulture Palace. Chosen as a symbol of the city in 2011, it hides history and a legend that few know.
In the past, more precisely in 1905, the Black Eagle Palace was an inn that bore this name. Some people say that this inn would have been called the Green Tree.
It had existed since 1714, when it was housed in a small building, in the same place is the City Hall of the New City. After many years, the town hall was moved to the Olosig district, and the inn was expanded.
The inn was a meeting place for personalities of the time, such as Emperor Franz and Queen Elizabeth. It has been transformed into an exceptional hotel by the industrialists Adjoran Emil and Kurlander Ede.
Oradea City Hall
Oradea City Hall is a building that adopts the eclectic architectural style and is designed by a very well-known architect, Rimanoczy Kalman Jr.. the rhythms of “Iancu’s March.”
Fortunately, the Tower can be visited, and we encourage you to pay a visit, as you can admire a magnificent panoramic view of the city of Oradea.
Museum of the Country of Crisurilor
The Museum of the Land of Crisures is hosted by the Cadet School building, a tourist objective in itself, dating back to 1897.
The museum complex gathers the most essential and representative exhibits from various fields, including the sciences of nature, history, and archeology, art and ethnography.
The collections are symbolic not only for Oradea but also for the entire region of the Country of Crises, as the name of the museum says.
Mushroom hill
Mushroom hill is one of the panoramic points of this city, and we recommend that you climb it at sunset for a storied landscape over Oradea.
You can reach the highest point of the hill on foot, but also by car, and up there is a restaurant where you can rest. So, for a magnificent sunset over the city, we urge you to book a half-hour or even an hour to climb the hill and admire this beautiful landscape.
Therefore, considering the accessibility of the location, both geographically and economically, we strongly recommend a visit to this beautiful city. Oradea is welcoming, warm, with fantastic architecture, the art-nouveau style being one consecrated in this city.
These are just some of the attractive places for tourism in Oradea. If I managed to create a beautiful image of this city called “Little Paris” we invite you to take a vacation and visit the town waiting to be discovered by tourists and beyond.