Bucharest - The Capital of Romania

Population
1,883,425
Language
Romanian
Continent
Europe
Since
1862
Eco Ranking
34/195

Source: Environmental Performance Index 2024.

About Bucharest

Bucharest became the capital of the unified Romanian principalities in 1862, when Wallachia and Moldavia merged to form the United Principalities of Romania under Alexandru Ioan Cuza. The city had been the capital of Wallachia since the late 17th century. In the 20th century, Bucharest was shaped by two devastating periods: World War II, during which Romania allied with Nazi Germany and then switched to the Allied side in August 1944, and the communist dictatorship of Nicolae Ceaușescu (1965-1989). Ceaușescu's urban transformation project, known as Systematization, demolished an estimated 20% of historic Bucharest in the 1980s to construct the Civic Center, anchored by the Palace of the Parliament, a building of 365,000 square meters of floor space that is the second largest administrative building in the world by floor area, after the US Pentagon. Ceaușescu was overthrown and executed on 25 December 1989 in Romania's violent revolution, the only Eastern Bloc country where communist leaders were killed. The transition was centered in Bucharest. Today, Bucharest houses the Parliament, the Presidency, and the Constitutional Court. Romania joined NATO in 2004 and the EU in 2007.

About Romania

Romania is a semi-presidential republic in which executive power is shared between the President and the Prime Minister. It is a member of NATO and the EU, though it had not yet adopted the euro as of 2025. Romania experienced one of the most repressive communist regimes in Eastern Europe under Ceaușescu, and the legacy of that period continues to shape its institutions and political culture.

View Bucharest on the map

View Bucharest - The Capital of Romania on the map

Flight time from Bucharest to other capitals

CityDistance (km)Flight Time
Rome11001h 18m
Paris19002h 14m
London21002h 28m
Abu Dhabi34004h 0m
Washington, D.C.80009h 25m
Cape Town870010h 14m
Tokyo890010h 28m
Singapore890010h 28m
Buenos Aires1220014h 21m
Canberra1510017h 46m

Capitals with similar population to Bucharest

CityPopulation
Minsk1,982,444
Panama City1,938,000
Vienna1,911,191
Bucharest1,883,425
Kuala Lumpur1,808,000
Warsaw1,790,658
Rabat1,777,000

Capitals with similar eco ranking to Bucharest

CityEco Rank
Budapest31
Minsk32
Wellington34
Bucharest34
Washington, D.C.35
Paramaribo36
Sofia37

Source: Environmental Performance Index 2024.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • When did Bucharest become the capital of Romania?

    Bucharest became the capital of the United Principalities of Romania in 1862, when Wallachia and Moldavia merged. It had previously been the capital of Wallachia since the late 17th century. The city became the capital of the Kingdom of Romania in 1881 when independence was formally recognized and the principality became a kingdom.

  • What is the Palace of the Parliament in Bucharest?

    The Palace of the Parliament is a massive government building constructed under Nicolae Ceaușescu's orders in the 1980s. With a floor area of approximately 365,000 square meters, it is the second-largest administrative building in the world by floor area, after the US Pentagon. Its construction required the demolition of large sections of historic Bucharest, including churches, synagogues, and residential neighborhoods.

  • What happened to Ceaușescu in Bucharest in 1989?

    The Romanian Revolution began in December 1989 and rapidly moved to Bucharest, where Nicolae Ceaușescu attempted to address a crowd on 21 December but was met with hostile reactions. He fled the capital by helicopter but was captured, tried by a military tribunal, and executed along with his wife Elena on 25 December 1989. Romania was the only Eastern Bloc country where the communist leadership was violently overthrown and executed.

  • What was Ceaușescu's Systematization program?

    Systematization was Ceaușescu's policy of demolishing and rebuilding urban areas according to communist planning principles. In Bucharest, this resulted in the destruction of an estimated 20% of the historic city center in the 1980s, including historic churches, monasteries, and residential districts, to make way for the Civic Center and wide ceremonial boulevards modeled partly on Pyongyang and Beijing.

  • Is Bucharest the largest city in Romania?

    Yes. Bucharest is by far the largest city in Romania, with around 1.9 million people in the city and over 2.2 million in the metropolitan area. The second-largest city, Cluj-Napoca, has a population of around 320,000. Bucharest accounts for a disproportionate share of Romania's GDP and houses the country's main financial, media, and governmental institutions.

Sights and landmarks

The Palace of Parliament (Casa Poporului) is the world's second-largest administrative building after the Pentagon, with 365,000 square metres of floor space and 1,100 rooms, built under Ceaușescu between 1984 and 1997. Its construction required the demolition of a fifth of the historic centre. The Triumphal Arch on Şoseaua Kiseleff dates from 1936 and is modelled on its Parisian counterpart, a nod to the nickname 'Little Paris' that Bucharest acquired between the world wars. The Romanian Athenaeum from 1888 is the home of the George Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra. Lipscani, the restored old city, houses the 19th-century Hanul lui Manuc and the elegant glass-roofed Macca-Vilacrosse arcade.

Climate and best time to visit

Bucharest has a humid continental climate with sharp seasonal contrasts. Summers are hot and dry with July temperatures between 17 and 30 degrees Celsius, regularly seeing heat waves above 35 degrees due to the city's position on the Wallachian Plain. Winters are cold with January between -6 and 1 degree, and the notorious Crivăț wind from the northeastern steppe can drastically lower the perceived temperature. Annual rainfall totals around 610 millimetres, with thunderstorms in summer. The best time to visit runs from April to May and September to October; July and August can be uncomfortably hot for city tourism.

Culture and customs

Bucharest is known for its vibrant café scene and a nightlife that continues well past sunrise. The city is predominantly Eastern Orthodox through the Romanian Orthodox Church, which claims over 80% of Romanians, with numerous restored monasteries in and around the city. The Romanian language is a Romance language, unique in Eastern Europe, with Latin roots and significant Slavic, Turkish and Hungarian influences in its vocabulary. The cuisine features mici (grilled skinless meat rolls), sarmale (stuffed cabbage rolls), mămăligă (corn polenta) and the bitter herbal spirit țuică. The traditional rural spring festival Mărțișor on 1 March marks the arrival of spring.

Economy

Bucharest generates well over a quarter of Romania's GDP and is the country's economic engine. The city has developed into an important hub for IT outsourcing in Europe, fuelled by a large supply of technically educated workers and relatively low labour costs. Multinationals such as Microsoft, Oracle and UiPath (the Romanian automation company that went public in the US in 2021) have major operations in the city. The financial sector, automotive suppliers, retail and construction are additional pillars. Bucharest's Henri Coandă Airport is the busiest in Romania and connects the city to the broader European economy.
Bucharest, capital of Romania
Bucharest, capital of Romania

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