'''Timi?oara''' [http://www.timisoara-tourism.com] is a university city and industrial center in western Romania. It is often described as the most cosmopolitan city in Romania.
Understand
Get in
By plane
The city is served by Romania's second-largest airport, '''Traian Vuia International Airport''' [http://www.aerotim.ro/], located 10km away from the city center. It is the hub of the Romania's second-largest airline, '''Carpatair''' [http://www.carpatair.ro/]. There are regular flights from/to numerous major European and domestic destinations:
'''Carpatair''' flies internationally to/from Ancona, Athens, Bergamo, Bari, Bologna, Budapest, Chisinau, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt am Main,London, Lviv, Munich, Odessa, Rome, Stuttgart, Thessaloniki, Torino, Venice and Verona; it also has domestic flights to Bacau, Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, Craiova, Constanta, Iasi, Oradea, Satu-Mare, Sibiu and Suceava.
'''TAROM''' [http://tarom.ro/en/] has several daily flights to Bucharest.
'''Austrian Airlines''' [http://www.aua.com/] has flights to Vienna.
'''MALEV''' [http://www.malev.com/] has flights to Budapest.
'''Lufthansa''' [http://www.lufthansa.com/online/portal/LH_C] has flights to Munich.
'''Wizz Air''' [http://wizzair.com] has flights to London Luton and Rome Fiumincio.
Bus line '''26''' links the airport with downtown Timisoara; car hire is also available.
By train
There are direct trains daily from Budapest (a 5 hours trip), Belgrade (4 hours), Vienna (8 hours) and Munich (15 hours).
Check timetables [http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en here].
Naturally, there are also numerous trains to Bucharest and most major towns in Romania; check timetables [http://infofer.ro/ here].
By car
Belgrade (in Serbia) is 150km away ( a 2 1/2 hours drive).
Budapest (Hungary) is about 320km away ( a 4 hours drive).
By bus
Get around
Timisoara has a good transportation service including trolleys, trams and buses. The majority of buses and trolleys are new. The trams are old German models, but the travel conditions are quite decent. A major problem in Romanian public transportation is respecting a schedule. Unfortunately Timisoara makes no exception. Some of the tram and bus stations have digital panels which list the waiting times, but they're not always accurate.
There are two types of tickets, one for the three express lines (buses) and one for the rest of the buses, trams and trolleys. The prices for one ticket are around 0.6 and 0.3? respectively, and you can find them at press stands in almost every station. You can also buy passes for a day, a week, two weeks or a month, on one, two or all lines.
In Timisoara there is no shortage of taxis. You can reach about any point in Timisoara by paying a fee of 10-20 Lei (about 3-6?). Don't negotiate with the driver and insist for the meter to be turned on. If you don't want to overpay avoid private taxis and call for a local taxi company (Tudo, Radio, Timisoara, Autogenn, Fan or Prompt). The taxis licensed by the City Hall have a distinctive oval black sticker on the backseat doors.
If you want to rent a car there are plenty of car rental companies. They offer good priced services and all types of vehicles.
See
Piata Victoriei (Victory Square or Opera Square). It's the symbol of the Romanian revolution. Here you can find The Metropolitan Orthodox Cathedral, The Opera House, The City Hall, The Philharmonic, The Banat Museum and beautiful palaces built at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century.
Piata Unirii (Union Square). With its beautiful palaces and all the coffee houses it is the old city's center. Here you find The Catholic Dome, The Baroque Palace (now a beautiful art gallery), The Serbian Church and other important buildings.
Piata Libertatii (Liberty Square). Located between Piata Unirii and Piata Victoriei is a small square with old buildings. Here you can find the old City Hall and the beautiful St. Nepomuk's Statue.
The Bastion. Part of Timisoara's old defensive walls. The Bastion is located near Piata Unirii.
Parks. Timisoara is known in Romania as the City of Parks. Important parks you can visit are: Botanical Park (near Piata Unirii, it's the most beautiful park in Timisoara), Rose Park (near Piata Victoriei), Central Park (near Piata Victoriei, just behind the Metropolitan Orthodox Cathedral), Children's Park (near the Student Campus) and other.
Piata Traian (Traian Square). This is a part of the old city. The old buildings are beautiful, but be careful. Try not to visit the area at night and always keep an eye on your valuables.
The Village Museum. Located near Padurea Verde (The Green Forest). Here you can discover the Romanian tradition.
The Zoo. Located in the same area as The Village Museum, it's a small zoo, but your children will love it.
Do
Enjoy nice coffee products in Piata Unirii (Union Square) or Piata Victoriei (Victory Square). Taste the week-end nightlife by dancing all night long at Club The Note and Heaven Studio or their summer locations, River Deck and Heaven Outdoor Club. Eat a great pizza or pasta at Da Toni, enjoy a nice beer at Bierhaus (you can find around 50 types of beer there), eat tasty Romanian food at Club XXI, don't miss the cocktails at River Deck or Club The Note. If you like shopping, Iulius Mall is the place to visit. Enjoy a nice walk in the Botanical Park. Timisoara is a very cosmopolitan city and if you ask around you can enjoy all kinds of activities.
Learn
Universitatea Politehnica Timisoara (Polytechnic University) and Universitatea de Vest Timisoara (West University) are the most important universities in the area.
Buy
Iulius Mall. One of the biggest shopping malls in Eastern Europe. You can find here many Romanian and international brands. Also here you can find a very modern cinema, Cinema City, where you can enjoy the latest movies.
Piata Victoriei. The center of the city, with many shops.
Bega Shopping Center. Located near Hotel Continental, is the first important shopping mall in Timisoara. You can find important brands here.
In Timisoara you can buy everything, from well known brands to Romanian products. The important shops are located in the city center. If you want an authentic adventure visit Piata Aurora or the Brancoveanu shopping area, but be careful and keep a close eye on your valuables.
Eat
If you want to eat in Timisoara, you can find places for every budget. Because Timisoara was and still is a very cosmopolitan city, the local cuisine is influenced by Italian, Serbian, Hungarian, Turkish, Arabian and German cuisine.
Budget
McDonald's. Located in Piata Victoriei. Near the "Dan Paltinisanu" Stadium you can find a McDonald's drive in.
Stradivarius. Located in Piata Unirii, it's well known for its international cuisine and sandwiches.
Pan Rusovan. Located near Piata Victoriei, this small place, it's well known for its sandwiches.
Godfather Pizzeria. Located near Piata Victoriei, this small place is renound for its signature dish, the fold your own Calzone.
Napoleon. Located in the Student Campus, it's a good place to eat a pizza or a hamburger.
Timisoreana. Located near the beer factory, is a very popular restaurant. It is known for its barbecue meals and cold local beer.
Mid-range
Club XXI. Located in Piata Victoriei, it's well known for the Romanian cuisine.
Da Toni Pizza. Located on Daliei Street, it's the best restaurant for enjoying Italian cuisine. The price for a pizza ranges from 5 to 10 ?.
Pasta e Basta. Located near Piata Unirii, it's well known for very good Italian food, but is more expensive than Da Toni.
Tinecz. Located in Calea Aradului, it's a very popular restaurant in Timisoara.
Sabres. Located near "Dan Paltinisanu" Stadium, it's the best sea food restaurant in Timisoara.
Splurge
Casa cu Flori. Located near Piata Libertatii, it's well known for it's international cuisine.
Marele Restaurant Chinezesc - Chinese Restaurant. Located near Piata Badea Cartan, on Simion Barnutiu Street, it's the best asian restaurant in Timisoara. A meal will usually cost you around 10-15 ?.
River Deck. Although it turns into a club at night, during the day you can enjoy excellent fusion cuisine. But be carefull with drinks and desert you can easily pay 15-20 ?.
Clubs
Heaven Studios. Just recently opened, in 2007. It's the largest and by far the best club in Timisoara slash the world and it's famous for the week-end parties and immaculate bottoms. If you want to reserve a table you need to call days in advance (calm up). Entrance fee around 15 Zoiks.
Dark Bar. Simply better than.
River Deck. This is Club The Note's summer location, on the bank of the Bega Channel. It's notorious for the week-end parties, but also for the excellent cocktails and the fusion cuisine. If you want to reserve a table for the week-end do it a week in advance, because this is one of the trendiest places in Timisoara. Entrance fee around 3?.
Club The Note. Probably the second best club in Timisoara. Well known for it's cocktails, week-end parties and concerts with famous guests. For a reservation you need to call days in advance. Entrance fee around 3?.
Heaven Outdoor Club. Heaven Club's summer location, near "Dan Paltinisanu" Stadium. It is one of the best clubs in Timisoara, famous for its guest djs and week-end parties. Entrance fee around 3?.
D'Arc Club. A well known club in Piata Unirii. Located at the basement of an old building, is notorious for the Thursday Night Party and for being overcrowded. No entrance fee.
Club 30. Located in Piata Victoriei and known for the retro music played here. It's a nice club, but it tends to get overcrowded.
Sleep
Hotel La Residenza. tr.Independentei 14. 40256401080. ww.laresidenza.ro. Shakira stayed here for her concert.
Hotel Continental. The best known hotel in Timisoara.
Hotel Elysee. The only 5 star hotel in Banat. It's located near Timisoara, in Sacalaz.
Reghina Hotels.
Hotel 2000. It has a swimming pool, but there's no water in it
Perla Hotels.
Hotel Ambassador.
Hotel Savoy.
Hotel Boca Junior.
Other 3 star hotels like Hotel Strelitia, Hotel Pacific, Hotel Royal Plaza.
The accommodations in Timisoara are good if you stay at a 3 star or plus hotel.
Vila Americana. tr. Avram Imbroane 74. reen Forest. 40733550844. ttp://www.vilaamericana.ro. 4:00. 2:00. 0. 45__46'31.19N. 21__15'47.44E. Four-stars villa close to the Green Forest with luxury aparments and pool, visited by diplomats and officials.
Get out
Jimbolia is a small town 40 km west of Timisoara on the border with Serbia. It provides visitors with several interesting cultural and recreational attractions.