Summer in Bucharest has plenty of days where temperatures go above 30 degrees Celsius. If you need to cool down here is a guide on the things you can do. This list will include places to swim and indoor places where you can enjoy some air conditioning.
You know it’s hot outside when the Unirii Fountains are turned on, in August the show starts at 21:00 (timetable in Romanian here)
Therme
A lot of tourists come to Romania just to go to Therme. According to TripAdvisor: “Therme București is Europe’s largest wellness and relaxation center. It is also home to Romania’s largest botanical garden with over 800,000 plants, including palm trees, orchids and other unique species.
There are three different zones that you can purchase tickets for—with some zones that are adult-only. Therme has 3 different areas designed for family fun-Galaxy, relaxation -The Palm and indulgence- Elysium. With over 1500 palm trees, 10 thermal indoor and outdoor pools, 10 saunas, 4 mineral pools, 40 wellness activities included in the acces price therme hosts also the largest urban beach in Europe- Sands of Therme- with over 30.000 Sam of sandy beach, lounges, pools and pool and bars.”
Lagoon Park
If you prefer the sand then this is the place for you, an urban beach in the city of Bucharest that is not that is a short ride from the city center. In the evening it also can turn into a party venue.
Boat rides
We suggest taking a boat ride in the evening as you don’t want you to get sunburns during the day. You can go to the Cismigiu park or Herastrau Park to row a boat gently down the lake.
Terraces
In Old Town you have the most famous terrace, Hanu’ Lui Manuc, a building for the beginning of the 1800’s but it isn’t the only interesting one. Look bellow for some of our favorite places to relax in the hot weather:
Museums
Comunism Museums: Ceausescu’s House (where the dictator lived), House of Parliament (second largest administrative building in the world, the communists called it The Palace of the People), Museum of Communism in Bucharest (stories and artifacts that give you a sense of the period)
Art Museums: National Museum of Art (Located in the former Royal Palace), Contemporary Art Museum (located in the House of Parliment), Museum of Recent Art (modern art in the house of a high ranking communist official), Art Safari (they constantly change the theme of the exhibits but it’s bot Romanian and international artists)
Other museums: “Grigore Antipa” National Museum of Natural History (perfect for kids and) , “The Little Paris” Museum (find out why Bucharest is nicknamed Little Paris of the East), The Museum of Bucharest (a very visual museum of how Bucharest came to be), Cotroceni Palace (a beautiful pallace where the president works), Holocaust Museum (Romania had it’s contribution to the Holocaust and this is the place to find out more), The National Museum of the Romanian Peasant (if you like textiles, tools and interesting souvenirs)
Experience museums: The Museum of Football (they have quite a few interactive exhibits and it’s eprfect if you love football) Museum of Senses (it is not amazing but if you want to have some fun in a shopping mall it’s a good choice) MINA (immersive art museum, just avoid the times when kids are likely to be there)
Ice cream places
Nothing cools you down like a good ice-cream, one of our favorite places to go for Ice-cream is Zelato as they have traditional flavours like: funeral cake and plum jam with toast
Shopping malls – The land of Air Conditioning
Top of the list is Afi Cotroceni one of the largest shopping malls in Romania and a place that is open on most national holidays.
Pro tip: go to the cinema movies are in their language of origin with subtitles, animations are usually dubbed but you can find English versions closer to opening night.
Going to a bookshop
Bucharest has quite a few interesting bookshops in the city which deserves it’s own article. Today you will get 3 of our favorite bookshops: Carturesti Carousel , Humanitas Kretzulescu , Antic Ex-Libris (store with books in English at decent prices)
Cocktail Bars
Alcohol, ice and everything nice this is the recipe for a relaxing evening. If you don’t like alcohol, Zadar Bar has some nice non-alchoholic alternatives (cocktails and botanical drinks)
What can you visit close to Bucharest?
Get the train go to the seaside! (Not Bucharest I know but oh well…)
Might be hard to get an accommodation during the summer months but where there is a will there is a place waiting for you close to the beaches of Romania.
… or the mountains (Brasov)
Dracula's Guide to Romania 
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