Things to Do in Sibiu

Balea Lake is a glacial lake in Romania’s Fagaras Mountains. Sitting at more than 2,000 meters high, it is one of the most popular lakes in Romania. Most visitors are drawn to the lake for the landscape and superb views on the drive there; the water is typically too cold for swimming. Two chalets are open near the lake all year round, but it is most easily accessed in the summer months. In the winter, visitors must ride the cable car from the chalet near the Balea waterfall to get there. In 2006, the first ice hotel in eastern Europe was built nearby using blocks of ice pulled from the frozen lake.

With a width of over 140 meters, Sibiu’s Big Square (Piata Mare) is aptly named and for visitors, the enormous pedestrianized square makes a strategic starting point for a tour of the city. Piata Mare, along with neighboring Piata Mica and Piata Huet, makes up the main hub of Sibiu’s Old Town and is home to some of the district’s most impressive architecture.

Almost everywhere you turn on the square, you’ll be confronted by historical landmarks. At the north end of the square stands the Turnul Statului (Council Tower), the Holy Trinity Church and the early-20th-century City Hall, next to which is the tourist information office. To the west is the Brukenthal Museum and the Romanian Art Gallery, while the south and east sides are home to notable buildings like the 15th-century Casa Generalilor and Casa Hecht; the Romanesque Casa Haller, now home to the Haller Café; and the 16th-century Casa Weidner, now a hotel.

Framed by old-fashioned lampposts and lined with colourful flowers, the iron footbridge running between Piata Mica and Piata Huet makes for a romantic spot, looking down over Ocnei street below. But if you believe local legend, Sibiu’s landmark ‘Bridge of Lies’ is much more than a pretty photo opportunity. First built as a wooden footbridge some 200 years ago, the bridge earned its ominous moniker thanks to local myth, which dictates that the bridge has ‘ears’ and magical powers. The bridge was said to expose liars and cheats, creaking and shuddering when lies were told in the town, and would allegedly collapse if a liar attempted to cross.

The iron bridge that stands today was built to replace its predecessor in 1859, but the legend remains and it’s often cited as an example to local kids about the importance of telling the truth.

Romania’s oldest national museum, the Brukenthal National Museum is actually made up of six distinctive museums, but it’s the Brukenthal art gallery that takes center-stage, in prize place on the Big Square (Piața Mare). Housed in the 18th-century Baroque-style Brukenthal Palace, the permanent art collection includes over 1,200 works dating between the 15th and 18th centuries. As well as European masters like Rubens and Van Dyck, the galleries include an Anatolian rugs collection; a library of rare books and manuscripts; and a comprehensive collection of Romanian art, including an impressive selection of Transylvanian medieval art.

Also part of the Brukenthal National Museum are the Museum of History, housed in the 16th-century Altemberger House; the Museum of Contemporary Art and the Museum of Natural History. Additional collections include the fascinating Museum of Pharmacy, housed in a medieval apothecary, and the August von Spiess Museum of Hunting.