--- title: "Top 10 Things To Do in Sibiu, Romania | Wimup" description: "The 10 best things to do in Sibiu, ranked and mapped. The Brukenthal palace, the Council Tower, the Bridge of Lies, the ASTRA open-air museum and the Carpathian passes an hour south." url: https://wimup.com/city/sibiu type: City guide updated: 2026-10-07 publisher: Wimup (https://wimup.com) --- # Top 10 Things To Do in Sibiu Sibiu, Romania · Europe · By Wimup Editorial, 15 min read Sibiu is the Saxon capital of Transylvania and the easiest of Romania's old towns to read on foot. German settlers arrived in the 12th century, walled the rise above the Cibin, and built the guild city that ran southern Transylvania for six hundred years. What survives is two linked squares, a very tall spire, and rows of watching attic dormers. ## Quick answer Give Sibiu two days. The first belongs to the old town: Piața Mare and the Council Tower, the Brukenthal palace, the Lutheran cathedral in Huet Square, and the Bridge of Lies on the way down to the lower town. The second goes out of the centre, to the ASTRA open-air museum or up to Păltiniș and the Cindrel ridge. Add a third day for the Transfăgărășan, which opens only in summer. ## Quick facts - **Best months:** May · Jun · Sep - **Ideal length:** 2–3 days - **Budget per day:** $40–80 - **Language:** Romanian - **Getting around:** Walking - **Tourism board:** [Official site](https://turism.sibiu.ro/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ## The 10 best things to do in Sibiu ### 1. Piața Mare, the Large Square Square · Piața Mare, Sibiu The centre of Sibiu since the 14th century and still the room the city holds everything in. It runs 142 metres by 93, one of the largest squares in Transylvania, and the buildings around it are a short course in who ran the place: the Brukenthal Palace, the Jesuit Church, the Haller House and the Council Tower. Come in the hour before dark. - **Time:** 30–45 min - **Cost:** Free - **Best at:** Golden hour - **Tip:** Look up: the attic dormers are the eyes of Sibiu Links: [Website](https://turism.sibiu.ro/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 2. The Council Tower Landmark · Piața Mică, between the two squares, Sibiu Turnul Sfatului stands in the gap between the Large and Small Squares and is the one building everybody photographs. It began in the 13th century as a gate in the second ring of walls and has been rebuilt often enough that several centuries show. The climb is 141 steps with no lift. At the top: tile roofs in every direction and the Făgăraș ridge on a clear day. - **Time:** 20–30 min - **Cost:** Ticketed - **Best at:** Clear mornings - **Tip:** Bring cash, the smaller sights rarely take cards Links: [Website](https://turism.sibiu.ro/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 3. Brukenthal National Museum Museum · Piața Mare 4–5, Sibiu 550163 The oldest museum in Romania, and older than most in central Europe: Baron Samuel von Brukenthal opened his collection in 1790 and it became a museum in 1817. The palace on the Large Square holds the European and Romanian galleries and the period apartments, and one ticket now covers five more sites. The late Baroque palace itself is half the exhibit. - **Time:** 2 hrs - **Cost:** Ticketed - **Best at:** Weekday mornings - **Tip:** Closed Monday, and Tuesday too in the winter schedule Links: [Website](https://www.brukenthalmuseum.ro/site/en?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 4. The Lutheran Cathedral of Saint Mary Church · Piața Albert Huet 1, Sibiu 550182 Gothic, austere and the tallest thing in Transylvania: the spire reaches 73 metres, and the four turrets at its corners signalled that the city held the right of capital punishment. Inside, the Crucifixion fresco and the Baroque organ are the set pieces, and behind the organ is the tomb of Mihnea cel Rău, son of Vlad Țepeș, murdered on the steps in 1510. - **Time:** 45 min - **Cost:** Ticketed - **Best at:** Late afternoon - **Tip:** The tower climb is sold separately from the nave Links: [Website](https://turism.sibiu.ro/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 5. ASTRA Open-Air Museum Museum · Strada Pădurea Dumbrava 16–20, Sibiu Romania's largest open-air museum, laid out through the Dumbrava forest on the southwest edge of the city. More than 400 buildings were dismantled in villages across the country and rebuilt here: farmhouses, wooden churches, inns, watermills and workshops, arranged by craft along ten kilometres of paths. It is a walk rather than a visit, and it rewards a half day. - **Time:** Half day - **Cost:** Ticketed - **Best at:** Morning - **Tip:** Bus 13 runs out along Calea Dumbrăvii from the centre Links: [Website](https://muzeulastra.ro/en/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 6. The Bridge of Lies Landmark · Piața Mică, Sibiu The first cast-iron bridge in Romania, made in 1859 at Reșița and dropped into the gap between the Small Square and Huet Square. It carries the city arms, a neo-Gothic pattern in the ironwork, and more legends than eight metres has any right to: locals will tell you it creaks when someone standing on it lies. It takes two minutes. Take them. - **Time:** 10 min - **Cost:** Free - **Best at:** Evening - **Tip:** The best angle is from the steps below, not from the bridge Links: [Website](https://turism.sibiu.ro/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 7. Museum of History, Altemberger House Museum · Strada Mitropoliei 6, Sibiu The largest civil Gothic ensemble in Romania, built at the end of the 15th century and used as the town hall for four centuries. It is now the history section of the Brukenthal museum, arranged in a sequence that works: the Roman and medieval lapidarium, the arms and armour, the treasury, and a floor on the guilds. The courtyard alone justifies the detour. - **Time:** 1–2 hrs - **Cost:** Ticketed - **Best at:** Rainy afternoons - **Tip:** Covered by the same Brukenthal combined ticket Links: [Website](https://www.brukenthalmuseum.ro/site/en?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 8. Strada Cetății and the guild towers Landmark · Strada Cetății, Sibiu The best-preserved stretch of the medieval defences, and the only place in Sibiu where the towers still stand linked by their guard corridor. Three 15th-century towers survive, each maintained by the guild it is named for. You can climb into the Carpenters' Tower and walk the wall to the Potters', which is the only way to see the fortification from inside. - **Time:** 45 min - **Cost:** Free - **Best at:** Late afternoon - **Tip:** Walk it from the Thick Tower end and finish in Huet Square Links: [Website](https://turism.sibiu.ro/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 9. Pasajul Scărilor, the Passage of Stairs Landmark · Pasajul Scărilor, off Strada Alexandru Odobescu, Sibiu Sibiu is built on two levels, and this is the oldest way between them. The passage drops from the upper town under a run of brick arches, past the remains of the first ring of walls, and comes out near the Cibin. It dates to the 13th century. Go down rather than up, in the morning, and carry on into the lower town instead of turning back. - **Time:** 20 min - **Cost:** Free - **Best at:** Morning light - **Tip:** The steps are uneven and slick after rain Links: [Website](https://turism.sibiu.ro/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 10. Holy Trinity Orthodox Cathedral Church · Strada Mitropoliei 33, Sibiu 550179 Completed in 1902 and modelled on Hagia Sophia, which is obvious the moment you step inside: a wide dome on pendentives, a gold-ground iconostasis, and frescoes far warmer than the Gothic austerity up the hill. It is the seat of the Orthodox metropolitan of Transylvania, and the contrast with the Lutheran cathedral is the point of seeing both. - **Time:** 30 min - **Cost:** Free - **Best at:** Between services - **Tip:** Pair it with the Lutheran cathedral, they are 400 m apart Links: [Website](https://turism.sibiu.ro/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ## Best museums in Sibiu Six that hold up, five of them run by the same 200-year-old institution. 1. **Brukenthal Palace galleries** (Art · Ticketed · Piața Mare): The founding collection: European and Romanian painting, the period apartments and the Baroque palace they sit in. [Website](https://www.brukenthalmuseum.ro/site/en?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) 2. **ASTRA Open-Air Museum** (Ethnography · Ticketed · Pădurea Dumbrava): More than 400 rebuilt village buildings across the Dumbrava forest, arranged by craft along ten kilometres of path. [Website](https://muzeulastra.ro/en/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) 3. **Museum of History, Altemberger House** (History · Ticketed · Strada Mitropoliei): The old town hall, and the largest civil Gothic ensemble in the country. Lapidarium, treasury, armoury and the guilds. [Website](https://www.brukenthalmuseum.ro/site/en?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) 4. **Museum of Pharmacy** (Specialist · Ticketed · Piața Mică): A working apothecary until 1949, kept as it was, with the homeopathy cabinet and the laboratory intact. [Website](https://www.brukenthalmuseum.ro/site/en?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) 5. **Franz Binder Museum of World Ethnography** (Ethnography · Ticketed · Piața Mică): The only museum in Romania devoted to non-European ethnography, in the neo-Gothic Hermes House on the Small Square. [Website](https://muzeulastra.ro/en/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) 6. **August von Spiess Museum of Hunting** (Specialist · Ticketed · Strada Școala de Înot): The colonel’s own villa and trophies, opened in 1966 as the first hunting museum in the country. Uncomfortable and very specific. [Website](https://www.brukenthalmuseum.ro/site/en?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ## Best restaurants in Sibiu Six kitchens that carry the old town, from a cellar doing Transylvanian classics to the city’s best steak. 1. **Crama Sibiul Vechi** (Romanian · Cellar · Strada Alexandru Papiu-Ilarian): A vaulted cellar doing the Transylvanian canon straight: tripe soup, bean soup, smoked pork with polenta, cabbage rolls. [Website](https://www.sibiulvechi.ro/en/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) 2. **Kulinarium** (Romanian · German · Piața Mică): Romanian and German cooking on the Small Square, with a terrace that looks straight at the Council Tower. 3. **Weinkeller** (European · Wine · Old Town): A brick wine cellar and a garden, and the wine list to match. The city’s reliable occasion restaurant. 4. **Syndicat Gourmet** (Indian · Piața Mică): Curries, tikkas and biryani on a lane off the Small Square, and the one kitchen in the centre doing something else entirely. 5. **Benjamin Steakhouse & Bar** (Steak · Strada Alexandru Dimitrie Xenopol): Dry-aged beef and a proper grill, on Xenopol just off the Large Square. 6. **Pardon Café & Bistro** (Bistro · Old Town): A room full of antiques and a menu of the chef’s own recipes. Long lunches rather than quick ones. ## Best cafes and bakeries in Sibiu Four places to start the day, two of them roasting properly. 1. **Charlie’s Specialty Coffee** (Specialty · Brunch · Lower Town): The city’s specialty benchmark, with a bakery attached and rooms on Turnului, Avram Iancu and Ocnei. [Website](https://charlies.ro/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) 2. **NOD** (Specialty · Bar · Piața Mică): Freshly roasted coffee on the Small Square, and Romanian craft beer and wine once the afternoon turns. 3. **Atrium Classic Cafe** (Cafe · Piano · Piața Mică): A heritage room on the Small Square, Italian plates and a piano some evenings. 4. **Terraces on Piața Mică** (Terraces · Seasonal · Piața Mică): The whole north side of the Small Square is cafe terrace from spring, and the view is the product. ## Best bars and wine in Sibiu Four rooms for the evening, from a cellar wine list to Romanian craft beer. 1. **Weinkeller** (Wine · Cellar · Old Town): The best wine list in the old town, poured in a brick cellar or in the garden behind it. 2. **St. Andrew’s Pub** (Beer · Whisky · Old Town): A long list of Romanian craft beer and a longer one of Scotch. The reliable late option. 3. **NOD** (Beer · Wine · Piața Mică): Coffee bar by day, Romanian beer and wine by night, and always full of locals rather than tour groups. 4. **Terraces in Huet Square** (Terraces · Seasonal · Piața Huet): The quieter half of the upper town, in the shadow of the Lutheran cathedral, with tables out until it gets cold. ## Best markets and shopping in Sibiu Four places to buy something worth carrying home, starting with the cheese counters at Cibin. 1. **Piața Cibin** (Produce · Daily · Lower Town): The city’s main farmers market, by the river in the lower town: smoked meats, mountain cheese, honey, wild mushrooms and herbs. 2. **Artisan stalls on Piața Mare** (Craft · Weekends · Piața Mare): The Large Square turns over to handmade craft at weekends, which is when the Sibiu County potters and weavers show up. 3. **Piața Huet stalls** (Craft · Food · Piața Huet): Smaller and more curated than the Large Square: artisan goods, organic produce and local delicacies under the cathedral. 4. **Sibiu Christmas Market** (Seasonal · Nov–Jan · Piața Mare): From mid-November the Large Square becomes the oldest Christmas market in Romania, and still the best-value one in the region. [Website](https://targuldecraciun.ro/en/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ## Best mountains and hikes in Sibiu Four ways into the Carpathians, the nearest of them a 40-minute drive. 1. **Păltiniș** (Resort · 1,440 m · Cindrel Mountains): The oldest mountain resort in Romania and the highest ski station in the country, at 1,440 m on the Cindrel side. Forty minutes from the city. [Website](https://www.telescaunpaltinis.ro/en.php?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) 2. **Cindrel ridge trails** (Hiking · Marked · Cindrel Mountains): Marked routes leave from Păltiniș and from the villages below it, climbing to between 1,400 and 2,244 m. Moderate rather than technical. 3. **Cheile Cibinului** (Hiking · 3 hrs · Cindrel Mountains): The Cibin gorge, reached on an easy marked route from Păltiniș: around nine kilometres and three hours, red dot markings. 4. **Pădurea Dumbrava** (Forest · In town · Dumbrava): The city’s own forest, a nature reserve holding the ASTRA museum and the zoo, with flat paths straight out of Sub Arini park. ## Best day trips in Sibiu Six from Sibiu, from a fortified church an hour north to the highest road in the country. 1. **Transfăgărășan and Bâlea Lake** (Mountain road · Full day · 70 km south): The DN7C climbs to a glacial lake under the Făgăraș ridge. The high section is a summer and early-autumn road only, and it is a full day from Sibiu. 2. **Sighișoara** (Citadel · UNESCO · 2.5 hrs north): The inhabited citadel, a UNESCO site, and about two and a half hours away by road. Worth the drive or an overnight. 3. **Biertan** (Fortified church · UNESCO · 80 km north): One of the Saxon fortified churches on the UNESCO list, in a village roughly 80 km north of the city. Three rings of walls around one hill. 4. **Cisnădioara** (Fortified church · 12 km south): A Romanesque hilltop church above a Saxon village, and the most complete small citadel in Transylvania. Twenty minutes out. 5. **Rășinari** (Village · Trailhead · 12 km southwest): The mountain village above the city, birthplace of Emil Cioran and Octavian Goga, and the starting point for several Cindrel trails. 6. **Cisnădie** (Fortified church · 10 km south): A weaving town with a fortified church of its own, close enough to pair with Cisnădioara in one afternoon. ## Festivals & annual events in Sibiu (2026) - **Sibiu Jazz Festival** (May): The oldest jazz festival in Romania and one of the oldest anywhere, still built around the Philharmonic and the old town stages. - **Sibiu International Theatre Festival** (Jun): The city's largest event: ten days of performance from dozens of countries, much of it free and outdoors in the two squares. - **Sibiu Cycling Tour** (Jul): A UCI Europe Tour road race staged out of Sibiu since 2011, with stages that climb into the Cindrel and Făgăraș mountains. - **ARTmania Festival** (Jul): Rock, metal and progressive acts on an open-air stage in the Large Square. The 2026 edition ran 24 and 25 July. - **Craftsmen’s Fair** (Aug): The ASTRA museum fills its forest paths with working potters, weavers, coopers and smiths. The largest folk craft fair in Romania. - **Songs of the Carpathian Mountains** (Aug): ASTRA's traditional music and dance festival, drawing hundreds of performers from Romania and its neighbours. - **Sibiu Potters’ Fair** (Sep): Potters from every ceramic tradition in the country set up in the Large Square for a weekend. Buy on the Sunday. - **Astra Film Festival** (Oct): Romania's longest-running film festival and one of Europe's more serious documentary events, over ten days across the city. ## Must-try dishes in Sibiu, Romania - **Salam de Sibiu**: A dry-cured pork salami with EU protected status since 2016. The name is historical: it is made elsewhere too. - **Ciorbă de burtă**: Sour tripe soup, finished with sour cream, garlic and vinegar at the table. The old cellars set the benchmark. - **Sarmale**: Minced pork and rice rolled in pickled cabbage or vine leaves, slow-cooked, and served with polenta and cream. - **Bulz**: Polenta baked around sheep cheese until the crust sets. Shepherd food from the Cindrel, heavier than it looks. - **Brânză de burduf**: Sharp sheep cheese matured in bark or skin, sold at Piața Cibin. Buy it early in the morning. - **Tochitură**: Pork stewed down with garlic and wine, served with polenta, a fried egg and grated cheese on top. - **Mici**: Grilled skinless minced-meat rolls, ordered by the piece with mustard and bread. - **Papanași**: Fried cheese doughnuts under sour cream and jam, usually blueberry. The standard end to a Transylvanian meal. ## Sibiu transport & airports - **Sibiu International Airport** (SBZ): The airport sits about 3 km west of the centre, one of the shortest airport runs in Europe. Tursib routes 11 and 112 connect it, and a taxi takes a quarter of an hour. [Website](https://www.sibiuairport.ro/en?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - **Trains** (CFR): Sibiu station is a ten-minute walk east of the Large Square. CFR Călători runs the national network from it, including the services north to Mediaș and Cluj-Napoca. [Website](https://www.cfrcalatori.ro/en/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - **City buses** (Tursib): Tursib runs the city network, including the airport routes and the 13 out to the ASTRA museum along Calea Dumbrăvii. Timetables and the tourist-oriented route notes are on their site in English. [Website](https://www.tursib.ro/page/tourist-information?language=en&utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - **On foot** (Old town): The upper town is compact and largely pedestrian, and the walk from the Large Square to the Orthodox cathedral or the station is under fifteen minutes. Cobbles throughout. [Website](https://turism.sibiu.ro/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ## Sibiu at a glance - **Country:** Romania - **Region:** Sibiu County, southern Transylvania - **Population:** 134,309 at the 2021 census - **Founded:** First recorded as Cibinium in 1191 - **Nickname:** Hermannstadt, the Saxon capital - **Language:** Romanian, with German still spoken - **Currency:** Romanian leu (RON) - **Time zone:** EET (UTC+2), EEST in summer - **Calling code:** +40, area code 269 - **Airports:** Sibiu International (SBZ), 3 km west - **Power:** 230V, 50Hz, plug types C and F - **Emergency:** 112 for police, fire and ambulance ## Interesting facts - Sibiu was European Capital of Culture in 2007, with Luxembourg, and the restoration that came with it is why the old town looks as it does. - The attic dormers on the old roofs are known as the eyes of Sibiu. They appeared in the 15th century, to ventilate attics used for food. - The city was the capital of the Principality of Transylvania twice, from 1692 to 1791 and again from 1849 to 1865. - Mihnea cel Rău, a son of Vlad Țepeș, was murdered on the steps of the Lutheran cathedral in 1510 and buried inside. - Sibiu held the title of European Region of Gastronomy in 2019, the first Romanian region to do so. ## Watch [Sibiu on Foot](https://wimup.com/watch/sibiu.md), 28:49 ## Sibiu travel FAQ ### How many days do you need in Sibiu? Two. The first covers the upper town on foot: the Large Square and the Council Tower, the Brukenthal palace, the Lutheran cathedral, the Bridge of Lies and the walk down the Passage of Stairs. The second goes out of the centre, to the ASTRA museum or up to Păltiniș. A third day buys the Transfăgărășan in summer, or Biertan and Sighișoara. ### When is the best time to visit Sibiu? Mid-May to mid-September is the warmest and sunniest stretch, and June brings the theatre festival, which takes over both squares for ten days. September is the quieter version of the same weather. December is a separate proposition: the Christmas market runs from mid-November and is the oldest in Romania. ### Is Sibiu walkable? Yes, and that is most of its appeal. The upper town is compact and largely pedestrian, and nothing here except the ASTRA museum and the mountains is more than fifteen minutes from the Large Square. The surface is cobble almost everywhere, and the two levels are joined by stairs. ### How do you get from Sibiu to the Transfăgărășan? By car or on an organised day trip. Bâlea Lake sits about 70 km south of the city on the DN7C, and the drive up the northern ramp is the part everyone comes for. The high section of the road is seasonal, generally open from summer into early autumn and closed the rest of the year, so check before you commit a day to it. ### What should you eat in Sibiu? Start with ciorbă de burtă and sarmale in one of the old cellars, then work through bulz and tochitură in cold weather. Buy brânză de burduf and smoked meat at Piața Cibin in the morning. Salam de Sibiu carries the city's name and a protected designation. Finish with papanași. ## Nearby guides - [Brasov](https://wimup.com/city/brasov.md): Day trip · 10 picks - [Bucharest](https://wimup.com/city/bucharest.md): Romania · 10 picks - [Debrecen](https://wimup.com/city/debrecen.md): Hungary · 10 picks - [All of Europe →](https://wimup.com/europe): 105 cities Part of the [Romania guide](https://wimup.com/country/romania.md) · [Europe](https://wimup.com/europe.md) ## Sources - [Sibiu tourism board](https://turism.sibiu.ro/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Brukenthal National Museum (official site)](https://www.brukenthalmuseum.ro/site/en?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [ASTRA Open-Air Museum (official site)](https://muzeulastra.ro/en/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Crama Sibiul Vechi (official site)](https://www.sibiulvechi.ro/en/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Charlie’s Specialty Coffee (official site)](https://charlies.ro/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Sibiu Christmas Market (official site)](https://targuldecraciun.ro/en/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Păltiniș (official site)](https://www.telescaunpaltinis.ro/en.php?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Sibiu International Airport (official site)](https://www.sibiuairport.ro/en?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Trains (official site)](https://www.cfrcalatori.ro/en/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [City buses (official site)](https://www.tursib.ro/page/tourist-information?language=en&utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - Rankings are Wimup editorial picks. Prices, durations and budgets are editorial estimates, not live quotes; check the official site before you go.