Prahova · 11 attractions
What to see in Prahova
11 places with their own page: description, photos and directions.
- Nicolae Iorga Memorial House Valenii de MunteThe Nicolae Iorga Memorial House in Valenii de Munte is the residence where historian and academician Nicolae Iorga (1871–1940) organised, from 1908 onwards, the Summer Universities — cultural events of national significance. Converted into a memorial museum, the house preserves documents, books and personal belongings of the scholar, who published over 1,000 volumes. Access is via DN1A, approximately 60 km from Ploiești.
- Vânturiș WaterfallCascada Vânturiș (or Cascadele Vânturiș) is located in the Munții Bucegi, Prahova County, on the Valea Izvorul Dorului, below Muntele Vânturiș, near the town of Sinaia. It is formed by the Izvorul Dorului stream, which, after crossing the Bucegi plateau, tumbles noisily over the steep valley wall, giving rise to several waterfalls. The flow varies considerably depending on the season, reaching its peak in spring with the melting of the snow. The area is part of Parcul Natural Bucegi and is accessible from Sinaia via partly unmarked trails.
- Cantacuzino Castle BușteniCantacuzino Castle in Bușteni, completed in 1911 to the designs of architect Grigore Cerchez, is one of the most representative Neo-Romanian style monuments in Romania. Built at the foot of the Bucegi Mountains by Prince Gheorghe Grigore Cantacuzino, nicknamed "The Nabob", the castle impresses with its stone and brick architecture, its park featuring fountains and a grotto, and its spectacular views towards the Bucegi. Today it houses a museum and an art gallery.
- The Saint John the Baptist Cathedral in PloieștiThe Saint John the Baptist Cathedral in Ploiești, located in the city centre on Bulevardul Republicii, is the most imposing church in the municipality and one of its principal architectural landmarks. Built between 1923 and 1939 to the designs of architect Toma T. Socolescu, it was conceived as a memorial to the heroes from Prahova who fell in the First World War, with the construction materials brought from the very battlefields of Oituz, Mărășești and Doaga.
- Ghighiu MonasteryGhighiu Monastery, dedicated to "The Healing Spring", is one of the best-known pilgrimage sites in Prahova County, built in 1817 on land donated to the monk Agapie, in the midst of forests that once formed part of the Codrii Vlasiei, less than 5 km from Ploiești. The two reasons it draws pilgrims from across the country are the miracle-working icon of the Mother of God known as "Sirianca" — painted on sandalwood in 16th-century Syria — and the healing spring within the monastery's grounds.
- Suzana MonasterySuzana Monastery is an Orthodox nun's monastic establishment in the commune of Măneciu, Prahova County, situated in the Valea Teleajenului, at the foot of Muntele Bobu. Founded around 1740 by Stanca Arșicu, a wealthy woman from Săcele who took the monastic name Suzana — after whom the monastery is named — it was built on the ruins of an older hermitage. The current church, dating from 1880–1882, preserves valuable paintings, and the community of nuns is known for its tradition of carpet weaving.
- Sinaia MonasterySinaia Monastery is an Orthodox monastic complex in the city of Sinaia, Prahova County, founded in 1695 by spătar Mihail Cantacuzino and considered the first structure built on this territory — the place from which the city itself took its name. Known as the "Cathedral of the Carpathians", the monastery houses two churches, paintings of great value by Pârvu Mutu Zugravul, and was the first church to be electrified in Romania.
- Bratocea ReservePasul Bratocea is a mountain pass situated at an altitude of 1,263–1,272 m on DN1A, on the border between Prahova and Brașov counties, between the Munții Ciucaș and Munții Baiului ranges. It historically served as the main direct road connection between Țara Românească and Transilvania, used for centuries by shepherds, merchants, and commercial convoys travelling between the Valea Teleajenului and Brașov.
- The Tigăile Mari Nature Reserve, Munții CiucașThe Tigăile Mari Nature Reserve is the symbol of Munții Ciucaș — a complex of spectacular conglomerate rock formations sculpted by erosion into enormous towers reaching up to 100 metres in height, likened to the bastions of a stone fortress. The name "Tigăile" ("the pans") comes from the concave shape of certain rocks, resembling cooking vessels. The reserve, which is geological, floristic and faunistic in nature, shelters edelweiss, carnation and mountain iris, and forms part of the Natura 2000 site Ciucaș. It is accessible from the resort of Cheia, via Pasul Bratocea, on the border between Brașov and Prahova counties.
- Zmeuret PeakZmeuret Peak, at an altitude of 1,136 m, is the highest point of the Munții Zmeuretului, a Subcarpathian massif in the north-east of Prahova County, on the border with Buzău County, in the Carpații de Curbură area. It is a little-known hiking destination with an accessible trail starting from the commune of Bătrâni, passing through beech forests and clearings with views towards the Starchiojd depression and the Munții Buzăului.
- Vârful CiucașVârful Ciucaș, at 1,954 metres, is the highest point of the Ciucaș Massif, located on the border between Prahova and Brașov counties, in the Carpații de Curbură. Renowned for its 360° panoramic view and for the spectacular conglomerate rock formations in the surrounding area — Tigăile Mari și Mici, Turnul lui Goliat, Babele la Sfat, and Sfinxul Bratocei — the peak is one of the most popular hiking destinations in the Prahova mountain region.