Caraiman Monastery

Caraiman Monastery, dedicated to the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, lies in the south of Bușteni, in the Poiana Palanca area, at the foot of Mount Caraiman, on whose summit stands the Heroes' Cross. It is a few hundred metres from the Bușteni cable car station on Strada Telecabinei. It is an Orthodox monastery for monks and belongs to the Archdiocese of Bucharest, Câmpina deanery. The settlement is recent: it began in 2001 with a small wooden church. The large church was consecrated on 14 September 2014, the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, by Patriarch Daniel together with several bishops, 12 years after its foundation stone was laid. On that occasion the church received a second dedication, to the Resurrection of the Lord, to express the link between the Cross and the Resurrection. Major services are also held at a summer altar in the courtyard. Next to the monastery is the Holy Cross Social-Pastoral Centre, with accommodation and conference facilities, which hosts camps for children, including those of the Romanian Patriarchate's "Choose school!" programme, as well as conferences and clergy meetings. Since 2015 an extension of about 7,000 m² has been under construction, with 73 double rooms, a conference hall and a library; in June 2024 the work was 25% complete. The abbot is Archimandrite David Petrovici. The main feast day is 14 September, and the monastery can be reached on foot from the centre of Bușteni.