On the house: Free activities to try in Bucharest

The capital its share of cultural events that don’t require the audience to reach for their wallet. From concerts and street theater festivals to film screenings, we list some of the events below.

Visit a museum

Apart from the free access granted on the Night of Museums, several museums in the capital have one day a month when they allow visitors to see their collections without paying. The National Museum of Art of Romania and its satellite museums offer free access on the first Wednesday of every month. The George Enescu Museum offers free access on the 26th of every month, or on the next working day if 26 is a day when the institution is closed to the public. Meanwhile, the Bucharest Municipality Museum often has outdoor photography exhibitions that can be seen without a fee.

Attend a concert or a see a film

Bucharest has a host of events during summer months that can be attended for free, ranging from the light festival Spotlight to the Bucharest Jazz Festival or the street theater festival B-Fit in the Street. This year, Spotlight brought not only video mapping projections but also a concert of French DJ Bob Sinclair. The Bucharest Jazz Festival, taking place between July 1 and July 7, has free concerts in the capital’s George Enescu square. Similarly, B-Fit in the Street, brings international theater companies for various performances held in several spots in downtown Bucharest. The Christmas fair organized by Arcub, one of the cultural centers of the Bucharest City Hall, also offers several free-entrance concerts. Grădina cu Filme – Cinema & More, a program run by Creart, another cultural center of the City Hall, includes a series a free film screenings that mix classic and contemporary productions. Among the films scheduled for June are Inherent Vice, The 15:17 to Paris, A Star Is Born, Interstellar, When Harry Met Sally…, The Legend of Tarzan, Collateral Beauty, American Sniper, Dunkirk, The Nice Guys, and Sully. The program can be checked here. Attendance is free within available seating.

The foreign cultural institutes present in Bucharest regularly organize events where the public can get acquainted with the culture they represent. Fans of Spanish-language cinema can get their fix at the Cervantes Institute, which holds various film screenings that can be attended without a fee. The program is available on the Institute’s website and prior confirmation is necessary as seating is limited. The