Tulips, roses, and tuberoses all have dedicated events that turn into dazzling displays alive with myriad colors. From lavender fields to urban festivals and flower parades, we outline a selection of flower-themed events and destinations in the country.

Tulips, cherry blossoms, and roses in Timișoara

Timișoara is a great choice year-round, but come spring, it puts on a spectacular display of blooms. As part of a tourism campaign launched last year under the headline Timișoara in Bloom, the local authorities have created several flower-themed routes to explore throughout the city, alongside a calendar highlighting the best times to visit.

Early March—though timing may vary depending on the year’s temperatures—is perfect for a walk along the Bega River, behind the Metropolitan Cathedral, where the Prunus nigra trees burst into bloom. From mid-March to mid-April, tulips, magnolias, wisteria, and Japanese cherry blossoms dazzle in Justiției, Alpinet, and Botanical Parks, Victoriei Square, Iulius Gardens, and the grounds of Huniade Castle. Then, from mid-April to mid-May, azaleas, hydrangeas, and roses take the spotlight in Iulius Gardens and at Roses Park.

The flower-themed tours in the city are listed here.

Cherry blossoms and West Side Flower Fest in Bucharest

West Side Flower Fest, which held its first edition in 2023, calls itself the largest flower festival in the country. Taking place in Bucharest’s District 6, in Drumul Taberei Park, the event features themed gardens, flower labyrinths, and numerous plant installations, attracting some 300,000 visitors over the course of its three days last year. Additional activities, including concerts, children’s entertainment, and various workshops, are also part of the program. Details about the upcoming edition are posted here.

After supporting the refurbishment of the Japanese Garden in Regele Mihai I (Herăstrău) Park, the Embassy of Japan has been organizing a Hanami celebration every spring. In addition to viewing the blooming cherry trees, the event highlights other aspects of traditional Japanese culture, such as tea ceremonies, origami, and kimono displays. The celebration is announced on the embassy’s social media channels.

Tulips in Pitești

This city in southern Romania has been hosting since the 1970s The Symphony of Tulips, an event dedicated to celebrating the cup-shaped flower. Myriad tulips fill a well-known city park with color around the time of the festival, which has also featured, in past editions, a flower parade showcasing various other species.

This year, local authorities have announced that the event will be extended from its traditional three-day format to ten days, in a move aimed at offering more cultural and leisure activities—and more reasons for tourists to visit the city. More details on what’s in store are available here.

Magic of Flowers in Târgu Mureș

This festival is gearing up for its third edition this year, scheduled to take place between July 3 and July 5. It is meant to turn the central Romania city of Târgu Mureș into a “living show of nature and floral art” with its installations, themed gardens, and large-scale floral exhibitions. A highlight of the festival is the Allegorical Floral Float Parade, where floats decorated with thousands of flowers stroll through the city, accompanied by dancers, drummers, and entertainers. The festival also hosts a Flower Fair, gathering florists, ornamental plants producers, and landscape specialists who present their creations, and an exhibition featuring impressive flower arrangements. More on this year’s edition here.

Autumn flowers in Iași

This exhibition of flowers, fruits, and seeds from the collections of the Iași Botanical Garden has been organized since 1976. Every year, it showcases the rich colors of an impressive variety of chrysanthemums, primroses, pumpkins, ornamental peppers and cabbage, arranged in thematic compositions. The public can also admire a host of plant sculptures and plant forms inspired by the animal world, among them the peacock, a symbol of the event. In addition to the floral arrangements, fruits, seeds, and plants with therapeutic properties also go on display.

Roses in Ciumbrud

In an area known for its wineries, Ciumbrud, a locality some 40 km north of Alba Iulia, is one of the places in the country where roses put on a spectacular and fragrant show every summer. Red, pink, white, yellow, or violet, each variety comes with its own story. Up to 200 varieties are cultivated here, some of them only on demand, and the top five producers have a combined turnover of EUR 2 million, according to data presented by Libertatea. The flowers cultivated here are found in all major hypermarkets in the country, and in many of the parks in cities across Romania. While the area’s rose hills attract visitors all summer long, a highlight of the experience is the Roses Celebration, set to take place this year between June 27 and June 28, in Ciumbrud.

Lavender fields throughout the country

Lavender fields have multiplied across all regions of the country in recent years, offering every summer the opportunity for fragrant walks, feed-worthy pics, and overall pleasant weekend escapes. They are also an opportunity to support the local producers who tend to them and create various products from the crops. Lavandafest, which gathers such local producers and organizers for regular events in the country showcasing their output, has a map of lavender fields here.

Tuberoses in Hoghilag

Tuberoses are closely linked to the history and culture of Hoghilag, a commune with Saxon roots located in Sibiu county, some 20 km away from Sighișoara. The celebration of tuberoses, held there every year towards the end of summer, gathers numerous tourists who can enjoy flower displays, tours through the locals’ tuberose gardens, but also a fair of traditional food products and other handmade items.

Flowers everywhere at I Giardini di Zoe

In Banpotoc, in Hunedoara county, Giovanni Salvatelli has developed this Italian-style garden project that has become a tourist attraction of the area. Ornamental trees, hedge mazes, and seasonal flowers fill the place, and photo opportunities abound. The gardens are closed between December 2 and March 14. 

(Photo of tulips in a park in Timișoara by  Anita Bejenaru | Dreamstime.com)

editor@romania-insider.com