Plenty of fish in Romania's ponds: fishing destinations for a relaxing day near Bucharest

Fishing is an ancient practice that dates back to, at least, the beginning of the Paleolithic period about 40,000 years ago. While back then it must have been more of a survival skill, nowadays, a fishing session can reduce some of the stress in our busy lives. If you're passionate about fishing or you just want to give it a try, there are several fishing ponds waiting to be discovered, and they;re close to Bucharest. We've listed some of them for you below. By Irina Popescu Moara Vlasiei The Romanian village of Moara Vlasiei is located in northern Bucharest, at about 25 km from the capital city. You can get there by following the Otopeni - Baloteşti - Caciulati - Moara Vlasiei route. The fishing fee there is RON 60 for 12 hours, only during the day, under the catch and release system, and RON 120 for 24 hours. For a fee of RON 100 for 12 hours during the day, one can take away up to 5 kg of fish. The fish one catches above 5 kg has to be released unconditionally, and fishing from the boat is not allowed. In this pond you can catch various species of fish, such as common carp, pike, and the crucian carp. Balta Peris Peris pond (the word for pond in Romanian is Balta) is located at around 35 km from Bucharest, in the Romanian city of Peris. To get there, you have to take the Bucharest-Ploiesti road, and at the entrance in Tancabesti you follow the Peris indicator, follow the road up near the train station where you have to turn left. The fee is RON 65 for 12 hours, and the fisherman can take away up to 5 kg of fish, while for RON 100 for 24 hours, one can hold maximum 8 kg of fish. Only fish with weights between 1 and 4 kg can be hold. Hobaia The Hobaia fish complex includes two lakes, Hobaia 1 and Hobaia 2, and is formed by the accumulation of the Arges River. There are about 45 km from the Romanian capital city until Hobaia. To get there you can either follow the route Bucharest-Pitesti highway – Bolintin Vale – Hobaia, or you can follow Bucharest – Mihailesti – Hobaia. The fishing fee is RON 150 for 12 hours, and one can not hold more than 10 kg of fish. You can also pay RON 240 for 24 hours of fishing under the catch and release system. The catches weighing more than 4 kg will have to be released immediately. Tancabesti Tancabesti fishing complex is located in the Romanian city of Tancabesti, around 25 km from the capital city. The complex includes Tancabesti 1 pond, and Tancabesti 2. In Tancabesti 1 the fishing fees vary between RON 80 and RON 150, depending on the place, and between 5 to 6 kg of fish can be hold. In Tancabesti 2 the fees are between RON 200 and RON 300. Here, no fish can be hold, and to rent a boat you have to pay RON 50.