Things To Do In Sibiu Including Medieval Attractions

There are many options for things to do while visiting Sibiu in Romania. These include fantastic tourist attractions in the three main squares of the historic centre. I really enjoyed visiting Sibiu, so much so that I have visited three times and will be returning.

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The GetYourGuide website has many options for private tours and trips into the Transylvania countryside.

Piața Mare

Piata Mare in Sibiu translates to the name of the great square. The square hosts various events, including festive markets. Beautiful buildings surround the square, and there are also places to dine out or enjoy a drink with views of Piata Mare.

This central square has existed since 1366 and has had many names over the years. It is the largest square in the old town of Sibiu and has an interesting history. Historically, it was used by merchants trading and for fairs. Also, various executions, including beheadings, took place here.

Notable buildings in the square include City Hall Palace, the Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Church and the Brukenthal Palace. Other buildings to see when perusing the square include the council tower, Haller House, the Blue House and many others.

Also in Piata Mare is a statue of Baron Samuel Von Brukenthal and a memorial to those who gave their lives in 1989.

Piața Mică

Piața Mică is joined to the bigger square, which you can access via the council tower, which overlooks both squares. There are many pretty buildings at the edge of the square, including those with eye-shaped windows.

Many of the buildings in Piața Mică date from the 14th to the 16th century. Many of these are labelled so you can find out their backstory. These include many used by craftsmen, as workshops or for selling their products.

Piața Mică is also home to the famous Bridge of Lies, which is photogenic and has a few legends linked with it. From the square, you can also see the epic spire of the Evangelical Cathedral and other churches, too. I really enjoyed spending time here during golden hour when the sky was changing colour.

Piața Albert Huet

Piața Albert Huet is a smaller square and is home to the Evangelical Cathedral.

The square has a history dating back to the 12th century; however, many of the area’s pleasant buildings were added later.

Evangelical Cathedral

The Evangelical Cathedral is a lovely building to see from the outside in Piața Albert Huet. You can also see the church’s distinct spire from many other places in the city. The cathedral is a fantastic Gothic church building that dates from 1371.

The 7-level tower, which is 73 metres tall, dominates the building. This is the second-tallest church in Romania, behind the church in Bistrita. The tower has four turrets on the corners of the roof, which look great. This is a sign that the city had the right to condemn people to death.

The cathedral’s tower is also rather decorative, and the tiles remind me of those that were prominent in Pecs, a city in Hungary. The tower is challenging to climb as it’s so tall; there are steps all the way up, and at the top, you are rewarded with some fantastic views. Inside the church, it is beautiful and has many interesting things to see. This includes the pulpit, altars and lots of decorative features.

Astra National Museum Complex

One of the most popular places to visit in the city is the Astra National Museum Complex. This is the largest outdoor museum in Europe. It is pretty easy to reach from the centre, including by bus or by taxi. During our visit, it was the start of autumn, and the trees starting to change colour added to the experience.

There are old houses, churches, windmills and commercial buildings to see. These are examples of structures from many eras of history and all regions of Romania. We really enjoyed visiting and would recommend allocating lots of time to visit the open-air museum.

Sibiu Christmas Market

Each year, the main square hosts the annual Christmas market in Sibiu. The festive market has many stalls to peruse and activities to enjoy.

The main square and many other parts of Sibiu have Christmas decorations. This includes various Christmas trees and light tunnels. The event is a great place to purchase gifts or to enjoy a fun time out.

There are various places for seasonal street food and drinks. There are also places to purchase local food, including some delicious Romanian cheese.

Turnul Sfatului – The Council Tower For Views From Above

You can climb the council tower and see the views of the city from above. The most notable are bird’s-eye views of the two main squares, Piața Mică and Piața Mare. Inside, there are a few exhibits; I really enjoyed the photography floor.

They also have an exhibition of acrylic clocks, all uniquely decorated. You can apparently purchase these if one takes your fancy. On the way to the top, you also pass the clock mechanism, which is interesting to see.

They built the Council Tower during the same period as the second fortified citadel, between the years 1224 and 1241. The Council Tower is a symbol of the city of Sibiu and gets its name from being attached to the building housing the city council.

In 1585, the upper floors of the tower collapsed, and it was subsequently restored in 1588. They demolished the top of the tower in 1824 and replaced it with the current dome. It only cost 2 lei to enter, which was well worth it. Note that the stairs can be quite challenging and steep, so I recommend good footwear.

Citadel Park And The Beautiful Towers

I really enjoyed visiting the Citadel Park to see the medieval towers. There are 4 towers to see in the park, some of which you can visit inside. There is also a hall of fame in the park with plaques on the floor.

The Harquebusiers Tower, aka Turnul Archebuzierilor, is a beautiful tower in the park; however, you cannot visit inside. This tower dates from the 14th century and was used to defend the city. Turnul Dulgherilor and Turnul Olarilor, the potters’ tower, are a great attraction. You can visit inside both for a small 2 lei fee. The entrance is at Turnul Olarilor. Inside, they tell the story of the towers and those who were charged with manning the defensive fortification.

The towers are joined by a wooden walkway, which runs along the inside of the fortress walls. The views from here are great.

Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Church

The Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Church is a nice place to pop inside and see the features. It looks great from the outside, too.

After Sibiu joined the Reformation, it spent nearly 150 years without a Catholic church. To solve this, they built a nice church. They built the church in the Baroque style and started construction in 1726. The building fits perfectly into the town’s architectural style.

There are lots of nice stained glass windows to see inside, as well as beautiful frescoes and other Baroque features. It also has an organ installed in 1860. This is a free-to-enter attraction with handy access from Piața Mare.

Casa Artelor

Another fascinating building in Piața Mică is Casa Artelor, aka the Arts House. It’s a stunning building that used to be the butcher’s guildhall. Casa Artelor has a long history, and records from 1370 mention the building. However, it has been restored since then.

The eye-catching feature is the 8 stone arches on the ground floor. Inside the building is a museum of Saxon folk art. Sadly, they were closed during my visit.

Walking Tours

There are various options for walking tours in Sibiu if you enjoy that sort of thing. I saw and overheard a few group tours exploring the city and learning more about the old town.

You can also enjoy a ride on the tourist train for a quick and simple way to see the main sights of Sibiu. These depart from Piata Mare in the centre of the city. The Viator website has many options for walking tours and other attractions to book.

Holy Trinity Orthodox Cathedral

Another place of interest to visit in Sibiu is the Holy Trinity Orthodox Cathedral. This is the main Romanian Orthodox church in the city. It’s a relatively young church, and construction was completed in 1904. It was built in the Byzantine Revival style, and it looks great from the outside.

Holy Trinity Orthodox Cathedral was free to enter and had no restrictions on taking photographs. It’s still an active church, so consideration is needed if people are in view. The inside is richly decorated with lots of colourful frescoes, much like other Orthodox places of worship. It’s very big inside, thus spacious to look around and see the details. The decor under the dome was rather special to see, with nice candelabra hanging from the roof.

Before you enter the building, the frescoes by the door, including those on the ceiling, are beautiful too.

Bridge of Lies

Another nice thing to see is the Bridge of Lies in Piața Mică. This was the first cast-iron bridge built in Romania, and they completed it was completed in 1860. The bridge has Gothic features and includes the Sibiu coat of arms. The bridge is also a good viewpoint with views of both the upper town and the lower town.

It’s only a small bridge at 10 metres in length, but it attracts people. There are many legends attached to the Bridge of Lies. One includes the belief that the bridge will fall down if someone lies while standing on the bridge.

The Houses With Eyes

A peculiar feature of Sibiu in Romania is the unique upper windows on houses and other buildings. It looks like the houses have eyes. Many of these buildings are photogenic and have an interesting backstory.

The eyes are a symbol of the city and a tourist attraction in their own right. As a result, people have given the city various monikers relating to this. It includes The City with Eyes and The City Where Houses Don’t Sleep.

The eyes vary in shape; most are trapezoidal, while others have rounded or elongated forms. The eye-shaped windows originate from the 15th century; however, most were installed in the 19th century.

Brukenthal Palace

One of the pleasant buildings in Paita Mare is the Brukenthal Palace, which has an art gallery inside. The Brukenthal Palace is one of the most important Baroque buildings in Romania. They built between 1778 and 1788.

The art gallery inside the Brukenthal Palace has about 1200 works of art, including those from the main European schools of painting. This includes paintings from the 15th to the 18th centuries. Unfortunately for me, they were closed when I visited. For reference, they are open from Wednesday to Sunday. You can find out prices and times on their website.

Turnul Scărilor – The Tower of the Stairs

Another place of interest in Sibiu is Turnul Scărilor, a tower near the Evangelical Cathedral. Turnul Scărilor is a 13th-century gate and tower with an arched passage that you can access via some stairs. The stairs link the upper town with the lower town area. This is the only preserved gate left from the first set of fortifications they built in the city.

The Guilds Tree

An eye-catching feature I spotted while sightseeing in Sibiu is the Guilds Tree. This was near the Evangelical Cathedral outside of Calfelor House. The Guilds Tree represents many of the historical craft associations that used to be active in Sibiu, including those that protected the various towers during their daytime jobs.

Lower Town

Outside of the medieval fortress walls, you can find the Lower Town area. This is accessible from various stairways in the Upper Town. The Lower Town has cobbled streets and pretty buildings.

It was also a great place to visit for refreshments, with many options for cool cafes and restaurants. There are also great views of the older part of the city from here, including the cathedral.

Altemberger House History Museum

To keep things fresh on my third visit to the city, I enjoyed visiting Altemberger House, a history museum. Altemberger House, home to the museum, has a history dating back to 1545 and was previously the town hall. The building was named after its first owner. It’s a lovely building to see from the outside when passing, but the courtyard inside is pretty special with balconies and a tower. The courtyard also has some interesting statues to see.

The museum has various sections to see, covering the Stone Age onwards. We enjoyed the exhibits, and those that piqued my interest were the Roman lapidarium, the armour and weapons section, and the mock Freemason hall inside. The coins and religious treasure were also well worth seeing.

House with Caryatides

If you like colourful Baroque architecture, look out for the House with Caryatides. They also refer to the House with Caryatides as the little palace, and it was built in 1786. The front of the building really impressed me while exploring Mitropoliei Street, especially the two statues and the balcony that frame the entrance.

Natural History Museum

One of the educational things to do in Sibiu is to visit the natural history museum. This is near the Philharmonic Hall and the old town walls. Outside in their gardens, they have some interesting dinosaur models to see. Inside, you can learn about animals of the world, including some local ones. They also cover palaeontology, geology and archaeology.

Filek Palace

Filek Palace was built in 1802, and it used to be the residence of the governor of Transylvania. Nowadays, it is the headquarters of the Evangelical Church in Romania.

Casa Luxemburg

Casa Luxemburg is a 15th-century building that is now a posh hotel. It’s a lovely building to see from the outside. They have restored and preserved some original features of Casa Luxemburg. This includes a Gothic wooden door, a wooden staircase, and, on the 2nd floor, a wooden ceiling with the seal of the Taylors’ Guild from 1597.

There are also floral motifs on the façade. It’s one of the buildings that certainly catches your eye when passing through the small square. You can book a stay inside the pretty building on the Booking.com website.

Astra Park

Just out of the central areas is Astra Park. The park is surrounded by beautiful buildings, including the library. I enjoyed how quiet it was and loved seeing the colourful buildings and various monuments. After sitting in the park, I visited St John Lutheran Church and the Orthodox cathedral.