Visit a Gypsy Ghetto on this Bucharest Tour
If you are looking for something slightly different when visiting Bucharest I would highly recommend the Rroma Heritage Tour By Open Doors Travel. The tour is a collaboration with Ana from the which takes you around the city explaining the history and modern day lives of the Rroma Gypsy.
Our Tour Guide Livia Morega was so knowledgeable about this heritage and also compassionate about the stories that she was telling us, it made it such a interesting experience.
This was my second visit to Bucharest and this time I spent 5 days in Bucharest as there is so much to see and do. I recommend Romania as a short break from the UK as there is a lot to see and I have quite a few articles on my blog about what to do in Bucharest so please check them out. Read More About : Fun things to do in Bucharest, Tour following those who live on the streets in Bucharest, Bucharest Parks,Is Bucharest Safe to travel solo and The Best restaurant in Bucharest
About This Bucharest City Tour
This is one of the most interesting tours in Bucharest alongside the Outcast tour which is given by people that used to live on the streets in Bucharest, these are both the types of tours that will get you thinking about what it is actually like to live in Bucharest and I have to admit they are a real eye opener. Interesting Fact : Romania has the largest gypsy community in the world, with estimatives about 2 million gypsies (or Roma, as they nominate themselves in Romani language along Eastern Europe), which means about 10% of Romanian population
The tour is held everyday and starts at 10am, it lasts about 3.5 hours and currently costs 30euros and it is worth every penny. I have updated this article a couple of year later with up to date information and it is still one of those tours that I think about and think wow how can people live like this?.
During the Rroma City Tour in Bucharest
We began the tour walking around the old city whilst Livia explained the history of the Romani Community.
The gypsies originally came from India and their language takes bits of all the countries they travelled through whilst migrating from India. They travelled through Turkey then in the 14th century expanded into Eastern Europe 1385 first official mention being in Romania.
The wealthy community in Romania wanted the gypsies to stay because of their skills. They are known for their witchcraft and being bear tamers. They have such excellent craft making and selling skills.
So they kept them as slaves, treating them less than animals. 3 golden coins could buy a man, 2 a woman and ½ for a child, they even started to sell them by the kilo so started to fatten them up. They were actually the longest slave nation in the world of over 600 years.
In Transylvania they were treated slightly better and given some land. During the world war 2 it is estimated that 220,000 to 500,000 were killed by the Nazis as they were deemed as “enemies of the race-based state”, the same category as Jews (source: Wikipedia)
Also between 20,000 and 90,000 Roma were forcibly deported to Transnistria, which is in Moldova on the border with Ukraine. They were not executed but forced to march in horrible conditions, with no food or water and basically left to die from the cold and illnesses.
In the 1980s the communists put them into ghettos where they became stronger as their communities built. It is quite a sad history as the community faced a lot of biased opinion and misunderstanding of their lives which led to negative feelings from non Romani people.
The Romani Development NGO is a charity that is helping support the community as their is still so much discrimination towards to community. In fact Livia explained how now parents are telling their children not to let on that they are from the Romani heritage so they can lead a normal life which is such a shame that they have to loose their culture and heritage in order to fit in with todays society.
We visited a ghetto called Ferentari which was in the south of the city. There were lots of people sat on the door steps mothers chatting and laughing, kids playing. They are not registered with any government as then they would have to pay taxes so they are not entitled to amenities such as garbage collection.
The garbage is just left in the streets to rot. When we were there though there were bull dozers scooping up the mounts of rubbish.
Children were playing in this rubbish. Apparently by the time we got there most of it had been cleared away so you can only imagine how high the rubbish mounds must of been.
As we were driving around the ghetto I really didn’t want to stare as I wouldn’t like a bus of tourists coming around my street but couldn’t help looking at the community, they were also looking at us, probably thinking here another bus of those tourists but there was no hostility.
The tour company has met with the community to explain what is happening and I think there are plans in the future to actually interact more with the Romani culture. We were told they love to tell stories about their heritage and I would have loved to have heard more.
One of the stops was a cultural gift shop called which Livia explained meant beautiful craft. The shop sold hand made products made by the Rroma community and the skill and expertise to make these products are amazing.
The hand made clothes were so colourful and hand stitched to excellent standards. The price wasn’t too high either and if I had more room in my suitcase I probably would have bought something.
The owner explained how they made the cooking utensils by hammering pieces of metal into the correct shapes. They had a picnic set which I would have loved to buy.
The store can be found at Edgar Quinet, nr. 7, Bucharest. If you are looking for a souvenir to take home or a gift for someone you are bound to find something here all at reasonable prices too.
Livia showed us the Romani Flag and explained how it was created in 1933. The background of blue and green represents the heavens and earth. The 16-spoke red wheel in the centre represents the travelling traditions of the community.
Our last stop was at the Flower market called Piata de Flori George Cosbuc. It is a very colourful and fragrant place. They had so many different types of flower and the price was so cheap compared to the price of flowers in the UK.
One of the shop owners called Flori gave us all a flower each and said we have to help save the market as the government are trying to close it down in order to build more bars which is going to be devastating for the community as so many earn a living here. I don’t really know what else she was saying to us but she was very bubbly and wanted to pose for pictures.
At the end of the tour we should have visited the Romani museum but unfortunately we ran out of time as we had a lunch engagement to get to but if you do the tour you will hopefully get to visit. But don’t just take my word about this tour you can see more reviews on TripAdvisor.
If you are planning a visit to Bucharest use the search box below or my favourite links to find the best prices for accommodation in Bucharest. I use hotelscombined.com to find the best rate and then I will book directly with my favourite hotel booking agents. I use the following two depending on the best deal. I like these companies as they have easy to use websites, apps, customer service, loyalty discounts and the best prices. Bookings.com or Hotels.com
I did this tour as part of Experience Bucharest. It was a complimentary tour during a blogging event but it has not influenced my opinion in any way as it is an absolutely fascinating tour and well worth doing. If you want more information check out their website or . Read More About :
Fun things to do in Bucharest,
Tour following those who live on the streets in Bucharest,
Bucharest Parks,
Is Bucharest Safe to travel soloThe Best restaurant in Bucharest
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14 Comments
It was really sad to read about their history and how cruelly they have been treated over such a long period. Especially sad that children often have to deny their heritage in order not to have any stigma attached to them. The piles of rubbish that you witnessed were really quite shocking as was the state of their housing and we can only hope that things genuinely do start to improve. If anyone needs a bit of a break, there’s no doubt they certainly do!
This is a great tip. I am always looking for new and interesting ways to experience a place and it looks like you found a good one. I cannot believe how much litter is in the pinterest image! Wow
I am appalled at the conditions the Roma community lives in Bucharest. It’s a shame. It’s basically a slum. What about their human rights in this century?
OMG! That’s a very depressing history of Slave trade! Even till World War I they suffered? That’s sad!
Atleast its good that their situation has begun to improve and there are NGOs that help them!
Good to know that your tour guide was very knowledgeable!
That is a sad state of affairs there. I wish the citizens would be more responsible world wide. It is unfortunate that more bars are being opened by closing the beautiful markets.
A very good complimentary tour for you!
Lovely tour you had! It makes me happy to read that they plan to interact even more with the Romani culture. Imagine the stories yet to be told! 😀
Handmade clothes from Rroma looks interesting and it is so sad that it was not enough room in your suitcase. It is very sad to know that human beings were sold for few pieces of gold coins looks like a slavery. Also The origination of Romani flag and what it represents is interesting.
The history made my eyes well up. It is just so sad to read about all the trauma of the slaves. Planned tours are a great way to actually experience a city. Especially if you have a knowledgable guide with personal stories and anecdotes. The garbage dump is depressing. So good to see the vibrance of the flower markets and the interactions with the locals. The colourful graffiti is eye catching!
I love it when tour guides are very knowledgeable and compassionate, because they truly make you feel part of the story. It’s a completely different experience!
Really sad to see this state of affairs – will be good to highlight this to the world citizens – high time it gets Highlighted.
Oh my i am sad to see all this. Wondering why the people not taking any actions against this
I think they are trying to now there are charities helping also. But even though it seems sad they all looked so happy so that’s a plus point
Sounds like this would be a really eye-opening and heart-breaking experience all at the same time. But what a fantastic way to learn about local lives and culture. Thanks for sharing.
This sounds like a really interesting tour. It’s always interesting to take time out to learn about local culture and the communities that we travel within. It would be great to see this tour incorporate the romani community and provide valuable employment opportunities.