Sighisoara holds a very special place in my heart: it’s the first city I visited independently, without parents or teachers. It was back in 2000 and I was there with friends to attend the Medieval Festival. We stayed with a local lady, walked in the fortress and fell in love with Sighisoara. Since then, I went back in 2001 (again, for 5 days) and in 2008 (for a couple of hours).

But I’ve been meaning to visit Sighisoara with Alex for a while. For me the city is extremely romantic and taking our 1st wedding anniversary photo IN Sighisoara was just awesome.

On Saturday we found an empty fortress. Granted it was 6 p.m. and the Clock Tower‘s museum was already closed (so the tourists were pretty much gone). But it was amazing.

We climbed the stairs to the fortress, emerging just by the Catholic Church (there was a wedding!), passed by the Town Hall, the Monastery Church and walked to Vlad Dracul House and The Clock Tower. Took some photos and then walk to the main square, past the Deer House and walked all 176 steps of the Covered Staircase.

Up on the hill, we saw the Church on the Hill and some of the cemetery, looking at the lovely scenery, too. Then we walked back (on a paved road, not the Staircase), walked on more small streets and went back to where we parked the car.

How to get to Sighisoara

By car or by train from any major city in Romania (it’s on the Bucharest route). The closest airport is in Targu Mures (served by WizzAir).

If you need accommodation…

There are a lot of places to stay available in Sighisoara. Outside of the high season, you can pay as little as 13 euro per night in a double (3-star guest house)

Booking.com

Some facts about Sighisoara

• it was first mentioned in documents in 1280 as Castrum Sex
• the fortress can be easily tackled in some hours but try to get to Sighisoara by noon (apparently the Clock Tower with its viewing platform is open until 5:30 p.m. even during summer – May to October)
• the Romanian name, Sighisoara, was first mentioned in 1435, and comes from the Hungarian name, Segesvar (Fortress of Seghes)
• Vlad Dracul lived in Sighisoara between 143 and 1435. His son, Vlad Tepes (The Impaler) was apparently born here in 1431, in the Vlad Dracul House
• don’t miss: the Deer House, Vlad Dracul House, The Covered Staircase, Church on the Hill, Monastery Church

Note: the article was written in 2013; it was updated and republished in July 2017 and updated with accommodation prices in Aug 2019. This article includes links that may qualify as affiliate links. If you purchase through them, I may earn a commission.

(c) photo Alex P.