Clearing the Bîc River

Moldova, known for its rich culture and natural beauty, also holds an intriguing relic of the Cold War era — the Șoldănești Bunker. Officially known as Object 1180, this underground complex was part of a Soviet network of shelters designed to protect the command staff and maintain control of the troops during possible nuclear conflicts. Located not far from the town of Șoldănești, near the village of Olișcani, this bunker represents […]

The wooden Church of the Assumption in the village of Vorniceni was built at the end of the 18th century. The church has a three-part plan, with a polygonal altar (3.5 ×3 m), a square nave (5.5 × 5.5 m) and a narthex (4.5 × 4.5 m). The nave is crowned by a cupola set on an octagonal light drum. At the beginning of the 20th century the church was raised and a stone foundation was laid beneath it. […]

The memorial complex embodies humanity’s gratitude and respect for the victims of the war who lost their lives during the tragic events of April to August 1944. Construction of the complex began in 1995. On the initiative of the President of the Republic of Moldova, Vladimir Voronin, a general reconstruction of the complex began in 2003. The official opening took place on 22 August 2004 […]

– Mom! Are these hobbit houses?! – the children shouted with delight. Indeed, after visiting Rogojeni, Țîra and Roșietici, you might think these were the very places that inspired Peter Jackson to create Hobbiton from Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings”. Before us are semi-dugouts known as burdei (bordei, bașcă). Moldovan peasants of this region lived in such houses for centuries. According to some sources, these semi-dugouts […]

The tank was installed on 9 May 1985 to mark the 40th anniversary of the Victory of the Soviet people in the Great Patriotic War. It honours the soldiers of the 6th Guards Tank Army under the command of twice Hero of the Soviet Union Colonel General A.G. Kravchenko, who in March 1944, in fierce battles with the German fascist invaders, liberated the territory of the Ungheni district and were the first to reach the state border of the USSR. The IS-3 (Object […]

The Turkish Garden is the easternmost landscape reserve in Moldova, with an area of almost 224 hectares. The “Turkish Garden” natural area is a stretch of forest, aquatic and marsh vegetation classified under the category “forest ecosystems of pedunculate oak (Quercus robur), poplar (Populus alba) and willow (Salix alba) of river floodplains”. Most of the Turkish Garden’s territory is taken up by the old riverbed […]

“Cricova”, deservedly called the “pearl of Moldovan winemaking”, is a unique underground complex that has become famous worldwide for its enormous labyrinths and superb wines. The history of the “Cricova” winery begins in 1952. It was then that the Republic of Moldova faced a shortage of premises for storing and aging wines. After a long search, two outstanding figures of Moldovan winemaking, […]

Official website and tour bookings: https://vinuridecomrat.md/ “Vinuri de Comrat” – one of the oldest wineries in southern Moldova. For more than 120 years, Comrat winemakers have preserved and passed down from generation to generation the classic traditions of making unique southern Moldovan grape wines, which undoubtedly gives Comrat wines their natural freshness, elegance and drinkability. Vinuri de Comrat today – […]

The Purcari estate lies 120 km from Chisinau, close to the Dniester and only 30 km from the Black Sea. Here you will find the legendary Purcari cellars, unchanged since 1827 and home to part of the country’s heritage – the famous Purcari collection of old wines. On the grounds of the Purcari complex stands the Estate, built in the style of French châteaux, […]

The Tiraspol wine and brandy factory “KVINT” traces its history back to 1897, when a rectification warehouse was built and began operating on Vokzalnaya Street, where forty-degree grape vodka was made from wine stock delivered by residents of the surrounding villages. Production of divins (brandies) began here only four decades after the opening – the first brandy spirits were laid down for aging in 1938. […]

The Soroca Fortress was built by Stephen the Great in the last quarter of the 15th century. So says local tradition, which explains its name by the fact that the ruler set a “soroc” (a deadline for building the fortress). The Soroca Fortress was built as a defensive stronghold against the predatory Tatar hordes who invaded Moldova via the Dniester crossings. Soroca was not a large fortress with two rows of walls, like […]

The La Castel toltry gorge, located above the valley of the Racovăț River near the village of Gordinești, is a unique place. It is a wonder of nature that we owe to deposits laid down over millions of years in ancient times. Here you can find landscapes that delight the eye, rich flora and fauna and, most importantly, hear from locals the legends connected with this place. The name itself leads us to […]

What do we call our little Moldovan Switzerland? The Fetești Landscape Reserve in Edineț district, of course. It is widely known for its toltry limestone ridges, whose grottoes and caves were settled by primitive man.. They are unique geological formations. 20-10 million years ago, a foothill depression developed in this area, filled first by the waters of the Tortonian and then of the Sarmatian Sea. […]

Toltry are picturesque limestone hills and ridges older than the Carpathian Mountains. These barrier reefs of an ancient sea appeared 15-20 million years ago, when the Tortonian and Sarmatian seas disappeared. The toltry are a natural monument of unique significance; moreover, similar reefs are found on Earth only in New Zealand. Around the villages of Trinca, Brînzeni, Gordinești in Edineț district there are many strange […]

Not far from the town of Costești, east of the village of the same name, the Duruitoarea stream, a tributary of the Ciugur River, has cut a deep gorge through the toltry. Its steep limestone slopes are dotted with grottoes and adorned with many cliffs of the most unusual shapes. The Duruitoarea Veche grotto is known as  an ancient Stone Age settlement. It consists of three chambers with a total length of 49 m. and a width of 5-9 m. As a result […]

Old Orhei is a historical and archaeological complex located 60 km north-east of Chisinau, on the Reut River. Old Orhei is famous for its cave monasteries. This area was isolated from the outside world. By the time Christians came to this land, there may already have been caves in the rocks, carved by prehistoric tribes who lived here. Most likely, the Christians used […]

The church dedicated to St. Archangel Michael was built at the beginning of the 18th century. Old-timers say it was a wooden church in the form of a large clay-plastered house, and it stood on the north-western hill of the village. The present stone church was erected in 1829 through the efforts of Field Marshal General Wittgenstein and the parishioners. Its distinctive feature is the combination of Orthodox and Lutheran traditions in its architecture. […]

In the picturesque Codri, 40 km north-west of Chisinau, lies one of the oldest monasteries in Moldova, Capriana. The monastery was founded in 1429. For a long time Capriana Monastery served as the residence of the Metropolitan of Moldova. The monastery enjoyed the patronage of the ruling princes, including Stephen the Great; the chronicler Eftimie and one of Moldova’s first poets, Ciprian, lived here. In 1429 […]

Curchi Monastery is one of Moldova’s main attractions and a 17th-century architectural monument. The monastery stands on picturesque wooded hills and occupies two terraces – the upper one holds the monastery itself and its outbuildings, while the lower one has a stone pool-pond. The architectural ensemble includes two churches, nine different buildings, including monks’ cells, a large garden and a stone […]

Tipova (Rom. Ţipova) is a village in the Rezina district of Moldova. Together with the villages of Lalova and Nistreni, it forms part of the Lalova commune. On the bank of the Dniester near the village stands a cave monastery founded in the 6th century. Here, in the 15th century, the ruler Stephen III the Great (Ştefan cel Mare) married his wife Maria Voichița. From 1776 began a period of prosperity […]

Saharna is a village in the Rezina district of Moldova. Together with the villages of Saharna Nouă and Buciușca, it forms part of the Saharna Nouă commune. The village lies about 110 km north of Chisinau on the right bank of the Dniester River, 28 metres above sea level. The village of Saharna is famous for its cave monastery and the active Holy Trinity monastery for monks. This monastery […]

The National Museum of Ethnography and Natural History was founded in October 1889 on the basis of the collection of exhibits from the first agricultural exhibition of Bessarabia, at the initiative of Baron A. Stuart. It is thus the oldest museum in the Republic of Moldova still in operation today.

Few manor houses from the late 18th century survive in which famous writers and fabulists were born, lived and created their masterpieces. In the village of Donici, the estate where the Moldovan writer Alexandru Donici (19.01.1806 – 21.01.1865), a classic of Romanian literature, was born and grew up has been preserved. Since 1976 the Donici family estate has housed a museum with exhibits reflecting the life and work of the fabulist. The house […]

The museum has been taking shape since 1952; its unique exhibits were collected by students and graduates of the Faculty of Biology and Soil Science. Biologists brought dead animals here from all corners of the planet. This is how a unique collection representing the diverse fauna of the Earth came to be. For almost 30 years, its director, sole employee and guide all in one has been Stanislav Danilovich Poznakomkin. The most unique exhibit […]

The Museum of Military Equipment is an exhibition of old weaponry used in Moldova in past decades. It used to be located elsewhere, but in the late 2000s it moved to the grounds of the Central House of the Army in Chisinau, also known as the House of Officers. The museum occupies the side courtyard of the majestic snow-white building; it is a public open-air exhibition that can be visited all year round. […]

A unique museum of computing technology has opened in Chisinau. The desire to get to the root of everything was the reason for assembling the first 2nd-generation computer. A collection of 3 computers of different generations grew and turned into a museum. Today the museum has more than 200 exhibits – working, fully functional computers, including ones made in Moldova. Besides computers, the museum […]

The Lower Prut is a magnificent protected area known as “Prutul de Jos” on both sides of the Prut River. Both protected areas form a core intended for the conservation of biodiversity, being part of the Danube Delta biome, with enormous ecological potential for protecting natural wealth. Every year at this time, more than 20 000 waterbirds of various families/subfamilies pass through these places. […]

In summer, Moldovan Instagram floods with different colours: first it is yellow with rapeseed, then scarlet with poppies, now purple with photos from lavender fields, and in August it is all sunflowers and wheat. Of all the plants, lavender is perhaps the most impressive on camera. Instagrammers come all the way from Kyiv to take a photo in Moldovan lavender! In Moldova, lavender is grown not only in […]

The La Castel toltry gorge, located above the valley of the Racovăț River near the village of Gordinești, is a unique place. It is a wonder of nature that we owe to deposits laid down over millions of years in ancient times. Here you can find landscapes that delight the eye, rich flora and fauna and, most importantly, hear from locals the legends connected with this place. The name itself leads us to […]

Naslavcea is the northernmost point of our country. The shallow Kisarău stream divides the south-eastern part of the village in two, while its northern outskirts reach the banks of the Dniester. This strikingly beautiful corner of the northern Dniester region is also called the little Moldovan Carpathians because of its resemblance to a mountain village. In medieval historical documents, Naslavcea is mentioned in the first half of the 15th century. Such an unusual name for the settlement […]

What do we call our little Moldovan Switzerland? The Fetești Landscape Reserve in Edineț district, of course. It is widely known for its toltry limestone ridges, whose grottoes and caves were settled by primitive man.. They are unique geological formations. 20-10 million years ago, a foothill depression developed in this area, filled first by the waters of the Tortonian and then of the Sarmatian Sea. […]

Recommendations for visiting Surprise Cave: Descending into the cave on your own is not recommended. The cave is not a “tourist” cave, and being inside it is dangerous. A safe descent is only possible accompanied by a competent person experienced in caving. Use appropriate equipment for the descent: overalls made of durable fabric, sports shoes, a helmet, a headlamp. Always carry […]

Toltry are picturesque limestone hills and ridges older than the Carpathian Mountains. These barrier reefs of an ancient sea appeared 15-20 million years ago, when the Tortonian and Sarmatian seas disappeared. The toltry are a natural monument of unique significance; moreover, similar reefs are found on Earth only in New Zealand. Around the villages of Trinca, Brînzeni, Gordinești in Edineț district there are many strange […]

Not far from the town of Costești, east of the village of the same name, the Duruitoarea stream, a tributary of the Ciugur River, has cut a deep gorge through the toltry. Its steep limestone slopes are dotted with grottoes and adorned with many cliffs of the most unusual shapes. The Duruitoarea Veche grotto is known as  an ancient Stone Age settlement. It consists of three chambers with a total length of 49 m. and a width of 5-9 m. As a result […]