Tourist Scams in Romania

Unofficial taxis outside Bucharest's Henri Coandă Airport charge tourists €50–100 for trips that should cost €15–20. The drivers often operate with fake meters that run 5–10x too fast.

How to avoid: Use Uber or Bolt apps from Bucharest Airport — both operate at the airport and offer transparent pricing. The official licensed taxi company rank is inside the terminal. Avoid any driver who approaches you outside the doors.

Hostesses in bars near the Old Town (Lipscani) invite tourists in for drinks, then a huge bill arrives — often hundreds of euros — with extras neither party agreed to. Doormen or associates prevent leaving until payment is made.

How to avoid: Use only well-reviewed bars. Agree on prices before ordering and be deeply sceptical of invitations from strangers near bar entrances.

Some taxis parked outside Bucharest's main train station (Gara de Nord) and airport have tampered meters that run at 5–10× the normal rate. The driver claims the rate is legitimate and may become aggressive if challenged.

How to avoid: Use only the official TAXI stands with printed tariff rates on the door (around 1.39–3.5 RON per km). Better still, use Uber, Bolt, or Free Now which show the price upfront.

Drivers loiter outside the train station asking arriving tourists 'Taxi?' and quote a flat 50-70 lei or '16 euro' for the short ride into the Old Town, a trip that should cost roughly 10-15 lei on the meter. They often refuse to run the meter or show a phone 'meter' priced in euros instead of lei. Legitimate Brașov taxis display a per-kilometre rate (around 1.35-2 lei/km) on the car door.

How to avoid: Ignore drivers who approach you and instead order a car through the Bolt or Uber app, or phone a known company like MARTAX. Insist on the meter before getting in, and refuse any 'fixed price' or euro-denominated quote. Confirm the rate sticker is on the door.

Restaurants in Lipscani's Old Town display attractive photos and reasonable prices outside, but add large cover charges, service fees, and inflated tourist menu items not shown on the board outside.

How to avoid: Read the full menu including all fees before sitting down. Ask about cover charges explicitly.

Fraudulent landlords advertise apartments near Piața Unirii and the Old Town on Facebook Marketplace and local classified sites, requesting a security deposit of €100–300 to "hold" the unit before arrival. Once the transfer is made, the listing disappears and the host becomes unreachable. The properties often use stolen photos from legitimate listings on Airbnb or Booking.com.

How to avoid: Book only through platforms with verified payment protection (Airbnb, Booking.com) and never transfer deposits via bank transfer or Western Union to private individuals. Reverse-search listing photos before paying anything.

Some exchange bureaus in the city centre display attractive rates but shortchange tourists by counting notes quickly and incorrectly, banking on travellers not recounting immediately.

How to avoid: Count every note before leaving the counter. Use bank ATMs for cash rather than street bureaus.

Touts and online operators sell Bran Castle (often bundled with Peleș and Râșnov) day-tours from Brașov at prices that can run from double to as much as ten times the cost of simply taking the bus and buying entry at the gate. The premium frequently buys little more than transport plus a guide reciting the Vlad-the-Impaler myth, which historians note has no real link to Bran Castle. Door-to-door upselling near the squares pushes inflated 'private' rates.

How to avoid: Compare the all-in tour price against doing it independently (about 13 lei bus + the castle's standard entry ticket). Book reputable operators with verifiable recent reviews, confirm exactly what is included, and avoid committing to tours sold by street touts.