Giurgiu: Danube port on Romania’s bank

Ramadan passenger harbour

Giurgiu lies on the Danube’s left, Romanian bank. At the Ramadan passenger area, four berths are available along a 400-metre stretch of riverfront with direct access to the shipping channel. The port sector is south to south-east of the old town. The berth listed for a particular ship should be confirmed in its itinerary.

Piața Unirii and the clock tower

The city centre includes Piața Unirii and the Clock Tower (Turnul Ceasornicului). Built toward the end of the eighteenth century as a lookout near the fortified approaches, the tower later served mainly as a fire watch after repeated fires. It became a symbol of Giurgiu after Ottoman rule ended. From 1830 the city developed in a concentric pattern around the tower; in 1831 Moritz von Otto added radial streets. The historic centre also includes the Sfânta Treime Church.

Museum, cathedral and civic buildings

The county museum was founded in 1934 on the initiative of Vlaşca prefecture and is named after archaeologist Teohari Antonescu, who was born in Giurgiu. Its historical collection includes documents, weapons, medals, paintings and uniforms; an old clock mechanism came from the city’s nineteenth-century tower. A model of the Călugăreni train recalls the 1869 railway between Bucharest Filaret and Giurgiu.

The Adormirea Maicii Domnului bishop’s cathedral was built between 1847 and 1852 and consecrated in 1854. The present city hall was built in the 1930s as a residence for a school of fisheries, fish farming and navigation; the city administration took it over in 1996.

Rail and bus stations

Gara Giurgiu, north-west of the centre, is distinct from Giurgiu Nord station. CFR Călători restored direct passenger service between Bucharest and Gara Giurgiu on 1 June 2024. Autogara Smaranda coach station is at Bulevardul CFR 5 in the railway district.