Alternative Bucharest: Explore Hidden Gems and Urban Art in Small Group Tour
4.9
24 Ratings
București
Discover the hidden gems and urban art of Bucharest on a small group tour. Explore non-touristic places, learn about the city's social and political scene, and support local causes and businesses.
Duration: 3 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Izvor Park - Meet your guide at Izvor Metro Station, a space transformed by messsages on social, political, artistic or simply fun aspects of life in Bucharest, as people see it.
  • Epoque Hotel - The beauty of childhood. Discover how private companies, NGOs and local artists can join forces.
  • Tuio - Cultural hub. Discover how different types of art, local and international, can meet and bring strong messages.
  • Beans&Dots Specialty Coffee Shop & Concept Store - Colors and creative hubs. See big murals, graffitti with personality and learn about people who contribute to the public space.
  • Capitol Summer Theater - Abandoned buildings are now forgotten by collective memory. Discover their stories with the help of very inspired street art works that love and respect these places.
  • Pasajul Victoriei - Reinvented places. Bucharest is a vibrant up and coming city, hiding gems are often found behind the main boulevards:
  • Food Hood - Cool hang-outs. End the tour at a local market, a relaxed area where you can choose to combine a good beer with a good meal while admiring one of the most special murals in Romania.
    (Food and drinks at your own expense)
What's Included
  • Surprise souvenir
Additional Information

Experience Bucharest in a unique way! Our city is not just about the Old Town and the palaces. It’s a dynamic metropolis, harboring treasures off the beaten path such as street art, inventive local projects, and repurposed spaces with a societal purpose. Our city guide won’t simply show you these secret locations but will elucidate their history and interpret the cryptic representations of current political and social conditions in the ARTivism milieu. Wander off the traditional routes to unmask the modern Bucharest and comprehend the authentic life that the street artist increasingly embodies.

In this expedition, you’ll venture places untouched by tourism and capture the best shots of wall paintings and the hip locations in the city. You will traverse inventive and societal hubs, enabling you to experience truly indigenous places and relish the ambiance whilst bolstering local initiatives and industries. You gain an insider’s view of the public domain and the city’s genuine life from a local guide, eager to be an urban adventurist and a companion on your journey.

Location
Izvor
Splaiul Independenței
Meet your tour guide outside the Izvor Metro Station
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.9
(24 Ratings)
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Claire
Jul 22, 2022
Street Art & Graffiti Tour, Bucharest - We walked the heart of Bucharest with our utterly engaging, knowledgeable guide called Elena. She showed us a wide selection of great street art in this city with many secrets. I particularly liked the way she spent time with different members of our group answering questions. It was an immensely pleasurable tour. As a bonus we also found out about cool cafes, plus we benefitted from Elena's historical perspective. The best thing (apart from the art) was Elena's hope, optimism and love for her city. I fell in love with the old lady of Bucharest through the stories she told to us. Thank you so much Elena. Highly recommend!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Yakik2014
Jul 17, 2022
Knowledgeable tour, with friendly & amazing guide. Recommended for every tourist. - Vali Dobrin is one of a kind tour guide, he does his research, provides the most interesting stories and is deeply involved in the street art world. This tour gave me a totally new perspective and beautiful point of view of Bucharest. I recommend this tour for any local or tourist visiting the city. Vali, You rock.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Halviii
Sep 28, 2021
Excellent alternative - We did this excellent tour with Elena yesterday. We saw things we would never have even noticed before - let alone think about. Thoroughly recommend this if you want to see beyond the “normal” tourist sites.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Gareth_p
Aug 19, 2021
Magical alternative tour of Bucharest - Elena's passion and enthusiasm for the street art of Bucharest was an utter joy. What a lovely guide, who helped to bring the tour to life. We got lucky and managed to see some extras which were unexpected but delightful. You never know, it may happen to you too!
Review provided by Viator
Christoph
Jul 12, 2021
Great Tour - Elena is a great guide who knows much about the art scene and about Romania . It was a pleasure to explore the city with her , and talk about the culture and everything else . I can only recommend it!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Roxanab933
Aug 1, 2020
Excellent - Bucarest behind apparences - Elena was perfect, simple perfect in adapting the tour to the places I already saw with her in the classic tour, in explaining the different street art techniques and caracteristics of each artist. I really appreciated the addresses she recommended during the tour, as the Coffee shops & souvenirs shops since they are authentic places and defintely hard to find without a guide like her. I've learned new things about street art and its importance in Romanian social development after the revolution. I loved the fact that she insisted on the cronologial evolution of street art, since as time goes by, as years go by the places and areas given to street art increased and therefore the size and visual impact, too. I loved the 2020 Coronavirus street art at the end of the tour, and of course, its message and apparently devinitory role.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sarah
Jan 23, 2020
Excellent, fun and super interesting! - My partner and I did the alternative walking tour with Anca. She was incredibly knowledgeable, friendly and fun (and also speaks amazing English). I highly recommend the alternative tour if you are interested in street art, but also if you are interested in modern history and the political and socio-economic landscape of present day Romania. We were taken up interesting spots that we either wouldn’t have found on our own, or wouldn’t have known what we were looking at. Anca answered all our questions about street art in Bucharest and Romania, as well as more general questions about the history and culture of her country. You can’t beat local knowledge! Highly recommended!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Debi-julie
Nov 30, 2019
An excellent tour to learn about Street Art and Bucharest - We often take graffiti tours to get to know the back streets and heart of a city. Elena exceeded our expectations. She greeted us with a big smile and continued with that smile as she shared story after story about how the art connects with Romania’s past, politics, future and dreams. Her knowledge of history is woven throughout as she points out street art, monuments, places to eat, places to return to later, and hidden local businesses to explore. It was one of the most comprehensive graffiti tours we have ever taken. We ended with hugs, a map and coupons to save us money at a few restaurants. We followed her suggestion and had dinner at La Mama, which was absolutely delicious! I highly recommend this tour as a must to introducing you to the layout, culture and street art scene in Bucharest.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Plywi
Oct 8, 2019
Graffiti art and Bucharest back streets - Our guide, Anca, did a wonderful job of leading us on the Alternative Bucharest 2.5 hour tour of graffiti art and street murals. She was very personable and articulate and explained the background of a lot of the street art, its history, and culture of Bucharest. As a result of her tour, we have a new appreciation of the messages being portrayed by the graffiti and street art, as well as the culture and history of Bucharest. This tour was well worth the time and money we spent.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Tina
Feb 21, 2024
Informative and interesting walk in Bucharest - We met Mara at the agreed time at our hotel. She is very warm and welcoming. She took us round Bucharest and for a city full Of history, she is extremely knowledgeable . The walk was fun, interesting and informative . It’s a great way to see and learn about Bucharest . Mara is interesting and impressively answered every question we had . The walk itself is not taxing so should be appropriate for all ages and abilities .
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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