If you plan to celebrate Easter in Romania, prepare for a unique celebration combining centuries-old traditions, delectable traditional dishes, abundant Romanian hospitality, and an overall uplifting ambiance.
Want to learn more about what awaits you in Romania during this festive season? Continue reading.
We’ve assembled a comprehensive guide to help you immerse in Easter like a local and optimize your stay. Let’s dive in!
Easter in Romania: Old Traditions
If you’re setting your sights on celebrating Easter in Romania, gear up for a captivating fusion of traditions that span centuries. You’ll be greeted with delicious traditional dishes, the warmth of genuine Romanian hospitality, and an atmosphere that is both invigorating and spiritually uplifting.
Are you curious about what Romania has in store for you during this joyous season? Keep reading.
To ensure you get the most authentic experience, we’ve meticulously assembled a comprehensive guide. This guide is your key to celebrating Easter like a true local and making the most of your stay. Let’s embark on this journey together!
Decorating the Eggs with Incredible Craftsmanship
- Romania boasts artists who hand-paint empty eggshells with various geometric and floral motifs, passing this art form through generations. In northern Bucovina, another ancient tradition actively adorns Easter eggs with beads, crafting intricate, colorful patterns, as displayed below.
Attend Church on Easter Saturday
- Millions of Romanians put on festive clothes and attended the midnight service at the church. A few minutes after the clock strikes midnight, all the lights in the Church are turned off.
- At midnight, the priest emerges from the altar holding a lit candle and “shares the light” with the entire congregation. Each member then lights the next person’s candle until all candles burn brightly. This act symbolizes the risen Christ, representing life’s light dispelling the darkness of death. Holding their candles, Christians follow the priest as they circle the church three times.
Playing the Semantron
- The semantron is a large, heavy, fixed timber or metal block suspended by chains. The percussion instrument is used in liturgical service. On Easter Saturday, the semantron announces the Resurrection of Jesus and calls for Christians to gather for the service. In the video below, you can see monks at the Putna Monastery in Bucovina perform this ritual during Holy Week (the week leading to Easter Sunday).
Knocking Dyed Eggs Together End-to-End
- It is customary for people to knock eggs during Easter. While the two eggs are cracked together, one person says “Christ is risen” to which the other person responds with “Indeed is risen“. The person who manages to crack the other person’s egg on both ends is considered to be the winner.
These traditions are best preserved in rural Romania, although special Easter services are held at churches throughout the country, including Romanian’s biggest cities where impressive crowds of people gather to celebrate together.
The Best Easter Traditional Food, in an Eggshell
The Easter Lent, the longest of Romania’s four main Lents, spans forty days plus the Passion Week. During this period, Romanians primarily abstain from meat and dairy.
After such an extended fast, many Romanians eagerly anticipate the delicious Easter dishes.
Families across Romania begin their Easter preparations several days in advance, ensuring they have ample time to prepare the delectable meals.
Food plays a central role in the celebration, as families and friends gather for Sunday meals, commemorating Christ’s resurrection.
Traditional Easter dishes offer a range for everyone’s palate. Here are a few tantalizing examples:
- Dyed Eggs. You can’t have Easter without eating at least a couple of hard-boiled eggs. A pinch of salt is all you need to enjoy this long-lasting Easter tradition.
- Roast lamb steak. Usually served with spring roasted vegetables, such as carrots, green beans, potatoes, and green peas.
- Drob. A lamb organs’ haggis with vegetables and boiled eggs center.
- Traditional sponge cake (cozonac). A delicious sweet bread typically filled with walnuts and cocoa. Goes great with a glass of milk, but it’s delicious by itself, as well.
- Pasca: A special kind of pastry with a sweet cheese filling and sometimes raisins – perfect for dessert.
- Red wine. There’s nothing that accompanies lamb stake better than a chilled glass of red wine, especially if it’s produced locally by villagers or by one of the iconic wineries in Romania.
- Other foods many Romanians eat on Easter are the famous sarmale (minced meat in cabbage rolls) and boeuf salad (finely chopped beef or chicken mixed in with root vegetables, mayonnaise, and pickles).
Where to Find It
During the three days of Easter, most restaurants close, but guesthouses and hotels add traditional Easter food to their holiday menus. You can find Easter treats like cozonac, pasca, and colored eggs in all major Romanian supermarkets during this season.
A Few Surprising Facts About Easter in Romania
Besides enduring traditions and scrumptious food, Easter in Romania introduces some rather unconventional customs.
Consider the tradition of lighting fires near churches or on hills during the Easter Vigil (the service occurring after sunset on the night before Easter). You can observe this custom, particularly in the countryside regions like Bucovina, designed to dispel darkness (evil) and bid farewell to winter while embracing spring.
Another intriguing Romanian Easter tradition involved boys visiting unmarried girls in their community in the past, splashing them with water or perfume to bestow good luck or to hasten a marriage.
Just as unexpected is that, on the Friday before Easter, many people who adhere to Orthodox Christianity abstain from eating all day long. This is meant to ward off diseases throughout the year.
One more custom you will enjoy is witnessing villagers put on traditional clothing – some of which have been in their families for generations. This custom is mainly kept alive in the countryside and it’s for sure a sight to be seen!
Bonus: Top Destinations for a Traditional Easter in Romania
Come to Romania for Easter and you’ll get an opportunity to witness old traditions, learn more about the Romanian culture, and try new food. But that’s not all.
An Easter visit here gives you the chance to see spectacular sights and visit some of the best attractions in the country.
Here are a few suggestions of popular Romanian destinations to consider:
- Bucovina & Transylvania Tour. This stunning part of Romania is home to beautifully painted old monasteries, such as Sucevita, Moldovita, and Voronet. You’ll also get to see breathtaking natural sights alongside ancient monuments and experience the authentic rural life this region is famous for.
- Maramures. Picturesque villages, green rolling hills, and fields full of wildflowers; all paint the picture of a dream-like land that has the power to take you back in time. Discover some of the best attractions in Maramures by reading this article.
- Transilvania. Home to world-famous medieval attractions and stunning landscapes, Transylvania is the perfect place to create new memories and experience the best Romanian has to offer.
Have another date or place in mind? Travel Maker provides a wide array of both shared and private tours to the best travel destinations in Romania.
Feel free to look them over and don’t hesitate to contact us at 40 735 525 710 for more details.
Happy Easter, Everyone!
No matter where the Romanian Easter finds you this year and how you choose to celebrate, we wish it brings you the greatest feelings of gratitude and joy.
First and foremost, Easter is a holiday to reflect on your life and appreciate everything you’ve got and all the exciting adventures you’ll get to live in the future.
We hope we’ll be a part of at least some of them!
For more travel tips and top recommendations, contact us, we would be more than happy to help you!