Timisoara Warnings Or Dangers

We rented an apartment from a web page owned by somebody called "Marius Vidican", who says is a doctor:

http://www.renting-tm.ro/en/

The apartments are apparently so nice, but I doubt they exist. We had to pay the first night beforehand with a money transfer, which is kind of ok, but I hoped that that meant we had the flat reserved.

First of all, he had to pick us up in the airport and he didn't show up. I called him and he didn't even know who I was. He came later on, about an hour late and we went to Timisoara in his car. He said that the apartment was not available (why in hell did I pay then!) and that he would take us to a nice vila or something like that. He gave us some kind of tour around the city.

We we arrived, it was a normal-low budget hotel in the outskirts of the city. We were so angry because we needed an apartment in order to wash clothes, cook and stuff. And he was telling us that the city was so crowded that we would not find anything else and that he was giving us a special price for the hotel. It was late already, and then he wanted us to pay for the rest of the stay. What? In a hotel?

We argued with him and at the end we never got back the money for the first night (the hotel was cheaper than that as we knew later), he even wanted us to pay for the "tour" around the city.

And then we checked in the internet and the city was full of empty hotels and even apartments. We took and apart-hotel, which I would recommed:

http://www.iosefinresidence.ro/

And that guy, not even cheated us, but during the trip in the car was offering us prostitutes and stuff. Not such a nice thing for somebody that you don't know at all.

So, don't rent apartments from that guy or try not to pay anything beforehand.

I wish I remembered his name :-(

When I was in Timisoara in 2006, I had been traveling by automobile for the past 4 weeks. All my clothes needed washing and I was looking for a self service laundry

I spent a little time at the Central Casino and talked with a taxi driver there. He offered to drive me to the laundry which turned out to be closed (10pm/22:00) He tried several others with same result

He then told me to leave clothes with him and he would take care of it it morning. I was skeptical as this was ALL my clothes but I was tired

The next morning all my clothes were at the hotel front desk (Central Hotel, pretty nice for price), folded and clean

I met the driver at casino and asked what I owed him

He explained what he had gone through etc.

He charged me 9 euros, laundry included!!!! I only wish I could get that service in the USA

I happily paid him 20 Euros and we were both quite happy

In general, it's extremely cheap to drive by taxi in Timisoara. The city is very compact, as such almost all drives are short. Two ppl driving by taxi are likely to pay less than if they took the tram or bus. It's only cheaper by tram or bus if you travel a lot and buy a daily or weekly card. The average drive should be somewhere between 1 EUR and 2 EUR.

Ask for phone numbers of serious taxi companies before you start your travel, since these numbers change. All taxi cars are yellow (or at least most of them), so you can only distinguish them by looking at the shield on top of the car, stating the car's company.

Most taxi companies in Timisoara don't own their cars - the taxi drivers own them. Hence, you'll find a large variety of makes and generations of cars among the taxi cars in Timisoara. Prices don't vary by make and age of the car, however.

At the airport:
There is no bus, train or anything else to get from the airport to town. You need to call a taxi. Don't take a taxi waiting around at the airport, since these guys are crooks, and charge you up to five times what the regular fare should be. You can change money at the airport, you should change a small amount to be able to pay the taxi (about 10 EUR, that is).

At the railstation:
There are many crooked taxi drivers there too, waiting right in front of the railway station. It doesn't make sense to call a taxi at the railstation. You just have to cross the street, and there's a serious taxi station right behind the bus station. Most drivers waiting there are OK.

In town:
There are not so many crooked taxi drivers in town. However, as a foreigner, you might be viewed as easy pray. Beware of cars not having a radio station or a taximeter (the device which records how much you have to pay). Take care to always have Romanian money with you. Don't offer to pay with large banc notes.

Don't ever get hocked of the people who exchange money in the street. It's not legal but ... because of the corruption these people can do what they want there. If you go around the city by tram take care in the railway station area. There many burglaries take place (you'll be left without wallet if your not careful. Also in teh big markets. Just pay more attention how you keep your wallet and everything will be ok.