Bacău

Bacău County lies in the historical region of Moldavia in eastern Romania, along the Trotuș and Siret river valleys at the foot of the Eastern Carpathians. Its best-known draw is Slănic-Moldova, a spa town founded on 19th-century mineral-water and mountain-air treatments in a valley of beech and fir forest, and Târgu Ocna, whose salt mine and salt-water lake have been worked since at least 1380 and now double as a tourist and health-tourism site. The county seat, Bacău city, sits on the Bistrița River.

Summers (May–October) are the most comfortable for outdoor travel and hiking in the Carpathian foothills; winters bring cold and snow, though the spa and mine facilities at Slănic-Moldova and Târgu Ocna operate year-round.

Local buses and minibuses connect the main towns within the county. For rural areas, a car is recommended.

• Bacau
• Onesti
• Moinesti
• Comanesti
• Buhusi
• Darmanesti
• Slanic-Moldova
• Targu Ocna

1. Take the mineral-water and mountain-air cure at Slănic-Moldova, walking its forested park and trails.
2. Visit the Târgu Ocna salt mine, in operation since at least the 14th century, and its salt-water lake.
3. Explore the Trotuș and Siret river valleys and the surrounding Eastern Carpathian foothills.