Experience one of the top attractions during your visit to Bucharest, with a planned visit to the Parliament Palace. The Palace was ordered by Nicolae Ceaușescu, the dictator of Communist Romania and it was constructed between 1984-1997. Started during the darkest period of communism, Ceausescu's mad dream became the largest building in Europe and the 2nd largest building in the world. Start the tour by skipping the line with your fast-access ticket. Meet the Bucharest Parliament Official Guide, and begin your exploration of the building's interiors. Immerse yourself in the history and contemporary realities of this unique building during a captivating tour that covers 3 levels of the building.  Begin on the ground floor where the entrance is located. Learn an array of mesmerizing facts including how the Palace has a height of 84 meters (276 ft), a floor area of 365,000 square meters (3,930,000 sq ft), and how it is the heaviest building in the world. Then, head up to the 1st level where the main meeting rooms are located together with the Ballroom.  As you admire the interiors and architecture, find out about how the building contains almost 500 chandeliers, over 1400 mirrors and ceiling lights, 35 million cubic feet of marble, and 32 million cubic feet of wood together with carpets and other decorations make this building a place like no other. Listen to other mind-boggling facts including how the building has 8 underground levels, the last one being a nuclear bunker, linked to the main state institutions by 20 km of catacombs.

Known in the past as the Casa Republicii, then Casa Poporului, but not for the people, it is the main symbol of the Communist Era, meant to house the ministries, the Communist party offices or apartments of high functionaries. It was built starting 1984 on the safest place in the city, considering the high risk for earthquakes, has 12 storeys and 4 underground levels. Along the tour you will pass by the most important rooms in the building, conference halls, balcony with the great view of the main square, main staircases, large hallways and impressive galleries. You will be surprised by the lavishly decorated interiors, all made by local materials (marble, crystal, carpets, curtains, stucco) and by the local craftsmen.

You will experience a 3 hours walking tour which will guide you though Romania’s and Romanians life during the Communist regime. In the first stop, the Patriarchal Cathedral, you will not only learn about Religion during Communism, but also about the historical events that led to the beginning of Communist regime in this country! We will continue through a nearby neighbourhood where we will see the results of Nationalisation! Then we will have a great view over the famous House of People, currently the Parliament building. This is where I will offer you an insight about the construction of this symbol of Communism and megalomania of Romanian dictator: Nicolae Ceausescu. Going further on the streets of Bucharest, we will discover some of the buildings that were moved, in order to be saved from destruction. One of them being the beautiful Antim Monastery. Exploring the Communist years would not be so meaningful without also learning about people's experiences in the day to day life. After we have relaxed in a short break, we will have the chance to find out more about the well-being of people in front of an old Alimentara (Grocery Store). The last part of the tour will be a walk in a normal pace on Calea Victoriei Boulevard, one of the most beautiful streets in the city. Here we will also see some of the Communists symbols, including what used to be a center used by the Secret Police for torturing people. The tour will end in the Revolution Square, where you will be told the story about the end of the Communist regime, in 1989, and the beginning of Democracy. The entire story is meant to offer you a thorough understanding of how Communism impacted Romanian life and country, but also of how it still continues to have an important print in nowadays life.

Once having arrived in front of the Villa, your staff member will take over. Your tour begins with the dictator's private office, followed by the chess room. Following that, stroll through the villa admiring the bedrooms, family dining room, and the relaxation table. Heading upstairs, encounter another set of bedrooms which belonged to the Ceasescu couple, before you move on to the green house which houses a recreated tropical climate. This climate allows the cultivation of exotic fruits such as bananas and pineapples, including many other fruits which are not indigenous to the country. The owner of the villa was a big fan of exotic birds, which is why the garden was populated by peacocks. Last but not the least, visit the indoor pool, a work which took months to complete. The pool is decorated entirely in blue mosaic and contains flower and animal themes which are reminiscent of those from Ancient Rome. Discover all of this, squeezed into just one house that was far from people eyes. It was a house a where a dictator's family was living the high life, as the rest of the population were starving.

Start your 4-hour bike tour in Bucharest’s old city, where you’ll hear about the birth of the city and Romanian civilization. During Communist times the old city area was decimated and overtaken by grandiose urban projects. Today it is one of the poorest areas in Bucharest and is mostly inhabited by gypsies. Marvel at the monumental Parliament Palace, and learn about life for the people under the Ceasescu regime. Ride by buildings dating from the golden age of Bucharest of the 19th and the early 20th century. See landmarks and monuments from the time when Bucharest was known as Little Paris.

Your tour will begin as you are picked up from the Gorjului Metro Station, where you will be introduced to the story of the neighborhood, which has a typical communist design. After a 5-minute walk you will arrive at the apartment of a family who has lived there since the 80s. This is not a museum like any other, but a time machine that lets you step into the late years of Communism and immerse yourself in the home of a real family. Unlike other museums where the exhibits are behind glass, this is one that you can experience through touching, sitting, trying, tasting, smelling, and feeling. With the help of your guide (who is a historian), you will visit each room and gain insights and interesting facts. Conversations, historical facts, unique insights, pictures, and footage, will open a window to the past and give you a deep knowledge about this historical period and how it still influences the daily life of Romanians.

Your bike tour will begin in Bucharest's old city center, with a few highlights from your guide about the major role which the communist era had in ruining this historical part of the city. Coral Temple will be the next stop, because the Jewish community were among the initiators of the communist movement in the early in 1920s. The tour will continue at the site of the communist bomb attack against the democratic Romanian government, the first Romanian parliament. After the communist movement, the tour will advance to the period right after the second World War when Romania ended up being occupied by the Soviet Union for 12 years. This stage the tour will pass through the neighborhood where the Russian army generals who were in charge for the ruling of the country lived. The last stage of the tour will pass by the biggest unfinished communist building, the National History Museum. This museum consists of buildings that were completely reshaped by the communist regime during their flourishing times. Your last stop will be in front of the Communist Central Committee, where Ceusescu held his last speech and where the Revolution started in December 1989.

Enjoy private transportation and a licensed guide to the best of Bucharest's landmarks. Be picked up from your hotel and visit the Palace of Parliament or People’s House, the Bucharest National Village Museum, Calea Victoriei (Victory Avenue), Revolution Square, and Old City Centre. See the Palace of Parliament, the world's second-largest administrative building. Learn how dangerous and damaging a totalitarian regime like communism can be for a nation. Be prepared to feel small seeing the pointless opulence and megalomania “the sleep of reason” can create. Visit the National Village Museum to see an embodiment of Romanian traditions. Understand what it meant for Romanian villagers to have built an ecological and sustainable environment in their backyard. Also get a glimpse into their simple and modest lifestyle, in social and spiritual harmony with their surroundings. Enter the world of the traditional Romanian houses made of wood, adobe, stone, and other materials, from all parts of the country. Be introduced to national symbols such as the mill and the wooden church. Learn how these treasures of spirituality and civilization have kept the people united for thousands of years. Then, follow your guide to Calea Victoriei (Victory Avenue). Be fascinated by the contradictions of history—on one side, you have the Royal Palace and on the other, the Central Committee of the Romanian Communist Party and the Revolution Square, where Ceausescu fled the country by helicopter. Marvel at old orthodox churches, enveloped in an aura of mystery. Also pass through a music store with a large selection of music, casinos, bohemian restaurants, museums, theatres, tea shops, retail stores and gift shops with souvenirs. Next, see the National History Museum and the Romanian Athenaeum, another Romanian architectural landmark, and the CEC Palace. Take a trip back in time to the moment where dictator Nicolae Ceausescu was ousted, leaving behind the secrets of a great fortune and controversies about the state security service. Reach the Senate Palace and find yourself in front of the building that used to house the Central Committee of the Romanian Communist Party. This also served as the starting point of the Revolution of December 1989, a major historical event that marked the removal of Ceausescu from power.

This 3-hour tour reveals the conflict between two worlds: Bucharest under the communist regime and the relatively peaceful and prosperous Bucharest of the inter-war period. You’ll learn why Bucharest is such a striking mix of different architectural styles, how each regime left its mark on the city, how the city looked during the communist period and what it was like for people living in communist Romania. Your guide will help to bring to life the anti-communist revolution and the fall of the Iron Curtain. Learn about the violent beginnings of the communist regime and the nationalization and forced demolition of homes. See the impressive Palace of Parliament and hear all about the Ceausescu family and the bloody anti-communist revolution of 1989. You’ll visit lesser-known, charming inter-war neighborhoods saved from communist urban re-modelling, and see the remains of the Uranus neighborhood as well. The tour includes a short break at a café, where you can enjoy drinks or snacks (at your own expense).

After entering in the courtyard of the Romanian Senate at the Palace of Parliament, from the exterior wall entrance, on the street Calea 13 Septembrie nr.5, you will meet the guide at the main entrance where he will pass you by the check-in security point. The building of the Palace of Parliament is the most important symbol of the Communist architecture in Bucharest. Along the tour you walk up and down the main staircases of the building to see the impressive hallways, meeting and conference rooms located at different flours in the building. The tour is also including a stop to the main meeting room of the Senate, the Plenary Hall. If the time permitting you can enjoy a coffee brake at the local shop. Have a nice tour!