In 2025 we had 14 million arrivals, but Romanian tourism is concentrated in 5 counties. A table with 1,300 localities tells an uneven story: small towns that beat county capitals, communes with zero tourists and a Bihor phenomenon that deserves a separate explanation.
The surprise of Bihor: a commune that beats the municipality of residence
The most unexpected phenomenon from the data: in Bihor county, Sânmartin commune registers 241,497 arrivals – more than Oradea municipality (228,526). A commune of several thousand inhabitants beats the county seat in a tourism statistic.
The explanation lies in Băile Felix and Băile 1 Mai, spa resorts with large hotels administratively located in Sânmartin. But the raw, uncontextualized data seems like an error.
Counties with “prisoner” tourism in the municipality
Eight counties have an extreme dependence on a single urban center – over 80% of all county arrivals are concentrated in the municipality of residence. Teleorman and Călărași reach thresholds of 97-98%, practically all county tourism is in Alexandria, respectively Călărași.
Commons that defy expectations
Beyond the well-known resorts, a few communes are completely out of the ordinary. Bran (111,721 arrivals), Moieciu (96,872) and Fundata (63,144) form a Brașov-rural block that in total exceeds many municipalities. Costinești in Constanța (164,480) is more visited than Iasi as a whole.
19 localities with zero registered tourists
At the other end of the spectrum, 19 localities in the database report zero arrivals. They are concentrated in Dâmbovița (6 localities), Buzău (3) and one each in Cluj, Covasna and Brăila. If there are accommodation units there – and their reporting assumes there are – it means that either the data is incomplete or the respective localities did not attract any tourists during the reporting period.
What struck me the most
The Bihor phenomenon is probably the most spectacular: the commune of Sânmartin (Băile Felix) beats the municipality of Oradea in terms of tourist arrivals. The raw data seem erroneous, but they are correct – the balneo-tourist infrastructure is administratively placed in the commune, not in the city.
Read more and see the graphs in tomorrow's edition of the Economix newsletter.
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