The National Museum of the History of Transylvania image

The National Museum of the History of Transylvania

Tourist attraction Museum History museum National museum Culture

One of the Most Reviewed Museums in Cluj-Napoca


Address

Strada Constantin Daicoviciu 2, Cluj-Napoca 400000, Romania

Website

www.mnit.ro

Contact

+40 752 108 705

Rating on Google Maps

4.10 (967 reviews)

Open on Google Maps

Working Hours

  • Wednesday: 10 AM to 6 PM
  • Thursday: 10 AM to 6 PM
  • Friday: 10 AM to 6 PM
  • Saturday: 10 AM to 6 PM
  • Sunday: 10 AM to 6 PM
  • Monday: Closed
  • Tuesday: 10 AM to 6 PM

Featured Reviews


Frequently mentioned in reviews: museum (29) history (29) English (18) Romanian (13) Roman (10) floor (8) rooms (8) information (8) visit (7) interesting (7)
Reviews are sorted by relevance, prioritizing the most helpful and insightful feedback at the top for easier reference.
  • 2/5 Klaus W. 2 years ago on Google • 1115 reviews
    Well, for such a pompous name I definitely expected much, much more than a few artefacts and reading material and even that was in short supply. First of all, it takes a while until you figure out where to buy a ticket, so you have to go up to the first floor but this is not indicated anywhere. After that you go a different route to the museum and begin your visit. They may have some sectors under renovation, because when I visited there was just some stuff about the Romans, a few rooms with mostly printed reading materials and a few objects. I looked around desperately for anything else when I heard a "Goodbye" from the ladies there basically confirming that was ALL Not to say that the Roman stuff was bad, but very very little
    5 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 2/5 Maximilian R. 1 year ago on Google
    Would be an awesome museum, if there was anything with a translation at least to some other language except for one piece of paper written in English in the beginning of the tour. Quite unfortunate, I was really eager to learn something about the city‘s history, but now I seemingly have to rely on Wikipedia..
    4 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 2/5 Mr M. 8 months ago on Google
    A nice Museum for the little space it has. However, the lack of English really limits your ability to promote the museum. The two floors will take less than 15 minutes unless you read Romanian. Some interesting artefacts but no details with any English.
    3 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 2/5 Michael S. 1 year ago on Google
    Not really much to see. Very few exhibits. Everything in Romanian. To be fair - what is there - is well done, thought out and valuable. It will only take you 20 minutes max though.
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 3/5 Rareș E. 2 years ago on Google
    I love history but this museum didn't quite cut it for me. It is very cheap but there aren't too many things to see and the exhibits are placed in no order whatsoever, with Roman artifacts situated next to Hungarian documents and objects from the Middle and Early Modern period. Overall it is worth seeing at least once, though the information presented is very general and easily forgettable. I expected a lot more from "The National Museum of Transylvanian History". Honestly most of the information can be found on Wikipedia in a few minutes, which is very disappointing for a museum.
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 3/5 jeremy k. 6 months ago on Google • 720 reviews
    A small but decent museum of local history. They have local Roman and even some Egyptian artefacts. They need descriptions in English (and Chinese) for the eventual tourist boom

  • 1/5 Guy N. 5 months ago on Google • 30 reviews
    Don't waste your time. The entire museum is four rooms and does not cater to non-Romanian tourists. The only thing offered was one photocopied page in English for the the whole museum. You'd think they'd make more of an effort, as the only paying customers in the entire museum were non-native speakers. To top it off, the woman working the tickets/concessions was rude, dismissive, and rolled her eyes every time we tried to communicate. Sorry, we're tourists and don't speak Romanian... I guess we'll take our $$$ elsewhere.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 1/5 Eugenio T. 1 year ago on Google
    Not for foreigners. Everything is written in Romanian, which is fine - we're in Romania. But the direction signs in English, and the fact the ticket office will even sell you a ticket if you approach them speaking English, is misleading. The exhibits are scattered around the building and seem very disconnected, with very little actual Transylvanian history for a museum of Transylvanian history. You pass from Cluj history, to Egyptian mummies, to Trajan in Dacia, as if that were completely natural...
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 1/5 Camelia D. 8 months ago on Google
    Absolutely disappointed! No history about Dacic and Roman empires. Nothing what it use to be. When i was a child I could spend half a day learning and exploring. Now I finished the visit in less less than 1 hour. Tablets were not working. I took my child to learn about history and the main piece of history was missing. I would give 0 stars if I had the option.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 Rosalie B. 2 years ago on Google
    Nice museum. They have QR codes in English for international people. It would have been easier if the information was on the wall. My phone was dying, and I cannot read Romanian....
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Andrew S. 3 months ago on Google New
    A nice little museum with very helpful staff, I was given a guided tour in English and it was fascinating and we got into some great little discussions that really showed the passion the staff have There is a legend there with a fantastic moustache who took me around today and I wish I got his Insta so I could continue our discussions from earlier!
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Robert C. 5 months ago on Google • 236 reviews
    Very excellent small museum with local history from neolithic period to present. Most of signage in Romanian but easy to translate with google lens. There is a small but excellent Egyptian exhibit as well. Figure 1.5 hours to cover the exhibition. There are stairs and clean restrooms.

  • 5/5 Ana C. 1 year ago on Google • 86 reviews
    A beautiful and detaild museum of history, definitely worth a visit. I added a lot of photos to this review and they may be covering 20% of the actual museum. Maps, layouts, pictograms, sculpture and actual weapons are to be discovered in those rooms. Also, let me give you a hint: before you exit the second floor exposition, take a look through that peephole (adults first)

  • 5/5 Marius V. 4 months ago on Google • 17 reviews
    All exhibitions were professionally curated and with great attention to detail, but the one on Ancient Egypt is breathtaking! A very well preserved collection of artifacts dating from the Middle Kingdom to Ptolemaic Egypt, unique in Romania as far as I know. Surprising enough, the entrance was free.

  • 1/5 Alin G. 1 month ago on Google • 10 reviews New
    I was very disappointed with my last visit because I know that they have a lot of very interesting artifacts but for some reason they choose to keep them stored and display only a handful, disjointed, mixed ones, with little to no logic. I took my children to show them a bit of history of Cluj and Transilvania and this pitiful exhibit cannot in any way help with understanding or enticing the study of history. There is no chronological timeline, entire parts of history are skipped, no mention of significant rulers, events etc. I also understand the pain of foreigners with almost no English translation. Obviously a pitiful souvenirs shop, with more references to egipt or greece that seem to be the main focus of the museum as well. It has so much potential, but the whoever manages the museum does a very bad job. I definitely don't recommend a visit.

  • 2/5 Flattop 4 months ago on Google
    No English in the museum. If you can't read Romanian I'd suggest skipping this museum. It has potential to be better, but I learned zero while here. It's tiny too. Without being able to read displays I Saw everything in under 10 minutes.

  • 5/5 Alex 4 months ago on Google
    A nice and quiet place to learn about the local history and a little bit more.

  • 2/5 David C. 8 months ago on Google
    It’s not all about catering for me and my ‘only English’ speaking habits but I really wanted to learn more about Transylvania and it’s history. The only English I received was a two-sided A4, but I used Google Translate’s camera function to get through. Anyway, I don’t usually give two star reviews but just had to, to warn non-native speakers.

  • 3/5 mylovesparkxjeon 7 months ago on Google
    Interesting museum, but all information boards were in Romanian and only the names of objects were in English. This is quite bad for tourists who would like to learn more about Transylvanian history. I would recommend adding Hungarian, German and English information boards, or perhaps an audio guide. Otherwise, foreign visitors don’t quite know what they’re looking at.

  • 4/5 Santi RELLO V. 4 months ago on Google
    Still on works, but the rooms of the city history are good. Pity they don't have the main text in English (you need a handed copy, it is nice but not the same).

  • 5/5 Anastasiia R. 7 months ago on Google
    Unfortunately,they don't have description in english about history of Transilvania.but they have mummies

  • 5/5 Manea M. 7 months ago on Google • 8 reviews
    Great place to learn about the history of the local area and of Romania overall, a lot of sightings and attractions

  • 3/5 pille p. 1 year ago on Google
    The second floor was closed, for non Romanian speakers there was only a short description of the rooms on a double sided peace od paper that you could take at the beginning. The woman at the entrance was rude to us for no reason. If you speak romanian, I think it has a lot of interesting information, if not, it's not really worth it

  • 4/5 Monica M. 1 year ago on Google
    There's no permanent exhibition because of maintenance work. Smaller temporary exhibitions can be visited some interesting and some not so much.

  • 3/5 Geani A. 1 year ago on Google
    Not too crowded, warm inside, cheap tickets. It's worth it if you're interested in this regions history and stories, or if you're just looking to do sth else for a change.

  • 5/5 Mierla C. 2 years ago on Google
    Nice place to visit in Cluj, lots of exhibits with SUCH a massive history in the back!

  • 3/5 J. S. T. 1 year ago on Google
    Despite the name, there is nothing that could be described as "history of Transylvania" here. There is a short exhibit in Romanian about the middle ages. The best part is a longer exhibit about the Roman period, also in Romanian but with QR codes to some poorly written English. There are illustrations and models regarding both Roman and Dacian buildings from Trajan's conquest of Dacia. It seems the relevant information about Sarmizagetusa is housed here. Also, there are no benches or chairs available.

  • 5/5 Cioco L. 1 year ago on Google
    It's really well organized and it shows you the history really well! :) 💕

  • 5/5 Cibean C. 1 year ago on Google
    Informative, the result of a great amount of high quality work in Time Team style. Information well structured, neutral.

  • 2/5 Jakub O. 4 years ago on Google
    This museum is pointless. You've got like two rooms of 16th century dresses and jewelery, then suddenly like three rooms with photos of king Ferdinand on a hunt in 1920, that nobody asked for (seriously, like 30 almost identical photographs). Then finally something about the ancient Dacia. Sadly, most of the multimedial devices barely work (like the ridiculous screen showing somebody photoshoping an ancient coin?). And this part is the only one that has some meaning. Sadly minute later you are being surprised with 6 rooms of... History of photography in Romania. Once again, nobody asked for that. Most exibits are described only in Romanian. Medieval Saxons have seemingly disappeared from the history, and the whole museum looks like Transylvania has no history at all. Wasted time.

  • 4/5 Josiah W. 1 year ago on Google
    Seems to be a well-done museum, but all descriptions are only in Romanian. 1st floor is about the history of Cluj, with some interesting artifacts. 2nd floor is devoted to the Roman era in Romania, including some interesting maps of the major settlements and forts. When I visited, most of the Roman artifacts were away on loan. For 10 lei, it's worth a quick visit, especially on Tuesdays when all the other museums in Cluj are closed.

  • 3/5 Aurelian Remus U. 1 year ago on Google
    It was a nice walk in a cool building during a hot day :). The museum however, is not very attractive. The walls are full of descriptions but too little actual exhibits. A young child or a less patient person could get bored too easy.

  • 5/5 Giuseppe D. 2 years ago on Google
    A beautiful museum that underline the connection between Transylvania and Roman empire... Beautiful bracelets and necklace, statues and cups. I am looking forward to see the lapidarium and the egyptian area which is under construction!

  • 4/5 Maria M. 5 years ago on Google
    The main collection is not available right now due to the reconstruction works going on, but the small temporary exhibition can be seen on the second floor, the admission is free.

  • 2/5 David 2 years ago on Google
    There is not information in spanish or english on the first floor. In the second floor you can scan a QR, but is just talking about Roman empiere. I leave the museum nowing nothing about the history of Transilvania between 500 - 2000, not a good experiencie for a "historical" museum.

  • 5/5 ramona p. 2 years ago on Google
    Great museum, I could easily spend a day in it learning about the history of Cluj-Napoca and of Transilvania. A shame that the English language translation of the text is cumbersome to get to , but I appreciate the option to have it available on my phone by simply scanning a QR code.

  • 5/5 Dorian P. 2 years ago on Google
    Great evening! Great location!

  • 4/5 Elena G. 2 years ago on Google
    Very interesting exhibition about Dacia Romana. Free entry too :)

  • 4/5 Vlad C. 2 years ago on Google
    The exhibition about Romans in Transilvania was very nice, however, I was a bit disappointed that the rest of the museum was not yet opened.


Call +40 752 108 705 Open on Google Maps

Amenities


  • Accessibility
    • ✗ Wheelchair accessible restroom
    • ✗ Wheelchair accessible parking lot

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