The least visited country in Europe, with the largest wine cellars in the world underneath it and a Soviet-era breakaway region next door that still flies the hammer and sickle.
Moldova receives fewer visitors than anywhere else in Europe, which is most of its appeal. It is small, flat, agricultural and poor, and it has two things almost nobody else has: the largest wine cellar in the world, and a functioning Soviet theme park that is not a theme park.
Mileștii Mici holds 200km of limestone tunnels lined with two million bottles, and you drive through them. Cricova, nearer the capital, has streets named after wines and a tasting room Gagarin allegedly did not leave for two days.
Transnistria, east of the Dniester, declared independence in 1990 and is recognised by nobody. It has its own currency, border guards and Lenin statues. Several governments, including the UK, advise against all travel there, which can invalidate travel insurance, and no embassy can help you inside, so check your own government's advice before considering a visit.
Everything is within two hours of Chișinău, and marshrutkas cost a couple of euros.
A green, low-rise capital of Soviet blocks and parks, with the cheapest wine bars in Europe.
Chisnau is such a fun city to visit if you're willing to explore wineries and this unexpected welcoming and nice city. People are very nice and the food is very good! Take a walking tour if you can :)
A traveller, on Hostelworld
A round Moldavian fortress on the Dniester, and the centre of Roma culture in the country.
Moldova is wine, monasteries and one very unusual day trip.
Wine at a scale and price that makes no sense.
Cave monasteries, Soviet mosaics and a round medieval fortress.
The cheapest country in Europe, comfortably.
Two days in Chișinău, which is greener than expected.
Not a mountain country, but the Dniester valley is worth walking.
Cheap, local and centred on wine.
The wine cellars are the reason to come. Mileștii Mici is the largest in the world by bottle count, with 200km of tunnels you tour in a vehicle because walking would take days. Cricova is nearer the capital, with underground avenues named after wines, and both do tastings that cost less than a bottle in a Vienna restaurant.
Orheiul Vechi is the country's most beautiful place: a monastery carved into a limestone cliff above a loop of river, still in use, with a village below it. Half a day from Chișinău.
Transnistria, the breakaway region east of the Dniester, is the other thing people ask about. Several governments, including the UK, advise against all travel there, which can invalidate travel insurance, and consular help is effectively unavailable inside. Check your own government's advice before considering it.
Moldovan food is Romanian with Russian and Turkish edges: mămăligă, a polenta served with cheese and sour cream, plăcinte pastries filled with cheese, cabbage or apple, and sarmale cabbage rolls.
Everything is cheap. A full meal in a Chișinău restaurant is €5 to €9, a plăcintă from a market stall under a euro, and a glass of genuinely good local wine €1.50 to €3.
Wine is the national industry. The country has been making it for 5,000 years, exports a great deal of it unbranded, and the family wineries in the south — Purcari in particular — are worth the trip and cost very little to visit.
Chișinău's nightlife is small, local and extremely cheap. Wine bars have multiplied in recent years and are the best of it — a glass of good local wine is €1.50 to €3 and the producers are often in the room.
The centre around Stefan cel Mare boulevard has bars and a student crowd, and live music is common rather than occasional.
There is no scene to speak of outside the capital. Nobody comes to Moldova for the nightlife, and that is fine.
Marshrutkas — shared minibuses — go everywhere from Chișinău, cost a couple of euros and leave when full. The country is small enough that nothing takes more than two or three hours.
Buses run to Odesa, Bucharest and Iași across the borders. There is a train to Bucharest and one to Iași in Romania, both slow.
Taxis in Chișinău are very cheap and best booked through an app such as Yandex Go. For the wineries, either an organised trip or a taxi for a few hours is the practical option, because tasting and driving do not combine.
Moldova is the cheapest country in Europe. Dorms start around €10, a full meal is €5 to €9, wine is €1.50 a glass, and a marshrutka across the country costs about €2.
A full day including a bed, three meals, transport and a winery visit comes to €25 to €35 without any effort at economising.
The leu is the currency and cash is important — cards work in Chișinău but much less reliably elsewhere. Transnistria uses its own rouble, which cannot be obtained or spent anywhere else, so change only what you will use on the day.
Moldova is safe for ordinary travel, with low crime and a population unused to visitors in a way that is generally welcoming rather than wary.
The two things that need care are Transnistria and the regional situation. Several governments, including the UK, advise against all travel there to Transnistria, which can invalidate travel insurance, and consular assistance there is effectively unavailable. Anyone who does go passes a registration point rather than an international border: keep your passport and the slip you are given, do not overstay it, do not photograph military or government buildings, and do not attempt to enter or leave via Ukraine.
Moldova borders Ukraine, and the wider regional situation affects flight availability and border crossings. Check current government advice before booking.
Moldova is not in the EU or Schengen, so time here does not count against the 90-day Schengen allowance.
EU, UK, US, Canadian and Australian citizens enter visa-free for 90 days in a 180-day period. Passports should be valid for the stay.
Transnistria is not a separate country in any recognised sense, but it operates its own controls. Several governments, including the UK, advise against all travel there; check yours before going. Anyone who enters is registered and given a slip with a time limit. Keep it, and leave the way you came in.
Spring and early autumn are best, and September and October are wine harvest, which is the whole point of being here.
Average highs for Chișinău. The country is flat and continental, so summers are hot with little relief and winters are properly cold.
Pick how you travel and how long for. Per night, for one person, at Moldovan prices.
Prices are in lei locally; these are euro equivalents. Winery tours are the main extra, and they are cheap.
National Wine Day in early October is the single best reason to time a trip.
Red and white tokens marking the start of spring, worn all month.
A week after Orthodox Easter, families eat together in cemeteries. Unlike anything in western Europe.
The capital's own festival, with concerts and markets.
The whole wine industry pours in the main square for two days. The best weekend of the Moldovan year.
Family wineries take on help and feed everyone enormously.
Parades and concerts in the centre.
The highest-rated hostels in the country, live from Hostelworld. Almost all are in Chișinău, and they are among the cheapest beds in Europe.
The ones we get asked most.
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