Each county of Romania is unique through its local history and legends, as well as through the traditions preserved from long ago.

We invite you to visit all the counties included in Attractive Romania, and for the experience to be complete, we present the stories and customs of each area, so that your trip is unforgettable!

Today we arrive in Suceava County. Here you will be greeted by 16 objectives on 4 cultural-tourist routes, such as monasteries, wooden churches, households with authentic architecture, as well as gastronomic objectives.

Suceava County is the heart of Bukovina, and every corner breathes spirituality and history, either through the painted churches and monuments recognized and included in the UNESCO heritage, such as Arbore, Humor, Moldovița, Pătrăuți, Probota, Suceava, Voroneț and Sucevița, or through monasteries such as Putna, Slatina, Râșca and others, the multitude of wooden churches or places of memory, such as the Suceava Fortress and the localities of Baia, Siret and Radauti.

Humor Monastery »

Did you know that the church of the Bogdana Monastery in Radauti (1359) and the Holy Trinity Church in Siret (1354-1358) are the oldest stone churches in Moldavia and date back to the beginning of the medieval Moldavian state?

We all know the legend of Dragos, the founder of Moldavia, and yet the medieval Moldavian state was established twice. In the case of Moldavia, the history of the beginnings turns out to be much more interesting than the legends. Historical sources mention three characters with the name of Dragoș between the end of the thirteenth century and the middle of the fourteenth century, all three having direct links with Moldavia. The first two not only have the same name, but also have the same title – Dragoș of Giulești (somewhere in today's Maramureș area). They are grandfather and grandson. It seems that between 1241 and 1350 the two received commissions from the Hungarian king, whose subjects they were, to chase away the Tatars. The third Dragos of Bedevlia, in Subcarpathian Ukraine, also appears. It seems that the latter, under the guidance of his master, established a small province with a few fortified points – Baia, Siret. This province, called "defense mark", is recognized by the Hungarian kings and bequeathed by Dragoș to his son Sas and grandsons Balc, Drag, Dragomir, Ștefan.

Now the curiosities begin. The Hungarian royalty was a Catholic one. We know that, from the end of the thirteenth century, they tried in every way to attract all Romanian princes and local leaders to Catholicism. For this reason, did you know that the first stone churches, including the Holy Trinity in Siret, were Catholic? Around 1359, Bogdan, another voivode from Maramureș, refused to convert to Catholicism and, together with his family and subjects, came to Moldavia. Here fights take place between Bogdan and Dragoș' descendants, but since their subjects were Orthodox, they go over to Bogdan's side. Dragoș' descendants appear mentioned in the Hungarian chronicles as beneficiaries of the properties confiscated from Bogdan, on the one hand as compensation for the loss suffered, on the other hand as gratitude to loyalty to Catholicism and the Hungarian crown. In Moldavia, on the other hand, Bogdan expands the former defense brand and founds an independent state, which only towards the beginning of the reign of Alexander the Good will look as we know it from medieval maps.

Because we mentioned Dragoș Vodă, there is in the cemetery of Putna, where we all go to see the great construction of Stephen the Great, a small wooden church whose identity is shrouded in mystery. Legend has it that after a victory of Stephen the Great, the ruler wanted to build a stone church in Volovăț, but loving the small place of worship built of wood there, he asked his soldiers to move it to Putna. His soldiers moved the church in one night.

Putna Monastery »

Beyond this remarkable fact, the curiosity of dating this wooden church remains. Local legends say that the church was built in Volovăț by Dragoș Vodă himself, somewhere around 1345-1350. The first written mention of the church is in the "The Chronical of the Moldavia from the foundation of the world to 1601 and from 1709 to 1711” by Nicolae Costin, and the evidence analyzed dendrochronologically indicates that the wood is about 650 years old, correctly placing the church in the time of Dragoș Vodă. Also, the oldest part of the wooden church is preserved in the eastern half. The old wood has numbering marks, used to dismantle and move the church, which confirms the story of the move. In this case, Suceava is not only home to the oldest wooden church in Moldavia or Romania, but also one of the oldest in Europe.

We suggest you discover other wonderful places, such as the museum commune with the most beautiful houses painted like Easter eggs (Ciocănești), the traditional households in Brodina and Straja, where the famous trăistuțe were born, or goodies such as tocinei and alivenci, chișca and porcini stew, which leave your mouth watering and entice you to the road in the blink of an eye.

Traditional households in Ciocănești »