Where Constanta ends northwards along the coastline, Mamaia starts. It is a real blessing mid summer and looks like a deserted ghost town mid winter though a few hotels are open all year round.

Mamaia is the biggest and oldest Romanian seaside resort, but has also been the most rusty, corrupted and expensive one - compared to the other resorts. It all changed in the winter of 2001 when the young - by political standards - and creative Mayor of Constanta initiated a complete face-lift and renovation of the Mamaia resort. The result is not perfect but still amazing in a country where the public poverty is still dominating. And even better; the improvements go on nonstop. Mamaia is the showcase of Romanian tourism of today.

Mamaia has more than 120 large hotels and some more smaller ones, 35 discos and several nightclubs, plenty of services like watersports, biking, riding, parachuting and beach games. There are shops, bars, cafes and restaurants in any category.

The proximity to Constanta makes Mamaia packed with natives on Saturdays and Sundays, the rest of the week the foreigners may be more visible in the area. Scandinavians, Germans, Italians, Arabs and Brits and a few newly rich Russians are common visitors. 

Mamaia is actually a long strip of a sandy beach - with the Black Sea on one side and Lake Mamaia on the other - from the crowded Lunaparc area to the more dotted hotels at the end close to The Ultima Plaja.. Mamaia ends with a camping site and a nudist beach, before the dunes reach out towards a huge smoky factory and the working class town of Navodari.

The centre of Mamaia is around the outdoor cinema Albatros where restaurants and shops are plenty. The cinema is said to be come a parking lot but still this is the centre of the resort.

There are also small markets around Alcor further north. 

HOTEL REX is one of the most well-known hotels in Romania with its five star clientele and the carpark outside is a study of status symbols belonging to the Romania elite. 

The footballer Hagi opened his huge hotel IAKI 4th July 2001 in the same area, and is said to be even better than Rex for those with fat wallets. Regardless, the IAKI HOTEL has increased the Mamaia standard of tourism, so also new five star hotels like MAMAIA HOTEL and PALM BEACH HOTEL MAMAIA

The Mamaia beach sand  is filtered by beach machines every night, and with a big sea on one side and a nice lake on the other, Mamaia offers a great visual impression during sunsets and sunrises. Foreign tour operators seem to pick Mamaia  - forgetting all about the other Romanian riviera resorts, - but the beach, the services and entertainment offered, and with Constanta close by, it may be an obvious choice. Mamaia is - and will probably always be - a tourist machine. Romanian friends say "Mamaia is not Romania at all," and of course they're right, this is not the genuine or typical Romania. But if you're just in search of sun&sand, it is a place to go like anywhere else in Southern Europe. And if it's your first time in Romania, it is an easy way to start getting around and about. 

The Black Sea itself can be dirty at times due to streams and winds. Earlier on sewage water from the hotels was pumped directly into the Black Sea, even onto parts of the beach. The result was damaging in all ways, and the smell even worse. Sewage from Constanta also floated in the Mamaia direction, but not anymore. The charter brochures on Maimaia are a bit careful on mentioning the sea quality compared with for instance Greece, and I guess this is one of the reasons. However: - Since 1995 these failures have been dealt with and the sea is in general of acceptable quality. Romanian mass media have also focussed the Black Sea quality in a way that have forced the authorities to proceed with actions that count.

If you're in doubt whether you should dip your body into the real thing, Mamaia is unique in the sense that most hotels have nice swimming pools, many even right on the beach itself or in a fenced garden just a few metres from the beachside. If you're not happy with the pool in the hotel where you're staying , you can enter any other pool after paying a few lei.     

The new water park AQUA MAGIC also adds another plus to the resort. It is situated in the Hotel Perla area. The same is the new Telegondola Mamaia that takes tourists up in the air to see the resort from above, from Perla to Casino Delta, that is half the Mamaia beach.

The name "Black Sea" itself has nothing to do with pollution. The sea is more than 2000 metres deep, and the natural look of the water surface is next to black and blurred. Even so the water close to the beach can be crystal clear for a few days. Minor earthquakes on the sea floor also causes peculiar stirs in the water, and the sea temperature may fall several degrees for a some days before returning to the average again. The average Black Sea temperature in July is plus 24 centigrade.

A common objection among westerners considering Romania as their holiday destination, is the safety. There are several reports on thefts and scams in Western media on Romania, but Mamaia is a very safe place to enjoy your holiday.

It would be a lie to say that there are no problems at all, however, these problems occur on any other destination worldwide and it seems like reporters are hooked on the negative sides of Romania - only. It's not fair, and the Romanians are very aware of their image problems, some also broadcasting such themselves. The Romanian seaside resorts are patrolled by tourist police all summer and their presence is very visible.

Firstly, a country with such huge social and financial problems as Romania will always produce citizens who are looking for an easy way out, including exploiting tourists. With this in mind, and a sober attitude when moving about, there will be very few problems for you as a mainstream tourist. If you're swinging your vodka bottle, flashing your wallet in bars or engage yourself in prostitution or other illegal activities, you're bound to be cheated or even busted. Avoiding this, Mamaia is not dangerous.

Secondly, Mamaia has a tourist police and the county authorities are seriously concerned about any incident that may ruin the tourist business. So in general with a normal lifestyle, your stay will be safe and sound. Small upsetting things like being overcharged in restaurants, shops or taxis, can easily be stopped by asking for and checking receipts.

Basically Romanians are friendly and hospitable in spite of the hardship they face every day. Which is stunning and amazing considering the effect such a life would have on any of us.

An old slogan with the Romanian Tourist Board has been: " Come as a guest and leave as a friend" - and beyond doubt: That's possible..... Then there was this one: ROMANIA - SIMPLY SURPRISING ! ... which .is true regardless. 

Now they have come up with the slogan ROMANIA THE LAND OF CHOICE. So when the choice is yours; WELCOME TO ROMANIA!

Websites: www.mamaia.com | www.cta.ro | 

360 VIRTUAL VIEW MAMAIA FROM CONSTANTA VIRTUAL | Java 

Hotel Rex | Mamaia