Living in Icoanei, Bucharest
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A small middle-class district around its garden: period houses, silence and the centre on foot.
Icoanei is a small district in the centre of Bucharest, gathered around the Grădina Icoanei, the garden that gives it its name. It is one of the areas where the interwar city has been best preserved: period houses and small buildings, narrow tree-lined streets, little traffic. It sits halfway between Piața Romană and the Armenian quarter, in a position that is extremely central yet set apart.
Who lives here
Long-standing families in the period houses, professionals, a few studios and embassies. It is a prestigious area, with few rooms on the market but flats that are often beautiful and full of character. People who arrive here usually stay.
What it is like by day
By day it is surprisingly quiet given the position. The garden is the centre of the district's life, with benches, children and people reading. The streets around are residential and well kept. It is one of the few parts of the centre where you can hear the silence.
What it is like in the evening
The evening stays calm. A few restaurants and cafés, used above all by the people who live here. To really go out you walk to Piața Romană or towards the old town, both a few minutes away. This is a district you come back to sleep in, not one where you stay out late.
Getting around
Everything on foot. Piața Romană and Universitate stations on the M2 are close, as are the hubs of the centre. Buses and trolleybuses run along the boulevards that bound the area. A car is awkward for parking, as in the whole centre.
Eating and shopping
The internal offer is limited and good quality: a few restaurants, cafés, shops. For shopping you go to the nearby urban supermarkets or to the Amzei market, a short distance away. It is a small district, and that shows in the services too.
When NOT to choose it
It is expensive and has little on offer: finding a room here takes patience. The buildings are period ones, so beautiful but with the costs and limits that brings. There is no internal nightlife. It is perfect for anyone looking for a quiet, lovely corner inside the centre; wrong for anyone on a tight budget or who wants bars downstairs.