Things to do in Cluj-Napoca: gardens, museums, Salina Turda, 2026 hours and prices

Cluj-Napoca is easy to enjoy without a plan, but the city’s best-known attractions keep their own hours, close on different days and charge different prices for adults, children and families. This guide collects what the venues themselves publish for autumn and winter 2026, so you can plan a day, a weekend or a family visit without surprises.

The Botanical Garden: the easiest family outing in the city

The Alexandru Borza Botanical Garden belongs to Babeș-Bolyai University and sits at Str. Republicii 42. Besides its large greenhouses, it has a Japanese garden, a Roman garden and a small Botanical Museum, and it is open every day of the week.

Hours. In October the garden is open daily from 09:00 to 19:00, with the large greenhouses open from 09:00 to 17:00. From 1 November to 31 December the garden closes at 17:00 and the greenhouses at 16:00. Tickets are sold until one hour before closing. The greenhouses close for maintenance on the first two Mondays of every month, and the whole garden is closed to the public on 25 and 26 December and on 1 and 24 January. The Botanical Museum inside is open Monday to Friday, 09:00 to 15:00.

Tickets. An adult ticket costs 21 lei, or 14 lei when the greenhouses are closed. Children over 3, pupils, students from other universities up to the age of 26 and pensioners pay 11 lei, or 6 lei when the greenhouses are closed. Families get two bundle tickets while the greenhouses are open: 48 lei for two adults and one child, and 56 lei for two adults and two children. Entry is free for Babeș-Bolyai students and staff, children under 3, people with disabilities and their companions, among others, on proof.

Good to know. Pets, bicycles and scooters are not allowed inside.

The Ethnographic Museum of Transylvania: two sites, two timetables

The Ethnographic Museum of Transylvania runs two separate sites, and from late October they keep different hours.

Reduta Palace (Str. Memorandumului 21, in the centre) holds the indoor collections and temporary exhibitions. It is open Wednesday to Sunday, 10:00 to 18:00, with last entry at 17:00.

The Romulus Vuia Ethnographic Park, the museum’s open-air section on Tăietura Turcului street, changes its hours with the clocks. From 25 October 2026 the park is open from 09:00 to 16:00, with last entry at 15:00, the museum announced; the Reduta Palace keeps its 10:00 to 18:00 timetable.

The museum’s site lists both sites as open Wednesday to Sunday, so plan museum days for the second half of the week.

The Art Museum in the Bánffy Palace

The Art Museum of Cluj-Napoca occupies the Bánffy Palace and holds a national art gallery as well as collections of old art, painting, graphics, sculpture and decorative art. It is open Wednesday to Sunday, 10:00 to 17:00, with last entry to the exhibition halls at 16:30. Tickets can be bought online through the museum’s ticketing site.

Like the ethnographic museum, it is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.

Salina Turda: the classic day trip

The salt mine at Turda, in Cluj county, takes visitors underground into former mining halls such as the Terezia and Rudolf mines, with a separate ticket for the Ghizela mine and paid leisure activities inside.

Hours. Monday to Sunday, 09:00 to 17:00, with last entry at 16:20.

Tickets for a standard visit depend on the day:

| Visitor | Monday to Friday | Weekends and public holidays | |—|—|—| | Adult | 75 lei | 90 lei | | Senior over 65 | 50 lei | 60 lei | | Child aged 3 to 18 | 48 lei | 59 lei |

A visit to the Ghizela mine costs an extra 32 lei per person. Inside, the big wheel costs 35 lei per person for an eight-minute ride, and minigolf costs 35 lei per person for 20 minutes. A guide can be booked for 205 lei. Tickets can be bought online in advance.

For families, a weekday visit is noticeably cheaper: two adults and two children pay 246 lei on a weekday and 298 lei at the weekend, before any extras.

Planning tips

• Mondays and Tuesdays: the art museum and both ethnographic sites are closed. The Botanical Garden and Salina Turda are open every day, which makes them the best choices early in the week.
• From 25 October: the Ethnographic Park closes at 16:00 (last entry 15:00), so visit it first and leave the indoor museums for the afternoon.
• Greenhouses: if the tropical greenhouses are the reason for your visit, avoid the first two Mondays of the month.
• Budget: a family of four can spend a full day at the Botanical Garden for 56 lei, or a weekend day at Salina Turda for close to 300 lei before extras.

Hours and prices change; check each venue’s own page, linked below, before you travel.

Header photo: Cluj-Napoca Botanical Garden kz08 by Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons, cropped; this crop is released under the same licence.

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