Arcul de Triumf (Triumphal Arch)

What you'll see

The Triumphal Arch is a stone gateway open on all sides, with a clock set in the upper register. Raised in the nineteenth century to mark the victory in the Russo-Turkish war, the monument today works mainly as a visual landmark: through its opening you frame, on one side, the Cathedral of the Nativity and its bell tower, and on the other, the facade of the Government building. It is worth going up close and walking right around it — the proportions read differently from nearby than they do in photographs, and the stone shows the traces of successive restorations.

The position matters in itself. Piața Marii Adunări Naționale was, for decades, the site of the great rallies, the parades and the political moments that changed the country's direction. If you want the full context, you will find it in the portal's history section.

Getting there

The official address is Piața Marii Adunări Naționale, on the northern side of Ștefan cel Mare și Sfânt Boulevard — named after Stephen the Great, Moldavia's fifteenth-century ruler — the city's main artery. In practice, wherever you are staying in the centre, you can walk there in ten to fifteen minutes at most. All the trolleybus lines crossing the boulevard stop a few steps away. Access to the square is flat and step-free, so it is manageable with a wheelchair or a pushchair.

When to go

The monument is open permanently, twenty-four hours a day, so the question is not whether but when. Early in the morning the square is empty and the light comes from the east, which helps with clean photographs, free of silhouettes. In the evening, the architectural lighting changes the look entirely, and the area becomes the city's promenade. On national holidays the square is closed for public events — check the day's programme in advance if you have planned your visit then.

What to combine it with

It is the most efficient starting point for a day in the centre. A few dozen metres away are the Cathedral of the Nativity and the park around it, then the Grădina Publică „Ștefan cel Mare și Sfânt”, then the row of national museums on Strada 31 August 1989. You can cover all of it in a single afternoon, without using transport. If you would rather have a guide to link the points and explain the context, the local options are gathered in the tours and excursions section, and the rest of the capital's sights are listed in the Chișinău guide.