The reasons may be thousands. The reality is that Oradea really describes itself as a beautiful, quiet, clean city, being declared in 2016, the safest city in Romania. Although the years have passed, Oradea remained just as safe, and people from here will welcome you among them, even if you speak a different language or not.
How to get to Oradea?
Once you have decided to live in Oradea, you are probably thinking about how to get there, and how fast can you travel back to your home country.
Well, Oradea is an economically and industrially developed city, and it has an international airport, which is only 6 km away from the city center. As it is located very close to the Hungarian border, it won’t take you too long to get to some of the most important cities in this part of Europe, such as Budapest, Vienna, Bratislava or even German cities.
It is also a regional and European transport hub, located at the convergence of two trans-European networks that cross Romania. On the east-west direction, you’ll find the European road E60, which links cities such as Cluj-Napoca, Brașov, Sibiu, Bucharest, while on the north-south direction, you’ll find DN76, which gets you to Maramureș, Timișoara, and Deva.
At the same time, from cities in Central and Western Europe, Oradea can also be reached by train.
Why choose Oradea as your future city of residence?
If you have decided to move to Oradea, even if only for a short period, you should know that Oradea is a city located in western Romania, very close to the Hungarian border. The city covers an area of approximately 115 km2. It is not a very big city, having a population of slightly over 200,000 inhabitants. But Oradea is for sure among the top cities in Romania where the standard of living is high.
Benefitting of its proximity to other even bigger cities in central Europe, Oradea has been under continuous development, a dynamic city, where many industrial parks appear every year, which means more job availabilities. If you have your own business, the city’s well-developed infrastructure will allow you to become a successful entrepreneur if you set out.
The city has 3 universities, the best known being the University of Oradea with over 15 faculties, 109 undergraduate programs, 80 master’s programs and 12 doctoral programs. So, you’ll have a lot of options to choose from in terms of education, for you, or four your children.
Tourism is also well developed, Oradea being a city with a considerable history, where unique urban architectural visions were intertwined. The Palace of Justice, Apollo or Moskovits Miksa are some of the main attractions of the city that you must visit. Or, you can also visit Băile Felix, located just 10 km from Oradea. Băile Felix is the largest medical spa resort in Romania and manages to attract tourists from all over the region.
Best areas to live in Oradea, according to recommendations of the locals
The real estate market in Oradea is constantly evolving and offers you the opportunity to find homes at much more acceptable prices, compared to other large cities in Romania. You can choose to rent an apartment or you can buy it, depending on the budget you have.
According to locals, if you want to live in Oradea, the safest neighborhoods are Calea Aradului, Nufărul, Rogerius, Civic Center and Decebal. At the same time, in these areas you can find affordable accommodation from a price perspective as well.
Residents prefer and recommend the Nufărul neighborhood in terms of the facilities it offers: here is the largest shopping center in the city, many different shops and supermarkets, schools, and kindergartens. Also from the Nufărul area you can reach Băile Felix in just 10 minutes by car.
They say that this neighborhood will also soon benefit from geothermal water heating, which means that heating prices for your house will be substantially lower.
Rogerius is a growing and transforming neighborhood. By locals, it is also called “the city in the city”. This area is quickly accessible from the city center and other neighborhoods by tram, as well as by numerous bus lines. Here you will find the largest market in the city – the Citadel Market, but also the largest playground in the city and most of the parks. The Children’s Hospital and the Pelican Hospital also have their place here.
The cost of living, access to public health institutions, public transportation or access to educational institutions, the quality of the environment, the cleanliness and noise of the city, green spaces, are among the main factors that recommend the neighborhoods listed above for your decision to move to Oradea.
Prices for accommodation in Oradea
For renting a 2-room apartment, depending on the chosen neighborhood, prices will start at 200 euros and can rise up to 500 euros per month for the newer and more spacious ones. The price also depends on the amenities of the apartment and the number of rooms.
The most sought after living areas are those in the central area, and it’s easy to understand why. Here, the rental prices can start around 250 or 300 euros/month. In the Decebal district, prices start from 200 euros/month for a 2-room apartment, reaching up to 500 euros/month for a 3-room apartment. Even in the Nufărul neighborhood, the prices are not different, ranging between 200 and 500 euros/month, depending on the number of rooms and the surface of the apartment.
In case you’re thinking of establishing and living permanently in Oradea, most likely you will want an apartment or house of your own. The neighborhoods with the lowest prices, according to locals, are Velența and Dragoș Vodă, and at the opposite pole, the most expensive homes are in the central area, followed by Dacia-Decebal area. For a one-room apartment, the average price is 35,000 EURO and up to 95,000 EURO for a four-room apartment.
In recent years, the interest for buying houses in Oradea has increased. If you want to live in Oradea and you want a house and a green space to relax in, you can choose to buy a house in the houses neighborhoods such as Grigorescu, Bălcescu, Sântandrei or Oncea.
The price of a house in these areas varies between 95,000 and 220,000 euros (according to Storia.ro), depending on the neighborhood and facilities.
If you want to live in Oradea you have to keep in mind that certain neighborhoods can offer you more facilities which are not identifiable at first sight. So, to discover the hidden pluses or minuses, trust the recommendations of the locals for choosing the neighborhood that meets your needs.