About Corbu Beach
Between the breakwater of Midia harbour and the village of Vadu lies the last stretch of the Romanian coast without hotels, a concrete promenade and rows of sunbeds. Corbu Beach is sand mixed with broken shells, a few dozen metres wide, backed by a belt of low dunes and, at its southern end, by a short earth cliff from which you can see the whole curve of the shore running north.
The beach belongs to the commune of Corbu, but in administrative terms it is already the Delta: this is the southern corner of the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve, which reaches down the coast as far as Midia harbour. The beach and the dunes behind it fall within the reserve's Natura 2000 sites, and the reserve administration has set aside only 16.9 ha of the Corbu sector for tourist activities. That is why no permanent buildings have gone up on the sand, and why the rules here are those of a protected area rather than of a resort.
The sea shelves gently and is often clearer than at the resorts further south, a greenish blue. There are no lifeguards, showers, sunbeds or shade: only a few terraces, a small shop and the car parks on the cliff, open in summer.
What you can see
The earth cliff at the southern end is the best vantage point: from there the beach unrolls northwards towards Vadu and the Chituc sand bar, while to the south you can make out the outline of Midia harbour. On the sand, among the crushed shells that crunch underfoot, lie driftwood and an abandoned fishing boat at the edge of the dunes, now the most photographed landmark on the beach. Behind the dunes, salt meadows and low scrub on the sand bar shelter shore birds, and narrow paths through the sand lead from the car park down to the water.
Good to know
Access to the reserve, and so to the beach, requires the permit issued by the reserve administration. Tents, caravans and fires are banned, as is driving or parking on the sand and the dunes, and the summer patrols do hand out fines. The last few kilometres to the car parks are on an unsurfaced track.
- The low earth cliff at the southern end, from which you can see the whole curve of the beach running north.
- The abandoned fishing boat at the edge of the dunes, the most photographed landmark on the beach.
- The sand strewn with crushed shells, crunching underfoot all the way down to the water.
- The path through the low dune vegetation between the car park and the sea.
- The view north towards Vadu beach and the Chituc sand bar, at sunrise or before sunset.
Good to know before you go
- Getting there
By car: it is ~30 km from Constanța on the DN 22 and DJ 226, through Mamaia and Năvodari, but the drive takes almost an hour: the last ~3.5 km, from the DJ 226 to the cliff, run over broken concrete slabs and then an earth track, and a car with decent ground clearance helps. The turning for the beach is a few kilometres south of Corbu village; it is ~12 km from Năvodari and ~250 km from Bucharest on the A2 and A4.
Public transport: the minibuses on the Constanța (Tomis III coach station) – Mamaia – Năvodari – Corbu – Vadu route stop in Corbu village, about an hour from the city; services are more frequent in summer and the timetable changes from season to season. From the village it is another ~5 km to the beach on an unsurfaced road, with no shade and no local transport.
- Where to park
The commune has laid out three car parks above the cliff, one on public land and two on private land; from there it is a few hundred metres on foot down to the water. They charge for parking, and the rate posted on site was around 10 lei a day; on summer weekends they fill up by mid-morning. Driving and parking on the sand and the dunes is forbidden, and the reserve's vehicle permit is valid only on the public roads inside its perimeter.
- Fees & discounts
The beach has no ticket, but entering the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve requires a permit: 5 lei per person per day, 15 lei for a seven-day stay, 30 lei until the end of the year. The permit is free for pupils, students, pensioners, war veterans, former political prisoners, people with disabilities and anyone living inside the reserve or in the neighbouring communes. If you come by car you also need a vehicle permit, 10 lei a day or 100 lei until the end of the year. Permits are bought online, by SMS to 7494, at SelfPay terminals or from the machine at the entrance to Corbu. Commercial photography costs 100 lei and flying a small drone 50 lei. Parking is paid separately, on site.
- Rules
The beach lies inside a biosphere reserve and the rules are those of the reserve administration. Tents and caravans are banned everywhere outside authorised campsites, and there is none in the Corbu beach area. Also banned are fires, staying overnight, parking near the shore, driving cars or ATVs on the beach and the dunes, jet skis, permanent beach furniture, tearing up the dune vegetation and leaving litter. Portable parasols are allowed only while you are there. A separate permit is needed for drones and for commercial photography. There are no lifeguards, so you swim at your own risk.
- Facilities
No lifeguards · a few terraces, a fish tavern and a small shop by the car parks on the cliff, in season only · composting toilets on the cliff · no showers, sunbeds or parasols for hire · no natural shade · difficult for pushchairs and wheelchairs, because of the earth track and the sand · good mobile signal
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