Nicula Monastery
About Nicula Monastery
Nicula Monastery stands on a wooded hill above the village of Nicula, a few kilometres from Gherla, and is known throughout Transylvania for the icon of the Virgin and Child painted in 1681 by the priest Luca of Iclod. According to a report drawn up by Austrian officers, the icon wept between 15 February and 12 March 1699, in the old village church. Since then people have come here on pilgrimage every year, many on foot, with banners and hymns, and around the monastery grew the first centre of icon painting on glass in Transylvania, a craft learned by the monks and then by the villagers.
Tradition links the name of the place to a hermit, Nicolae, said to have lived here in the 14th century. The large stone church was built between 1875 and 1879 by the Greek Catholic Diocese of Gherla, under Bishop Mihail Pavel; the monastery was Greek Catholic until 1948, when it passed to the Orthodox Church, and today it belongs to the Archdiocese of Vad, Feleac and Cluj. The old wooden church burned down in 1973, and in 1974 another 17th-century wooden church, painted in 1738, was brought to take its place, after it had already stood in Gostila, Pădureni and Năsal. After 2001 work began on a new, much larger church.
What you can see
In the stone church, the miracle-working icon sits at the centre of the iconostasis carved in limewood in 1938, with a sun-shaped design unique among the churches of Transylvania; the walls have tempera paintings from 1961. Next to it, the wooden church moved from Năsal, small, with a tall shingle roof and a low tower, keeps icons on wood and on glass from the 18th and 19th centuries. The abbot's house holds the chapel of St Nicholas and the monastery's collection of old icons on glass and on wood and of old books, among them Metropolitan Varlaam's Cazania of 1643. You enter through a large carved wooden gate, and the poet Ioan Alexandru is buried in the monastery cemetery.
Good to know
The pilgrimage for the Dormition of the Virgin, on 15 August, brings tens of thousands of people: in 2026 the police estimated more than 70,000 visitors in the days before the feast, and on the night of 14 to 15 August the icon is brought out and carried in procession around the church. If you want quiet, come at another time; if you want to see the pilgrimage, walk up from Gherla, as most of the faithful do.
Information verified on 20 October 2026.
- The icon of the Virgin painted in 1681 by Luca of Iclod, at the centre of the stone church's iconostasis.
- The limewood iconostasis carved in 1938 in the shape of the sun.
- The 17th-century wooden church, brought from Năsal in 1974, with its tall shingle roof.
- The icons on glass in the monastery's collection, from the school of icon painters that began at Nicula.
- The large carved wooden gate at the entrance to the precinct.
Good to know before you go
- Getting there
By car: from Cluj-Napoca take the DN1C towards Dej as far as Gherla, then the DJ109T to the village of Nicula and up to the monastery, ~52 km in all (~1 hour). From Gherla it is ~7 km (~10 minutes), from Dej ~21 km (~30 minutes). It combines easily with Bánffy Castle at Bonțida, on the same road from Cluj, and with the Ocna Dej salt mine.
Public transport: trains on the Cluj-Napoca–Dej line stop at Gherla station; from there it is ~7 km to the monastery, by taxi. On the feast day many pilgrims walk up from the centre of Gherla.
- Where to park
Leave the car in the car park next to the monastery gate, on the DJ109T. Around the Feast of the Dormition the road and car parks fill up from the start of the week; come early or walk up from Gherla.
- Fees & discounts
The monastery does not publish prices for visiting or for the icon collection; ask on site.
- Rules
Modest dress: shoulders and knees covered, women with their heads covered in the church. Keep quiet within the precinct and switch phones off during services. Do not take photos in the churches without the monks' permission; do not touch the old icons or the walls of the wooden church.
- Facilities
pilgrim accommodation at the monastery · collection of icons on glass and on wood and of old books · shop with church items · the precinct is on a hill, with sloping paths
Frequently asked questions about Nicula Monastery
- How long does a visit to Nicula Monastery take?
- A visit to Nicula Monastery takes about ½ – 1 hours (longer on the feast day).
- Can you visit Nicula Monastery with kids?
- Yes, Nicula Monastery is suitable for children (modest dress and quiet).
- Where can I park at Nicula Monastery?
- There is free parking at Nicula Monastery (next to the monastery gate). Leave the car in the car park next to the monastery gate, on the DJ109T. Around the Feast of the Dormition the road and car parks fill up from the start of the week; come early or walk up from Gherla.
- How do I get to Nicula Monastery?
- Nicula Monastery is located at Strada Principală 257, on the DJ109T, Nicula, Cluj County. By car: from Cluj-Napoca take the DN1C towards Dej as far as Gherla, then the DJ109T to the village of Nicula and up to the monastery, ~52 km in all (~1 hour). From Gherla it is ~7 km (~10 minutes), from Dej ~21 km (~30 minutes). It combines easily with Bánffy Castle at Bonțida, on the same road from Cluj, and with the Ocna Dej salt mine. Public transport: trains on the Cluj-Napoca–Dej line stop at Gherla station; from there it is ~7 km to the monastery, by taxi. On the feast day many pilgrims walk up from the centre of Gherla.
- When is the best time to visit Nicula Monastery?
- The best season for Nicula Monastery: May – September (15 August, very crowded).
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