Vama Veche

About Vama Veche

At a glance: Seaside in Vama Veche, Constanța County. Opening hours: daily open 24 hours. Ticket: Free. The visit takes 3½ – 4 hours. Information verified on 28 September 2026.

Vama Veche is the last settlement on the Romanian shore of the Black Sea, pressed up against the border with Bulgaria, in the commune of Limanu. The village was founded in 1811 by Gagauz settlers, who called it Ilanlâc, "the place of snakes"; the present name dates from 1913, when the annexation of Southern Dobruja moved the customs post further south and the one here became "the old customs". Until 1989 this was a guarded border zone, and the village, one of fishermen and market gardeners, was left almost untouched by the mass tourism built into the resorts to the north.

Its reputation goes back to the 1970s, when Babeș-Bolyai University in Cluj sent its lecturers here on organised holidays, lodged with local families. After 1990 the beach filled up with tents, guitars and people who wanted the exact opposite of concrete hotels: Vama became the alternative end of the coast. In 2003 the "Save Vama Veche" campaign, launched against high-rise building, also gave rise to the Stufstock festival, held on the beach for several years running.

Today the village has a few hundred residents in winter and tens of thousands of people on August weekends. The beach, broad and fine-sanded over some two kilometres, is split between sections with sunbeds and stretches left free, and the water in front of it is part of the 2 Mai – Vama Veche marine reserve, almost 5,000 hectares along 7 km of coast, protected since 1980.

Good to know before you go

Getting there

By car: Vama Veche is the last place on the DN39 (E87), ~10 km south of Mangalia, ~55 km from Constanța and ~300 km from Bucharest (the A2 to Constanța, then the coast road through the southern resorts). The Durankulak border crossing is a kilometre further on. On summer weekends the last few kilometres down from Mangalia are slow going.

Public transport: the nearest station is Mangalia, the end of the line from Constanța and Bucharest, with direct trains from the capital in summer. Minibuses to 2 Mai and Vama Veche leave from the coach station next to it, a 15–20 minute ride; in season they run frequently, from early morning until evening.

Where to park

There is no large public car park in the village: you leave the car in the paid car parks at the entrance to Vama Veche and near the beach — in 2026 a day cost around 35 lei. Many guesthouses and campsites have their own parking, so it is worth asking where you stay before you set off. On busy August weekends the spaces fill up by mid-morning.

Fees & discounts

Access to the beach is free, both on the open stretches and on the equipped ones. You pay only for a sunbed and umbrella, at the rates displayed by each section's operator, and for parking (~35 lei a day in 2026). There is no entry fee for the marine reserve.

Rules

Camping on the beach, on the dunes or on other unequipped ground is banned and can be fined; tents and caravans go only in the authorised campsites in the village. The water in front of the beach belongs to the 2 Mai – Vama Veche marine reserve: zone A, strictly protected, may be entered only for scientific research, while zone B allows swimming on the equipped beaches, diving, small leisure boats and traditional fishing. The Bulgarian border is less than a kilometre south of the last terraces and can be crossed only at the border point.

Facilities

Lifeguard posts in season · sections with sunbeds and umbrellas, alongside stretches of free beach · bars and restaurants on the sand itself and along the main lane · authorised campsites, guesthouses and houses to rent in the village · difficult access on the sand with a pushchair or wheelchair