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City Hall Palace and Tower

The city hall bears numerous proofs of the city's history, the palace hosting it today being the result of an architecture competition (just like the case of Black Eagle Palace on the opposite side of the square) and the work of architect Rimanóczy Kálmán Jr, who won, in 1896, the competition for the new city hall offices. The construction of this monumental building begins with the demolition of the old episcopal residence, in 1901, and continues with the works on the foundation, in February 1902. In October 1903, the building became operational, and on January 10, 1904, the official inauguration festivities took place.

Since then, for more than one hundred years, this has been the spot where the most important decisions concerning the city were made, and the spot where many citizens have started their married life. Don't be surprised if you see newlyweds on the steps of City Hall. Get closer with confidence - and why not, enjoy a moment with them!

Watching over the city for more than a century

From a height of almost 50m and four main levels, three of which are panoramic, the City Hall Tower offers a view of the entire architectural ensemble of the centre of Oradea. It's a sight you will definitely not forget!

Inside the tower, you will also find the clock announcing the local time. The clock mechanism, called the "mother clock", sings "Iancu's March" every hour on the hour. It was built in the early twentieth century, in 1904, by a watchmaker named Mezey Dezső. The clock survived the two world wars, and the clock face still retains traces of bullets from the 1944 war. The roof and wall of the tower also withstood two fires, the first in 1917 and the second in 1944.

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Climb all the way up for a special view of the city!

An interesting thing: the second level was also a watchtower for the city's fire department. The fires were announced by tolling the bell in a way that would indicate the area where they broke out. During the day, a red flag would be hoisted in the direction of the fire, and at night an electric light would shine to indicate the direction.

Opening Hours

 Tuesday - Sunday: 10:00 - 18:00;

Monday: Closed;

Tickets

Adults: 10 lei/person;

Children, pupils, students, retirees, disabled persons, organized groups larger than 10 people: 5 lei/person;

Children under 7, disabled person, International Children's Day, October 12 - Oradea City Anniversary, Night of Museums - free entrance;

The ticket office closes 30 minutes before the end of visiting hours.

The ticket is valid for an entire day.

#TravelTips

If you dare to climb the 250 steps, you will be rewarded with a unique panorama of the city centre. And if you climb all the way up at sunset, the photographs will be unforgettable. It is not without reason that the City Hall Tower is one of the most visited tourist attractions in Oradea.