Young Pioneer Tours

Moldova Tours and Travel for 2025 and 2026

YPT tours to Moldova

Despite being the least visited country in Europe, Moldova tours have a lot to offer. Young Pioneer Tours brought their first group tour to Moldova back in 2010 and since then, it has been one of our favourite countries.

The small Eastern European countries has a rich cultural heritage where Stephen the Great has left a lasting legacy with beautiful monasteries to impermeable fortresses. Moldova has seen a darker past, with Axis-aligned Romania and Nazi Germany coming to liberate Moldova from the 1940 Soviet Annexation. History repeats itself, and Moldova was incorporated into the Soviet Union, until it’s collapse which saw a short vicious and bloody war with the Transnistria.

Moldova is perfect for those who love medieval history, having some of the most beautiful monasteries in Europe to those who enjoy Soviet history. Often used as a gateway to Transnistria, Moldova if often overlooked having some of best hiking trails to underrated winery’s. Now really is the time to visit Moldova.

Group Tours to Moldova

All of our group tours to Moldova are currently done as combinations with tours to either Transnistria, Gagauzia, or both. Extensions to these tours seeing more of mainland Moldova can also be arranged. We are also able to arrange tours to Ukraine where you explore Odessa.

We are constantly adding to our Transnistria travel packages, as well offering other great Soviet Europe Tours, which can be combined for extra Wild East charm.

Ultimate Transnistria Victory Day Tour – May 6th – 12th 2025 – €995

Transnistria National Day & Gagauzia Tour August 31st – September 4th, 2025 – €695

Undiscovered Transnistria Tour October 8th – October 13th, 2025 – €695

Transnistria & Gagauzia New Year Tour December 30th, 2025 – January 2nd, 2026 – €595

Transnistria National Day & Gagauzia Tour August 31st – September 4th, 2026 – €695

Independent Tours to Moldova

Despite being the least visited country in Europe, Moldova has an awful lot to offer to tourists, particularly those who want to travel here independently and learn more about the culture of the country. Below is our example Moldova tour. This can be extended or combined with other activities to create independent Moldova tours. 

Example of a Moldova itinerary (4 days)

Day 1 – Chisinau

  • Arrive into Chisinau at your own convenience and self-transfer to the hotel.
  • Meet your local guide and driver at 8:00am in your hotel lobby and discuss the itinerary for the day.
  • You’ll begin your tour visiting an abandoned sports centre which was heavily used during the peak of the Soviet Union – nowadays it’s fallen into disrepair.
  • Visit Moldova Film and the surrounding area, including the Tele Radio Moldova, here you’ll find another impressive mosaic.
  • Cable car station – a real relic of the Soviet era, now fallen into disrepair and a shell of its former glory. Your guide will explain the history of its use.
  • Lunch at a local restaurant.
  • Mosaic, Peace, Science, Labor, Creativity, Art – formally attached to the Palace of Culture of the Iskozh Plant which is now a Mazda showroom. A perfect example of communist states shift towards capitalism.
  • Visit the Lenin monument which use to be located outside parliament, here you’ll also find a partly abandoned Expo centre.
  • Along the journey back to Chisinau, you’ll visit another impressive Soviet mosaic – your guide will be able to explain the artwork.
  • Cosmos Hotel and Grigori Kotovski Monument – you’ll have the opportunity to take pictures outside of the hotel.
  • Railway station and the partly covered mosaic, close by is the Sergei Lazo monument.
  • To conclude the busy day, visit The National Hotel. Depending on the entrance, you can enter the abandoned hotel. 
  • Dinner and overnight stay in Chisinau.

Day 2 – Chisinau – Old Orhei – Chisinau

  • Breakfast at the hotel. 
  • Meet your local guide and discuss the itinerary for the day.
  • Depart Chisinau and take the scenic journey to Curchi stopping along the way for photo opportunities.
  • Arrive at Orheiul Vechi (Old Orhei) renowned for its natural beauty and complex history. Visit the functioning monastery and caves which were used to hide from the Ottomans.
  • Take advantage of the beautiful natural scenery, where you’ll be able to hike.
  • Lunch at a local eco restaurant in Butuceni and enjoy the stunning scenery.
  • Continue to Curchi Monastery – Founded by Stephen the Great in 1773, the beautiful monastery is dedicated to the “Birth of the Mother of God”. Explore the complex with your knowledgeable local guide.
  • After a busy day, take the relaxing journey back to the capital. There are options to stop along the route to stretch your legs and enjoy the road trip.
  • Return to Chisinau, dinner and drinks.
  • Overnight stay in Chisinau.

Day 3 – Chisinau

  • Start your city walking tour of Chisinau. See one of the most stunning monasteries in the city which was thankfully spared destruction under Communism, and see the infamous city prison which has been declared a breach of human rights amongst other things.
  • We’ll see the enormous World War II Memorial and climb some tanks and surface to air missiles at the Military Museum!
  • Visit the local flea market, great for antiques and Soviet kitsch!
  • After lunch at a local Moldovan restaurant, we’ll give you the chance to explore the capital city of Europe’s least visited country at your own pace. This is a great chance to visit the national museum of Moldova, walk out of town and see the brutalist architecture masterpiece that is the partially abandoned Chisinau city circus (also the first circus in the entire USSR) or see the impressive Komsomol monument from the Soviet-era.
  • We’ll later head up the abandoned National Hotel, which was a former InTourist Hotel during the Soviet times to catch the sunset over Chisinau.
  • Dinner and drinks in the evening at the best steakhouse in town, and cheapest in Europe!
  • Overnight in Chisinau

Day 4 – Chisinau

  • Breakfast at the hotel – end of tour.
  • Tour can be extended to Tiraspol, Gagauzia, Romania and Ukraine.

Bespoke Moldova Tours

We can offer bespoke and independent tours throughout Moldova. The landlocked country allows you to combine the tour with Romania, Transnistria and Ukraine. Below are some examples bespoke Moldovan tour itineraries that were can offer.

Moldova and Romania Combination Tours

Utilizing either the bus, or better still the Soviet train we can offer cultural tours that take in the shared Romanian history of these two countries. Our tours of Moldova can easily be combined with private tours to Romania.

Wine Tours to Moldova

Wine tours to Moldova are about much more than Cricova, with the country offering numerous great wineries, as well as the brandy distilleries of Tiraspol. Get in touch if you’d like us to arrange a Smiling Grape Tour for you. 

Moldova and Gagauzia Tours

The Autonomous Territorial Unit of Gagauzia, is one of the most unique regions in Moldova. The unique ethnic group of Turkish speaking Orthodox Christian makes this one of the fascinating places to explore in Eastern Europe. Tours to Gagauzia can easily be combined with our bespoke Moldova tours. . 

Mosaics of Moldova Tours

Throughout Chisinau, there are many hidden and forgotten Soviet mosaics. We are able to provide mosaics tours where you can see the remains of the Soviet Union in it’s finest artform.

Moldova Culture Tour

Moldova has a fascinating medieval history, despite being a small country, there is a lot to see. Our favourite itineraries include Old Orhei, Saharna, Tipova and many more. These day tours can be combined with wine tours in the evening.

Moldova, Gagauzia and Transnistria Tours

Take in the three main unites that make up the landmass of Moldova and indeed might one day form a three-way federalized country. Each region is unique from their cultural heritage and customs, this your chance to experience it first hand.

Explore Moldova Tour

Explore Moldova by visited the most unseen parts of the most unseen country in Europe. Aside from. The capital of Chisinau this takes us to the infamous Gypsy Hill and cemetery in Soroca to the beautiful Ungheni for example. 

Filming in Moldova

Through our media arm Pioneer Media we can make arrangements for productions, journalists, or others to film within Moldova from big budget to guerrilla productions. We can also arrange meetings in country, as well as correct visas for journalist wishing to do projects within Moldova.

Tour Guides in Moldova

Young Pioneer Tours use Moldovan too guides for the mainland of the country, Gagauzians for Gagauzia and people of Transnistria for the PMR. We do this so you get a varied view of the many problems that currently face the country.

Our guides are all very knowledgeable and speak very good English. For group tours to the country YPT will also provide one of our western guides. 

We can also arrange tour guides for people wishing to do city tours in Moldova. Simply get in touch for more details.

Frequently asked questions about travel to Moldova

The following is a far from exhaustive list of the recently asked questions we get about visiting Moldova.

Probably not, with most nations being visa free. A few countries do though and where necessary we can provide visa support.
No, Moldova is the sovereign known state here, so that is the country you get the visa (if needed) from.
Despite cases of human trafficking and a frozen conflict zone, overall Moldova is a very safe place to travel to. With that being said its proximity to Ukraine and that conflict do mean you should be wary. In any case like this we suggest following advice from a. Body such as the UKFCO
Of course you do champ, so why not get in touch with us at our office in Tiraspol and let the experts help plan your trip.

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