🔔 Latest news — English Park
- Apr 2026: Spring planting — tulips, pansies and daffodils in new floral arrangements
- May 2026: Shakespeare Festival May 21–31 — civic center in celebration
- Dec 2026: Festive Christmas lighting — decorated conifers and specific decorations
- Permanent: Artesian fountain in operation — the central point of the garden
English Park — a refreshing elegant break in the heart of Craiova, on A. I. Cuza Street
Welcome to English Park — the small and beautiful public garden in the heart of Craiova, located right in front of the City Hall building, on Alexandru Ioan Cuza Street. A corner of orderly and elegant greenery, where each step on the paved alleys is a short escape from the urban rhythm of the civic center.
The development of the garden began in the interwar period, on a space initially intended for a future administrative palace. With the relocation of the City Hall headquarters to the building across the street, the space received a permanent public garden destination and was arranged in the style that gives it its name. The name English Park comes from its specific architecture: formal English style, with rigorous symmetry, geometrically trimmed ornamental shrubs, alternating shadow and light areas and an artesian fountain as a central element.
Although much smaller than the great Romanescu Park in the south of the city, English Park has its own unique niche: it is the only formal English style green space in the center of Craiova and one of the most photographed corners of the city, in any season.
Video Tour — English Park Craiova
Discover the garden through filmed images in all seasons
The Artesian Fountain — The Heart of the Garden
⛲ Central element · Functional all year
In the middle of the garden is the artesian fountain — the element that gives life and rhythm to the entire ensemble. The gushing water creates a discreet and comforting sound, pleasantly contrasting with the noise of the traffic on A. I. Cuza Street. The fountain is surrounded by carefully tended floral arrangements that change according to the season.
It is the point around which the entire geometry of the garden is organized: alleys converge towards it, benches are arranged facing it, and flowers surround it in concentric circles or typical English symmetrical arrangements. There is no more photogenic center of urban Craiova than this fountain in the middle of orderly greenery.
The fountain is active in the warm season — from spring to late autumn. In winter, during the Christmas period, festive lighting replaces the effect of the water, transforming it into the luminous point of the winter decorations.
The best angle to photograph the fountain is from the northern alley of the garden, with the City Hall building in the background. Early morning (08:00–10:00) and evening at sunset offer the ideal light. In spring, with the flowers blooming around the fountain, the images are exceptional.
Paved Alleys and Rest Benches
🪑 Urban relaxation · Geometric alleys
The beautifully paved alleys of English Park are accompanied along their length by numerous benches where you can relax — a gesture of urban hospitality rarer in the crowded center of Craiova. The benches are strategically placed: some facing the fountain, others in the shade of ornamental trees, others with a perspective towards the City Hall building or street life.
The architecture of the alleys respects the fundamental principle of the formal English style: strict symmetry, clear lines and calculated alternation between light and shadow areas. Small shrubs, geometrically trimmed, create green edges that guide the visitor's step and give the garden that impression of soothing order specific to vintage British gardens.
The alleys are accessible for strollers and people with reduced mobility — the paved surface is regular and well maintained. It is a short route, ideal for a 10-15 minute break in the middle of a busy day in the civic center.
English Park is an excellent place for a lunch break on work days — between 12:00 and 14:00 you will meet employees of central institutions eating outdoors. If you want peace, early morning or evening after 19:00 the garden is almost empty.
The Park in Seasons — Flowers All Year Round
🌸 Seasonal planting · Continuous bloomingOne of the characteristics that make English Park truly special is the continuous planting of flowers specific to each season, depending on the blooming periods. The garden team of the Craiova City Hall maintains the garden with remarkable attention, so that in any month of the year the visitor is greeted with color and freshness.
Spring brings multicolored tulips, daffodils and pansies that cover the beds around the fountain. Summer comes with roses, petunias, begonias and other warm season flowers in intense tones of red, yellow and orange. Autumn transitions to chrysanthemums, salvia and other resistant species. Winter, coniferous shrubs take the main role — their persistent greenery and festive Christmas decoration make the garden an attraction even in the cold months.
This careful seasonal rotation is evidence of the care with which the Craiova City Hall manages central green spaces — and one more reason to return to English Park several times a year.
Christmas Lighting — Fairy-tale Atmosphere
✨ December · Festive decorations · Magical lightsIn winter, during the Christmas holidays, English Park transforms completely. Coniferous shrubs are decorated with specific lights and decorations, creating a fairy-tale atmosphere in the heart of Craiova. Small, warm bulbs covering the green branches, combined with festive decorations and the light of the City Hall windows in the background, compose a picture of a special warmth.
The festive lighting of English Park integrates naturally into the wider atmosphere of Craiova's center at Christmas — alongside the central tree in Mihai Viteazul Square and the street decorations of the main boulevards. This concentration of lights and colors transforms the area in front of the City Hall into one of the most sought-after evening destinations in the city in December.
Visit English Park in the evening after dark (17:30–21:00) during the period of December 1–31 to see the lighting at its best. Friday and Saturday evenings are the most animated — many Craiovans take a walk through the center. Photograph from the opposite sidewalk, with a wide perspective, to catch both the garden and the City Hall building in the background.
Urban Context — The Heart of the Civic Center
🏛️ Facing City Hall · Craiova CenterEnglish Park cannot be fully understood without its urban context. The garden is located right in front of the Craiova City Hall — one of the representative buildings of the civic center — on Alexandru Ioan Cuza Street, one of the city's main arteries. This privileged position makes it not just a recreation space, but also an element of urban composition.
A 2-minute walk away is Mihai Viteazul Square, the administrative and cultural heart of Craiova, with the Marin Sorescu National Theatre, the Prefecture and the main public institutions. A 5-minute walk leads to Elca Square and Nicolae Titulescu Boulevard, the main commercial artery. English Park functions as a moment of respite in the middle of this dense and animated center.
The history of the land is interesting: before becoming a public garden, the space was intended for the construction of an administrative palace that was never realized. The decision to arrange a public garden in its place, in the middle of the interwar period, was one of the happiest in Craiova's urban history — a city that gained a central green space that generations benefit from.
🤫 Curiosities about English Park
It could have been a palace. The land on which English Park stands today was intended, in interwar urban plans, for the construction of a representative administrative palace. The palace was never built, and the space received a public garden destination instead — a change that proved to be much more beneficial for the city's residents.
Formal English style vs. landscape style. English Park is not a romantic landscape style English garden (which imitates free nature) — but a formal English garden style: geometric symmetry, straight alleys, trimmed shrubs, plants arranged in regular schemes. It is exactly the opposite of the free style of Romanescu Park, designed in the French landscape style.
Several thousand bulbs planted every autumn. To ensure spectacular spring blooming, the City Hall's garden team plants thousands of bulbs annually — tulips, daffodils, hyacinths — in the beds around the fountain and on the edges of the alleys. This work, invisible to visitors, is responsible for the carpets of color that appear every April.
One of the most photographed central spaces. Although small in area, English Park constantly appears in the profile photos of Craiovans on social networks — especially in the spring flower season and during the Christmas lighting period. The artesian fountain surrounded by flowers is one of the iconic images of Craiova's center.
Neighbor to the most beautiful theater in the city. A few hundred meters from English Park is the Marin Sorescu National Theatre — host of the International Shakespeare Festival, one of the most prestigious theater festivals in the world. During the festival period (May), the area around English Park becomes one of the most animated in Craiova.
The coniferous shrubs are decades old. The ornamental coniferous species in English Park — some with perfect geometric shapes, others freer — were planted in the decades after the garden was laid out and have reached maturity. It is precisely this maturity that gives them the aesthetic proportions we see today and which make the garden such a harmonious space.
📋 Practical Information
🕕 Schedule
Permanently openDaily, all year, without time restrictions
There is no official schedule — the garden is accessible anytime
💰 Fees
Completely free entry
No activity in the garden requires a ticket or payment
📍 Address
A. I. Cuza Streetfacing Craiova City Hall
44.3185°N, 23.7948°E
🚌 Transport
Civic center — 2 min from Mihai Viteazul Square
Bolt/Uber: 5–8 min from any central point of the city
🅿️ Parking
Street parking in the central area (paid during working hours).
Free parking in the evening and on weekends on side streets
♿ Accessibility
The paved alleys are fully accessible for people with disabilities, strollers and wheelchairs — regular surface, no steps.
English Park is splendid in any season, but spring (April–May) is the peak season — the flowers are in full bloom and the contrast with the green of the shrubs is maximum. In winter, evenings in December bring festive lighting. For maximum peace: early morning or on days with light rain — the garden acquires an authentic British melancholy.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
English Park is located in the center of Craiova, on Alexandru Ioan Cuza Street, right in front of the Craiova City Hall building. It is approximately a 2-minute walk from Mihai Viteazul Square and 5 minutes from Nicolae Titulescu Boulevard. GPS coordinates: 44.3185°N, 23.7948°E.
The name comes from the garden's architectural style: a formal English garden — symmetrical style, with geometrically trimmed shrubs and small plants arranged in regular schemes, areas alternating between shadow and light, straight paved alleys and an artesian fountain as a central element. It is important to specify that it is not the romantic English landscape style (which imitates free nature), but the formal, orderly and geometric style of classic British gardens.
English Park began to be developed in the interwar period, on land initially intended for the construction of an administrative palace that was never realized. With the relocation of the Craiova City Hall headquarters to the building across from the garden, the space received a permanent public garden destination and was arranged in the English style that gives it its name. Since then, the garden is continuously maintained and enjoys seasonal plantings of flowers specific to each season.
English Park offers an experience of peace and urban elegance: walking on the paved alleys, resting on the benches in the garden, contemplating the central artesian fountain and admiring the seasonal floral arrangements. There are no commercial or paid activities in the garden — it is simply a space for pause and beauty. The garden is permanently accessible, without a fixed schedule, and is one of the most photographed in the flower season (spring) and during the Christmas lighting period (December).
The two parks are completely different in size, style and purpose. Romanescu Park has 96 hectares, an artificial lake, a suspension bridge, a zoo and a landscape architecture inspired by Parisian parks — it is a half-day or more destination. English Park is a small garden (a few thousand square meters) in a formal English style, centrally located, ideal for a 10-15 minute break. They complement each other perfectly: Romanescu for nature and adventure, English Park for urban elegance and central peace.