Victory Square Timișoara

About this place

Victory Square, known until 1990 as Opera Square, is the central square of Timișoara in western Romania. It was once a main boulevard that became a square when its southern side was closed by the building of the cathedral, so the Opera stands at its northern end and the cathedral at its southern end. The square was laid out in the early 20th century, when the walls of the old fortress were pulled down and the city centre redesigned to grow. The promenade on the right from the Opera to the cathedral is called the Corso and the one on the left the Surogat, both protected architectural ensembles. The square holds the National Theatre and Opera, the Banat Museum, cinemas and art galleries, and hosts jazz, flower and opera festivals and seasonal fairs. Neat green lawns, colourful flower beds and a fountain fill the middle of the square, framed by early 20th-century palaces with ornate facades and red tiled roofs, among them the Art Nouveau Dauerbach Palace. The white Opera building stands at one end, and cafés line the pavements. The square is always open and good for a walk at any time. It is busiest in the evenings and during festivals, with plenty of restaurants and cafés around it.