Iron Gates

Iron Gates

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Duration: More than 3 hours
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  • KiwiKerry53
    Wellington, New Zealand5,057 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    So Peaceful
    The gorge was fabulous, as we cruised along surrounded by Serbia and Romania. The Statue of King Decebelus carved into the rock and the giant iron gates - just a great big lock! Officially, the Iron Gates refers to the 2 hydroelectric power plants in the Danube. But more apparentlyly, the "Iron Gates" also refers to the smaller part of the river around the power plants.
    Visited September 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written March 5, 2024
  • BalkrishnaShroff
    Mumbai, India26,909 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Not to be missed !!
    It is one of the most exciting and beautiful part Eastern Europe Danube river cruise which is the narrowest boundary line between Romania and Serbia. Earlier it was very difficult for boats to cross this route due to heavy current of river. Many years back two dams and hydroelectric power plants were made here jointly by Romania and Yugoslavia (now Serbia) whose benefits are shared equally by both countries. Due to this the water level has increased at this point. These gates helps the boats and ships to navigate this route safely. We were given a time by our crew and at that time almost all the passengers were on the upper deck to enjoy this beautiful and thrilling phenomena.
    Visited July 2024
    Traveled with friends
    Written September 15, 2024
  • Tiberiu_Baranyi
    Timisoara, Romania18,803 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Visiting the Iron Gates in September 2024.
    The Iron Gates - first things first - these are not located in Orsova - current map location is totally wrong. The Iron Gates is the generic name of the Danube Gorge , historically - now obviously it is also the name of the 2 dams - Iron Gates 1 and Iron Gates 2 built in cooperation with former Yugoslavia in the communist times. ... but now this review is not addressing the dams and the power plants that are built into those - but the Gorges of the Danube. There are 2 sections - first 1 just before Dubova (the name of the village on the Romanian side of the Danube ) that is 4 km long ("Cazanele Mari" in Romanian) and a second one before Mraconia - 3 km long ("Cazanele Mici" in Romanian) Now in the 19th century , until the construction of the dams below Orsova, this region of the Danube was extremely dangerous for navigation and the Austro-Hungarian empire invested a small fortune to clear the cataracts of Danube and make those more "friendly" for navigation. Now in the 20th century the issue got solved by the Dams below Orsova that are keeping the level of the Danube high, so the Iron Gates are manageable without any risks for navigation. The mighty river got tamed - but the scenery and landscape are still very beautiful - the road between Orsova and Moldova Noua is one of the most beautiful roads to drive on - either on 2 , 3 , 4 or more wheels. Also in the region of Iron Gates - especially Dubova and Mraconia - you go hiking on the mountains on the Romanian side, or you can take a boat ride through the gorge - or if you feel like - you can go fishing , provided you got the paper work sorted out. Overall a very beautiful area, definitely worth visiting.
    Visited September 2024
    Traveled with friends
    Written November 15, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles148 reviews
Excellent
95
Very good
45
Average
6
Poor
2
Terrible
0

Iulia
Bucharest, Romania35 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2020 • Friends
I took a boat ride with "Prințesa Dunării" of approximately 3 hours from Orșova. The captain gave short details about all the stops on the ride and we had drinks and coffee and ice cream on the boat from which to choose from - not included in the ticket but prices were decent. The ticket was 50 Ron per person and we departed at 3.30 pm. Overall a must see while in Orsova.
Written June 28, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

midway42
Georgia3,477 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2021
The Iron Gates refers to a lengthy gorge on the Danube river with Serbia on the northern side and Romania on the southern side. It has a fairly broad reference range and encompasses a number of separate sites, including two modern hydroelectric dams, an ancient Roman tablet, and a rock sculpture of the Dacian King Decebalus, among numerous other features. I visited here with my guide during my first full day in the country; we drove on the northern side of the river and stopped at Orsova for lunch, continuing west to pass through the entire length of the canyon. Overall this was a memorable introduction to Romania and encompassed topics of history, geology, geography, modern economics, and most importantly just plain-old natural beauty. A recommended passage for any length of time if you are in the area, on land or water. Although we did somewhat of a “drive-by” visit, others may prefer several days (aka "a vacation") to soak up all the area has to offer.
Written November 8, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

francophile47
England97 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2019
A leisurely cruise upstrream with romania on one side and Serbia on the other. Excellent commentry from our Scenic Waterways tour giude. Ensured we were able to tke in the highlights such as Trajan's Tablet and the rack carving of the Dacian King Decebalus. The Serbian side had the more inpressive rock face scenary whereas the Romanian was softer with interestin locations on its banks such as the Monastery Mraconia.
Written January 12, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

SoBrasov
Brasov, Romania1,000 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2020
The place is a must-see attraction. Its whole history and project size is still impressive even for today's standards.
Unfortunately nothing has not changed in the visitors' area since the place was built, I suspect.
Even more disappointing was the trip to the turbines room. Here the guide just pushed the elevator's buttons and he continued to brows his phone the whole time. We had to ask him questions and even so he failed to answer some, appearing to be in a conversation with someone on his phone.
If there was a way to visit the place without a guide, I would recommend that, but it is impossible.
Written July 30, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Erwin van der Laan
Bucharest, Romania1,062 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2021
Me and my travel companion were in Orsova for one night and visited this part of the Danube river, which certainly breathes a specific atmosphere. Our journey included a car drive through Eselnita and a visit to the monument of Decebal, close to Dubova. It's a beautiful part of the Danube, with high cliffs on the Serbian side of the river. Most lively period of the year here is definitely summertime; now when spring just had started (early April) it can be quite cold and the sun comes out less frequently. This part of the river including is definitely worth a visit at any time of your if you're in the area.
Written April 25, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

AlbertSalichs
Manresa, Spain24,073 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2019 • Friends
Iron Gates are a Natural Park located on river bank of the Danube in the border between Serbia and Romania. In fact, Iron Gates are a dramatic and romantic place, where you can see Danube and surroundings. Really fantastic! we were in November-2019 in the Serbian bank, and we could see the Romanian part. Really incredible! you can see some vey beautiful places and lookouts. A top in our travel around Serbia. I think that next time we would go on road in the Romanian river bank.
(See also Djerdap National Park)
Written April 25, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Car Arabic Offi... M
3 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2020 • Family
A good food and a beatyful panorama. I'm from this city and I like this place its a little cold for child's but its OK... More history things to visit... A love place with nice people... Have a nice trip!
Written February 23, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Tiberiu_Baranyi
Timisoara, Romania18,803 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2024 • Friends
The Iron Gates - first things first - these are not located in Orsova - current map location is totally wrong.
The Iron Gates is the generic name of the Danube Gorge , historically - now obviously it is also the name of the 2 dams - Iron Gates 1 and Iron Gates 2 built in cooperation with former Yugoslavia in the communist times. ... but now this review is not addressing the dams and the power plants that are built into those - but the Gorges of the Danube.
There are 2 sections - first 1 just before Dubova (the name of the village on the Romanian side of the Danube ) that is 4 km long ("Cazanele Mari" in Romanian) and a second one before Mraconia - 3 km long ("Cazanele Mici" in Romanian)
Now in the 19th century , until the construction of the dams below Orsova, this region of the Danube was extremely dangerous for navigation and the Austro-Hungarian empire invested a small fortune to clear the cataracts of Danube and make those more "friendly" for navigation.
Now in the 20th century the issue got solved by the Dams below Orsova that are keeping the level of the Danube high, so the Iron Gates are manageable without any risks for navigation.
The mighty river got tamed - but the scenery and landscape are still very beautiful - the road between Orsova and Moldova Noua is one of the most beautiful roads to drive on - either on 2 , 3 , 4 or more wheels.
Also in the region of Iron Gates - especially Dubova and Mraconia - you go hiking on the mountains on the Romanian side, or you can take a boat ride through the gorge - or if you feel like - you can go fishing , provided you got the paper work sorted out.
Overall a very beautiful area, definitely worth visiting.
Written November 15, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

KiwiKerry53
Wellington, New Zealand5,057 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2023 • Couples
The gorge was fabulous, as we cruised along surrounded by Serbia and Romania. The Statue of King Decebelus carved into the rock and the giant iron gates - just a great big lock!
Officially, the Iron Gates refers to the 2 hydroelectric power plants in the Danube. But more apparentlyly, the "Iron Gates" also refers to the smaller part of the river around the power plants.
Written March 6, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Susan V
San Diego, CA187 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2013 • Couples
The Iron Gates is an amazing 83 mile-long stretch of the Danube River separating Serbia and Romania. The scenic gorge contains two hydroelectric dams Iron Gate 1 and Iron Gate II. This project raised the river's water level by 114 ft. Along with the majestic scenery, the gorge bears a large plaque as a reminder of the "hanging road" built into the cliff side by the Romans around 103 AD. You will also pass a beautiful Orthodox Church built on what appears to be a pier and also the Severin Castle and Golubac Fortress. Another interesting sight is that of a huge face carved into the rock as a tribute to Decebal (the founding father of Romania).
Written September 10, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Iron Gates - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2025)

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