Vatra Dornei (; ; ; ) is a

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

Suceava County Suceava County () is a county (') of Romania. Most of its territory lies in the southern part of the Historical regions of Romania, historical region of Bukovina, while the remainder forms part of Western Moldavia proper. The county seat and the ...

, north-eastern

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

. It is situated in the historical region of

Bukovina Bukovina or ; ; ; ; , ; see also other languages. is a historical region at the crossroads of Central and Eastern Europe. It is located on the northern slopes of the central Eastern Carpathians and the adjoining plains, today divided betwe ...

. Vatra Dornei is the fifth largest urban settlement in the county, with a population of 12,578 inhabitants, according to the 2021 census. It was declared a city in 2000, being the newest and smallest in the county. The city administers three villages: Argestru, Roșu, and Todireni. Vatra Dornei is a well known spa and ski resort in the

Carpathian Mountains The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians () are a range of mountains forming an arc across Central Europe and Southeast Europe. Roughly long, it is the third-longest European mountain range after the Ural Mountains, Urals at and the Scandinav ...

and also is home to the historic

Vatra Dornei Casino The Therapeutic Baths' Casino of Vatra Dornei, also known as the Vatra Dornei Casino (''Cazinoul Bailor'' OR ''Cazinoul din Vatra Dornei''), is an Monument istoric, historic monument located in Suceava County, Romania in the town of Vatra Dornei. ...

Administration and local politics

Town council

The town's current local council has the following political composition, according to the results of the

2020 Romanian local elections Local elections were held in Romania on 27 September 2020. Initially planned for June 2020, the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic led the Government of Romania to postpone the elections to a date no later than 31 December 2020, and extending al ...

Geography

Vatra Dornei is located in north-east Romania, in the south-western part of

, away from

Suceava Suceava () is a Municipiu, city in northeastern Romania. The seat of Suceava County, it is situated in the Historical regions of Romania, historical regions of Bukovina and Western Moldavia, Moldavia, northeastern Romania. It is the largest urban ...

, the capital of the county. The city of

Câmpulung Moldovenesc Câmpulung Moldovenesc (; formerly spelled ''Cîmpulung Moldovenesc'') is a municipiu, city in Suceava County, northeastern Romania. It is situated in the historical region of Bukovina. Câmpulung Moldovenesc is the fourth largest urban settleme ...

is away, the city of

Bistrița (; , archaic , Transylvanian Saxon: , ) is the capital city of Bistrița-Năsăud County, in northern Transylvania, Romania. It is situated on the Bistrița River. The city has a population of 78,877 inhabitants as of 2021 and administers s ...

away, the town of

Gura Humorului Gura Humorului (; Hebrew and Yiddish: גורה חומורולוי - ''Gure Humuruluei'' or גורא הומאָרא - ''Gura Humora''; German and Polish: ''Gura Humora'') is a town in Suceava County, northeastern Romania. It is situated in the hi ...

away and the town of Broșteni away. Vatra Dornei is at the confluence of the rivers

and Dorna, in the Dorna Depression. Because of its mountain surroundings, the city is a spa and ski resort, one of the oldest resorts in Romania. Vatra Dornei is connected to the Romanian national railway system and has two railway stations, Vatra Dornei and Vatra Dornei Băi, both historical monuments. The

European route E58 European route E 58 is a road part of the International E-road network. It begins in Vienna, Austria, and passing through Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania and Moldova, ends in Rostov-on-Don, Russia. It is approximately long. Since 2014, a pa ...

, that links the region of

Moldavia Moldavia (, or ; in Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, Romanian Cyrillic: or ) is a historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester River. An initially in ...

with

Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...

, crosses the city.

History

The earliest written mention of the settlement is from 1592. Together with the rest of

, Vatra Dornei was under the rule of the

Habsburg monarchy The Habsburg monarchy, also known as Habsburg Empire, or Habsburg Realm (), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities (composite monarchy) that were ruled by the House of Habsburg. From the 18th century it is ...

(later

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

) from 1775 to 1918. This was a period of development for the town, which became a well known resort in the early 19th century. Between 1925 and 1950, Vatra Dornei was part of the former Câmpulung County. From 1950 to present it's part of Suceava County. The

historic History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...

is located in the city center.

Demographics

Until the early 1950s, Vatra Dornei had an ethnically mixed population of

Romanians Romanians (, ; dated Endonym and exonym, exonym ''Vlachs'') are a Romance languages, Romance-speaking ethnic group and nation native to Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. Sharing a Culture of Romania, ...

Germans Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, constitution of Germany, imple ...

(more specifically

Bukovina Germans The Bukovina Germans ( or ''Buchenlanddeutsche'', ), also known and referred to as Buchenland Germans, or Bukovinian Germans, are a German diaspora, German Ethnicity, ethnic group which settled in Bukovina, a historical region situated at the cro ...

Ukrainians Ukrainians (, ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. Their native tongue is Ukrainian language, Ukrainian, and the majority adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, forming the List of contemporary eth ...

, and

Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

. The large synagogue and a picturesque Jewish cemetery bear witness to the Jewish presence and historical legacy in the area. Vatra Dornei reached its peak population in 1992, when about 18,500 people were living within the town limits. Then the city population declined gradually. According to the 2011 census, Vatra Dornei had a total population of 13,659 inhabitants. Of this population, 98.65% are ethnically

, 0.64%

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: People, characters, figures, names * Roma or Romani people, an ethnic group living mostly in Europe and the Americas. * Roma called Roy, ancient Egyptian High Priest of Amun * Roma (footballer, born 1979), born ''Paul ...

, 0.23%

(

), 0.22%

Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an Ethnicity, ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common Culture of Hungary, culture, Hungarian language, language and History of Hungary, history. They also have a notable presence in former pa ...

, and 0.10%

. Vatra Dornei is the fifth most populated urban settlement in

, after the county capital,

, and the cities of

Rădăuți Rădăuți (; ; ; ; , ''Radivtsi''; ''Radevits''; ) is a town in Suceava County, north-eastern Romania. It is situated in the historical region of Bukovina. According to the 2021 census, Rădăuți is the second largest urban settlement in the ...

Fălticeni Fălticeni (; ''; ;'' ) is a town in Suceava County, northeastern Romania. It is situated in the historical region of Western Moldavia. According to the 2021 census, Fălticeni is the third largest urban settlement in the county. It was declared ...

, and

. Vatra Dornei is also the smallest and newest city in Suceava County.

Tourism

Vatra Dornei is a well known ski resort in the

. There are ski slopes nearby the city, attracting tourists in winter season. Vatra Dornei is surrounded by large forest areas, proper places for practicing alpine tourism. There are mineral water springs in the city limits and its surroundings, that helped the settlement to develop as a spa. In the late 19th century and early 20th century

had only two spa towns: Vatra Dornei and

Solca Solca (; ; ) is a town in Suceava County, northeastern Romania. It is situated in the historical region of Bukovina. Solca is the smallest town in the county and the third-smallest town in Romania, with a population of 2,405 inhabitants, accordin ...

. Vatra Dornei has several hotels, two museums (The Ethnographic Museum and The Museum of Natural Sciences) and a few old buildings that are considered historical and architectural monuments: the casino, the main spa building, the two railway stations, the town hall, ''Sentinela'' Spring, the post office building, and a few old churches. Vatra Dornei is also part of the

Via Transilvanica Via Transilvanica 'The Transylvanian Trail' is a hiking trail that crosses the Transylvania, Bukovina and Banat regions of Romania, and is meant to promote their cultural, ethnic, historical and natural diversity. It was built between 2018 and ...

long-distance trail A long-distance trail (or long-distance footpath, track, way, greenway) is a longer recreational trail mainly through rural areas used for hiking, backpacking, cycling, equestrianism or cross-country skiing. They exist on all continents exc ...

Natives

* Valentin Buhăcianu (born 1993), footballer * Robert Candrea (born 1995), footballer * Vasile Deac (1824–1909), Mayor of Vatra Dornei * Liliana Ichim (born 1967), alpine skier * Alfred Kuzmany (1893–1961), army general in the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

* Bogdan Macovei (born 1983), luger *

Andrei Nilă Andrei Nilă (born 16 August 1985) is a Romanian former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Forward (association football), forward for Zimbrii Lerești. Born in Vatra Dornei, Nilă grew up at the academy of FC Argeș P ...

(born 1985), footballer * Platon Pardău (1934–2002), poet and writer *

Teodosie Petrescu Teodosie Petrescu (; born 12 December 1955; birth name: Macedon Porcu ) is a Romanian cleric who has been the Archbishop of Tomis since 2001. Biography Early life Born in Vatra Dornei, Suceava County, Teodosie was the 17th child of the family ...

(born 1955), cleric

Gallery

File:Vatra Dornei.jpg, Dorna river File:Primaria din Vatra Dornei2.jpg, Town hall File:Gara Vatra Dornei5.jpg, Railway station File:RO SV Vatra Dornei railway station 1.jpg, Vatra Dornei Băi railway station File:Hotelul Carol din Vatra Dornei1.jpg, Carol Hotel File:Biblioteca oraseneasca din Vatra Dornei.jpg, Town library File:Judecatoria din Vatra Dornei.jpg, Court File:Cladirea Izvorului "Santinela" - Vatra Dornei.JPG, Santinela spring File:Casa Vladimir din Vatra Dornei.jpg, Vladimir House File:Scoala nr. 4 din Vatra Dornei4.jpg, Elementary school nr. 4 File:KurparkVatraDornei.JPG, Japanese Pavilion File:RO SV Vatra Dornei cultural center.jpg, House of Culture File:Izvorul Unirea din Vatra Dornei.jpg, Unirea Spring File:Templul Mare din Vatra Dornei4.jpg, Great Jewish Temple File:Vatra Dornei - Strada Luceafarul.jpg, Luceafărul Street File:RO SV Vatra Dornei street 1.jpg, Mihai Eminescu Street, downtown Vatra Dornei File:Biserica romano-catolica din Vatra Dornei16.jpg, Roman Catholic Church File:Dorna Watra (Rumänien) Kirche mit Treffer 1917 (BildID 15457382).jpg, Roman Catholic Church in 1917