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Meridiela.

Comrat

The capital of Gagauzia, the autonomous region of Moldova's Turkic-speaking Orthodox minority.

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Typecity
WhereGagauzia
Nearest cityComrat
Best seasonApril to October
Time to allowHalf a day
Getting thereAround ninety kilometres south of Chișinău; road access
EntryFree; museum charged

Comrat is the capital of Gagauzia, the autonomous territorial unit in southern Moldova where the Gagauz live, a people who speak a Turkic language and are Orthodox Christian, a combination that is unusual anywhere. The town holds the regional assembly, a university teaching in Gagauz, a cathedral of 1856 and a museum of Gagauz history. The surrounding country is vineyards and open steppe farmland. The autonomous unit was established in 1994 after a period of dispute, and its institutions have operated from the town continuously since then.

What you actually see

  • The regional assembly - the seat of the autonomous unit's institutions.
  • The cathedral - the 1856 church of St John the Baptist.
  • The Gagauz university - the institution teaching in the Gagauz language.
  • The history museum - the collection on the Gagauz and their settlement here.

When to go

April to October is the pleasant season. Wine harvest in September is the busiest period. Winter is cold on the open steppe.

Honest expectations

The town is workaday with limited facilities for visitors. Museum hours are irregular. There is little signage in anything but Russian and Romanian.

Nearby

Beșalma is south, and Cahul is southwest.

What to pack for Comrat

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Opening times, ticket prices and seasonal closures change - check the official source before you go: official site.

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