The Casino of Constanța offers the public a new exhibition that tells the story of the emblematic building, symbol of the city. Built at the beginning of the 20th century on the Constanta seafront, the Casino remains one of the most representative Art Nouveau buildings in Romania . Suggestively titled The Casino: The History of a Renaissance, the exhibition tells the story of the last restoration that put the building back on the tourist and cultural circuit, but also exhibits relevant data about the numerous transformations, degradations and interventions that have left their mark on the architecture and structure of the building. The exhibition can be visited in the Hall of Mirrors on the Casino floor , during the visiting hours, from Tuesday to Sunday between 10:00 and 18:00, based on the access ticket.
Restoration work at the Constanta Casino began in 2020, when the building was in a critical state, with its structure damaged, decorations destroyed and installations almost non-existent. The intervention involved an extensive process of consolidation, restoration and re-functionalization, coordinated by teams of approximately 500 specialists with expertise in multiple fields – architecture, structure, installations and decorative arts.
The History of a Renaissance Highlights the Historical Importance and Structural Innovations of the Casino
Between 2018 and 2020, the Casino went through an extensive research and analysis phase that revealed important traces of the original construction, which allowed for the exact reconstruction of the volumes, the sea-facing facade, and the Art Nouveau decor.
The Casino: History of a Renaissance exhibition highlights the historical importance and structural innovations of the Casino, a true engineering challenge for a construction from the early 20th century. The Casino was one of the first buildings in Romania built of reinforced concrete – a new and revolutionary material for that period, which announced the entry of Romanian architecture into modernity. Thus, in the Hall of Mirrors located on the Casino floor, overlooking the sea, the 255 square meter ceiling was made without any supporting pillars – an impressive technical achievement for that time.
Also from the exhibition documentation, the public can go through the stages of the last restoration where they can find valuable information about the current form of the Casino. For example, for reasons that depended on the advanced state of degradation, the ceiling of the Ballroom was completely replaced, only the main beams being the original ones. Another chapter of the exhibition also talks about the restoration of the decorative elements on the facades and interior of the building and documents the restoration processes with a series of images from the works. In the spirit of reproducing as faithfully as possible the Casino in its version imagined by the architect Daniel Renard in 1910, the teams of experts involved in the process worked according to the archive documents, respecting the original shape, details and colors.
After an extensive intervention process that lasted five years, between 2020 and 2025, the Casino was brought back to life, recovering its balance between historical value and contemporary requirements. The works restored the building's original proportions, restored the decorative details and consolidated the structure, while preserving the authentic traces of time. The interior spaces were reinterpreted for contemporary functions – exhibition halls, spaces for performances and events, café and bar – while maintaining the refined atmosphere and openness to the sea. The Casino continues to be a remarkable example of the combination of the beauty of the Art Nouveau style and the ingenuity of modern constructions in Romania at the beginning of the 20th century.
The project for the rehabilitation of the Constanta Casino was awarded at the Bucharest 2025 Annual Architecture Gala in the "Built Architecture / Architecture and Heritage" section. Remon Proiect was the general designer of the rehabilitation works, and Aedificia Carpați was the company chosen for their implementation.
The story of the Constanta Casino is also adapted for the little ones in an extension of the exhibition in the form of an educational workshop – Architect for a Day. Thus, children over 6 years old learn through an adapted tour and interactive educational materials about the importance of preserving a heritage building. More details are available on the Casino’s official website at www.bilet.cazinoul.com.
An autumn day in Constanța: good food, parties, community and 16.072 steps
And if you're still planning to come to the seaside to visit the Casino, I'll leave you with a one-day getaway here.
To whet your appetite for Constanța, I opened the article with a photo of Octavian Băloi, owner and chef at Rozmarine Tapas și Vin. Between us are two succulent lamb chops (more on the plate, less in the photo, because we should have been on a diet). They were the main course, after we also "tasted" a giant crucian carp. And look how, on two plates, we put a part of Dobrogea on the table. The culinary preparations, which this place guarded by the Black Sea and the Danube is proud of, should become part of the experience that you can enjoy now, in the off-season.
