If you’re in Iași and want to get to Chișinău, the bus is the easy answer. I took it in May 2026. It left on time, it arrived on time, and it cost £13.19. Here is exactly how it went, so you can do it without the faff.
The bus at a glance
- Leaves: Iași Autogara “Transbus Codreanu”, 22 Strada Gării, at 11.10am
- Arrives: Chișinău, Shopping Centre “Maraton”, Strada Ismail 86, at 2.30pm
- Journey time on the ticket: 3 hours 20 minutes
- Operator: SARVALTEH AUTO
- Price: £13.19 for one adult
That was the 11 May 2026 departure. Other times run on other days, so check what is on offer for your date.
Step 1 – Book online
I booked on 2 May 2026, nine days before I travelled, through the bussystem / infobus booking site. You get an e-ticket by email. You have to show it when you board, either on your phone or printed out, so make sure it’s saved somewhere that works without a signal. The ticket also asks you to arrive 20 minutes before departure, and I did.
Step 2 – Get to the bus station
I left my hotel around 10am and walked to the Iași bus station, which took about 30 minutes. That left plenty of time before the 20 minute check-in. If you’ve got heavy bags or it’s raining, a taxi will be quicker. Bolt is super-cheap – you’d pay around £5.
Step 3 – The border
The bus crosses the border at Leușeni. It’s about as painless as a land crossing gets. My passport was stamped and the bags were scanned. Have your passport out and ready.
Moldova isn’t in the EU, so if you’re coming from the UK, check the current entry rules for your passport before you go.
Step 4 – Arriving in Chișinău
It drops you at the Shopping Centre “Maraton” on Strada Ismail. From there you can walk, or you can use Bolt, which works in Moldova. I stayed at the TA Collection Hotel, around £55 a night.
While I was there I also found the bus station for the next day’s minibus to Tiraspol, so I knew where I was going in the morning.
Dinner that night was a chicken gyros at Andy’s.
What about the train?
I didn’t take the train from Iași to Chișinău, so I can’t tell you how it is. I’ve seen it listed at around two trains a day, taking about 4 hours 5 minutes, for roughly €5 to €7, but that’s from the web and I haven’t checked it, so look at the current Romanian and Moldovan railway timetables before you rely on it. If I do it one day, I’ll come back and add the details.
On price and speed, the bus is hard to beat. It’s about 45 minutes quicker than the train times I saw,.
Bus or train – which one?
Take the bus if you want to get there fast and you like knowing exactly when you’re arriving. The train might suit you better if you’re doing a longer rail trip and want to stay on tracks. For me, with a hotel booked in Chișinău and a Tiraspol trip the following day, the bus was an easy choice.
A few practical bits
- Keep your passport in your hand luggage, not the hold.
- Don’t book anything tight on arrival. It arrived on the dot for me, but border queues can vary.
It was £13.19 to get from one country to another, in the same time it takes to watch a film. That’s a better deal than most trains in Britain.