Photo credit (c): NONA JALBA / AGERPRES ARCHIVES

The Island, a real oasis of green, with a tourist complex, is the favourite place of those who want to break free from the seaside hustle for at least a few hours.

According to the researches carried out on the Island, the oldest settlements in the area date back to the Thraco-Getae and Getae Dacian times, with Dacian, Getae and Schythian populations and Greek colonies having lived here over time.

A series of legends weaved in time around the island that nature created thousands of years ago, one of them saying it is the legendary place where poet Publius Ovidius Naso was exiled by Emperor Augustus and where he supposedly wrote the Tristia and the Epistulae ex Ponto works.

In the past centuries, the Island was inhabited by fishermen, but also by farmers who took advantage of its fertile soil.

After its tourist potential was identified, Ovidiu Island was turned into a relaxation spot for tourists, which it remained until present.

Tourists can reach the Island by boat or barge, which run daily between 10,00 and 24,00, depending on the demands, from a special pontoon in Mamaia resort. The cost of a round-trip ticket is 25 lei for adults and 20 lei for children between 10 and 14 years, by 5 lei more than in 2013.

Photo credit (c): NONA JALBA / AGERPRES ARCHIVES

In full summer season, hundreds of tickets are sold, the trip from Mamaia resort to Ovidiu Island taking approximately 20 minutes. It provides a relaxation time for tourists who can enjoy the beauty of the water and the seagull flight and also see the urban settlements on the shores of the lake, consisting of hundreds of constructions coming into view in an increasing number both in Mamaia — Constanta area, but also in that of Ovidiu and Navodari localities.

Once you arrive on the Island, you seem to have woken up in a new world. There is a green area inviting you to meditation, as the Island covers about 26,000 square metres, with approximately half the space set up for tourist purposes by a private investor, with accommodation and restaurant facilities.

The restaurant counting about 400 seats, with terraces mainly made of reed, decorated in a rustic style with floral arrangements, which can host around 150 persons, mainly serves fish dishes, at affordable prices, depending on the menu, with wine tastings from the local vineyards.

The accommodation spaces consist of ten summer houses with porches and can take up to 20 people, providing all comforts. According to the reception desk personnel, the accommodation in a summer house costs 150 lei per night. All summer houses are fully booked by tourists who made reservations with a long time in advance.

‘All summer houses are booked, from May 1 through September. Tourists sleep on the Island and usually spend their day time in Mamaia resort,’ a reception clerk said, mentioning that the guests accommodated in the green oasis benefit from one free round-trip from the Island to Mamaia resort. For several trips during one day, tourists must pay 25 lei per adult per trip.

Ovidiu Island also hosts a playground, a small zoo, with peacocks with alluring feathers, pheasants, quails and swans attracting mainly the children, a pontoon for fishermen, but also a sunbathing area equipped with sunbeds. The Island has narrow alleys winding amid a multitude of trees — some fruit trees, multicolour flowers, haystacks and other decorative elements such as rustic carts, everything in harmony with the whisper of artesian wells and the song of birds. AGERPRES