The official residence of the Ceausescu family has been opened to the Romanian public 26 years since the hated pair were overthrown.

Three hundred people were allowed to visit the Spring Palace in Bucharest's Primaverii district for free on Saturday.

Visitors will begin to tour the one-storey palace starting March 19 for tickets costing 15 lei to 30 lei. Built after Ceausescu came to power in 1965, it was the family's residence until 1989.

It was extended so Ceausescu's parents and in-laws could move in.

Nicolae and Elena Ceausescu were shot dead during the December 1989 revolt.

The palace, decorated with marble and gilded features in the ostentatious style fashionable at the time, is a mish-mash of Neoclassicism and late Renaissance.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.