Tighina (known in Russian as Bender) is a city of around 80,000 on the west bank of the Dniester, technically within Moldova's constitutional borders but controlled by Transnistrian authorities. It sits just across the river from Tiraspol and is usually visited as part of the same trip.
The city's main attraction is the Tighina Fortress, built in the 16th century under Suleiman the Magnificent and still largely intact. The fortress is imposing — massive stone walls above the Dniester — and entry is possible through Transnistrian-administered permits, which guides in Chisinau can arrange. Beyond the citadel, the Transfiguration Cathedral, the Memorial of Glory and a curious Bendery Military Museum hidden in a string of disused railway carriages complete the half-day circuit.
The city itself has a lived-in, slightly neglected feel. The tension of its ambiguous political status — on the Moldovan side of the river but under Transnistrian governance — gives it an air that is different from either a normal Moldovan or a normal Transnistrian town.
Reaching Tighina from Chisinau takes about an hour by marshrutka or shared taxi, passing through the Transnistrian checkpoint.