The single most striking building in Bistrița is the Gothic Evangelical (Lutheran) church on the main square, built by the town's Saxon community between the 14th and 16th centuries. Its 75-metre tower — visible from almost anywhere in town — was for centuries the tallest medieval stone tower in Romania.
Inside, the church is comparatively spare in the Lutheran way, but the Renaissance carved altarpiece and the surviving medieval stonework are worth a look. The tower can be climbed for sweeping views over the old town's red roofs and the surrounding hills.