Discover the mystery of Bran castle, count Dracula’s castle

Just close your eyes! What do you see? Are you scared of the dark? Or are you comfortable with it? No, it’s not a spiritism lesson, it might be a Romanian one if you’d be enthusiastic to discover the country of the most challenging castle you’ve ever visited, Dracula’s Castle.

One of the main tourist attractions of Romania is Bran Castle. Tourists from all over the world choose this location due to the mysterious story that spins around it. Everyone wants to know the story of Count Dracula and visit his residence.

 So if you’re a fan of boring stories, you’d rather look for fairytales, Romania has also a lot of places to visit that are right out of fairy tales.

But who’s Dracula, the main character in the infamous novel by Bram Stoker?

Scarry stories spin around the iconic count, whose residence was in Transylvanian Mountains, but deep there, they’re inspired by the Romanian merciless history figure, Vlad Draculea, meaning „bad blood” from Gaelic.

Vlad Țepes was a well-known Wallachian voivode who instilled fear in many people. He was also the source of Bram Stoker’s inspiration for the book Dracula. Surely you’ve seen the screenplay with Anthony Hopkins, as well as the more recent ones.

The book follows the story of a vampire who is several centuries old and lives in the Carpathian Mountains. Sinister things happen around this fictional character.

Stoker picked up the story of the Impaler ruler, spun it, and created Count Dacula, a  nobleman, a sucking blood vampire, having his rest in a coffin, empowered with the ability to transform people into vampires once they’ve been bitten.

 It is believed that he had a special relationship with Devil itself, as he had a power that was equivalent to 20 strong men, he didn’t cast a shadow, had no reflection in the mirror, and was always hiding from daylight as once the sun rose his obscure powers ceased.

There is history beyond this legendary Transylvanian scary figure.

The name Dracula comes from the nickname given to Vlad Tepes’s father, Vlad II, who was also known as „Vlad Dracul”, which translates to „Vlad The Devil”. Vlad the Impaler freely showed his cruelty to his enemies by torturing them through boiling, burning, and skinning people alive.

His usage of a corpse forest to stun and repel an Ottoman army invasion was one of the cruelest acts he had ever committed. Vlad Tepes, however, was a fantastic military commander and a hero to his people despite being painted as a vicious and ruthless ruler.

According to Saxon records, it seems that the Romanian Ruler committed up to 100.000 murders, hence the origin of his nickname, The Impaler. As It refers to the process of impalement, his favorite method of execution.

Dracula’s Castle – a place to remember

You will learn more about the blood count and his mysterious stories in the experience at Bran Castle. If you read up until here, we’ve got risen your interest, and there’s more to add, Romania owns Dracula’s castle. Therefore, if you’re eager to experience the mystery behind the legend, we’ve got your back.

But, is Dracula’s castle a myth or reality? Let’s find out!

In its early stage, Bran castle was a military fortification built by Teutonic Knights in 1211, a fortress against the Ottoman Empire’s expansion, but for most people, this medieval structure is only about the legendary vampire. 

Vlad Dracula Castle popularly known as Bran Castle had multiple uses as it protected the Wallachian borders, imprisoned Vlad Impale itself, was owned by Queen Marie, was a war hospital, a museum venerating the Queen’s memory, and, is one of the most infamous castles in the world as it fits exactly with the description Bram Stoker did in his novel. The main reason people choose to visit the medieval castle is that there’s a popular belief that there’s a connection between the terrifying character and the dark happenings around Transilvania.

It is well known that  Romania has a lot of stories about spirits that come out by night, disturbing people, tormenting them, most often around some specific dates in the year, Dracula’s castle non excluding these stories. Nowadays the castle has a museum that’s split into four floors where you can see minimalist furniture, costumes, weapons, and armor collections.

The castle counts 57 rooms, hidden corners, a Time Tunnel, a winding wooden staircase, an old water well that was dug through the solid rock including a secret room used to hide the castle’s treasures.

If you’d visit the Count’s castle, you’ll hear unspoken stories, and captivating details about the location, the numerous owners it had, and the infamous Dracula. 

Whether you choose to visit the castle by yourself or accompanied by someone, this tourist attraction will let you be amazed by its weight, and that, it’s not from the stone but from the darkest stories you’ll hear.

Therefore, the castle have been constructed by The Teutonics, owned by a queen, by a Hungarian, by the Romanian state and now, it is restored, ready to welcome every single tourist that decides to get out with full baggage of knowledge about vampires, rulers, merciless and bloodthirsty people, and also about its role as a hospital during World War II, as well, as about the heart of a queen.

It is well known that Vlad Dracula Castle is a land where those whose sinister appetite will be satisfied once they step in.

Haloween parties are also famous for their costumed participants ready to meet the unholy side of Count’s castle, horror atmosphere ruling the entire night.

Besides its open gates for visitors looking for a piece of history or even for stories about the fictional figure Dracula, tourists might delight in cafe concerts, all sorts of events celebrating Romanian traditions, the Medieval Tournament, or even Jazz at the castle Festival.

But where is Dracula Castle located? 

„The castle is on the very edge of a terrible precipice. A stone falling from the window would fall a thousand feet without touching anything! As far as the eye can reach is a sea of green tree tops, with occasionally a deep rift where there is a chasm. Here and there are silver threads where the rivers wind in deep gorges through the forests.” ― Bram Stoker, Dracula

This is how Stoker describes Dracula’s castle location, a description that matches reality, the imposing building is situated on a cliff, surrounded by forest at only 30 km distance from Brasov, in a mountain town, named Bran and 180 km distance from Bucharest.

Transylvania, the region where Dracula’s castle is located is one of the most visited regions in Romania, especially since 2009 when Bran transformed into a mountain resort.

The castle, which is located on a 100-meter-high hill has only one entrance, on the southern castle’s wall. Additionally, visitors might take a walk in the forecourt, and make spectacular photos as the view is nothing but stunning.

Between Bucegi Mountains and Piatra Craiului, owned by a queen, shelter for her Majesty’s heart, located at the entrance of the Rucar-Bran Passage, Bran castle is the main attraction for worldwide visitors, driven by the hunger for spectacular, history and sinister, all at once, Romania has a lot to offer.

The easiest way to reach the Count’s castle from Bucharest is through a guided tour, so if you want a relaxed trip, and time to capture the spectacular views the Bucharest-Bran route has to offer, this might be the best choice to make.

On the other hand, there are other alternatives to reach Dracula’s castle, and that might be by car, if you’re comfortable with driving, have a partner to capture the views and entertain you during the trip.

If you’re on a low budget, there are chances to reach Bran castle also, and that is by public transport, taking the train up from Bucharest to Brasov, then taking the bus to Bran, but there’s a lot of time spent in catching the bus, time spent in a train, noise, lots of people, heat by the summer, coldness by the winter, but, it will be worth the effort.

Bran castle is located among other attractions, surrounded by three of the most famous historical cities: Sibiu, the so-called most idyllic city in Romania, Sighisoara, the place with the best preserved medieval fortress in Europe, part of the UNESCO Heritage List, and Brasov, visited mostly for its medieval Saxon walls and bastions, by the towering gothic style Black Church and by Viscri, a village that proudly preserved its traditions.

The region is famous not only for its intensely showcased Vlad Dracula’s castle but also for another historical structure, Peles Castle, a place where the Royal Family spent their summers, located in Sinaia, also one of the most visited castles in Romania.

The so-called Dracula’s Castle was built to protect one of the most important trade routes from the attacks of the voivodes of Wallachia, a remarkable battle of the castle being the defensive battle against the Turks.

The fortress had also a commercial purpose, it provided safe passage from Wallachia to Transylvania.

Once you reach here, history, myths, and traditions blend into an unrealistic world, full of mystery displayed all over your look.

You will learn more about the blood count and his mysterious stories in the experience at Bran Castle.

We recommend you to visit this city and its surroundings as well, enjoying some formidable landscapes. But in Bran, you will find this fortress that will bring you back to medieval times. You can even visit it on Halloween to get into the atmosphere of the location.

The Bran Castle is just one of the many buildings with much history that Romania preserves.   To find out more about that, you can attend our online Romanian classes where you will learn about this language as well as the beautiful country.

Final thoughts

Romania parades for „the most interesting country” and will get the winning prize on the podium: the respect of foreign visitors, the excitement of finding a rich culture, traditions, and attractions, and an increasing number of people eager to learn the Romanian language.

So, if you’re looking for adventure, creepy stories, history facts, unforgettable parties, and many memories to be told to your grandchildren, just start it over with Dracula’s castle!

The place where the legend spins out with history, coated with mystery, where the macabre of a place is wrapped in astonishing views, the land where traditions spin around with bohemians cafes, gothic styles coated by colorful streets, where the old meets the new, where curiosity meets excitement, where the sinister is shrouded by the queen’s aristocracy, where all these are nothing but a trip to remember to Romania.