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Bran Castle
布朗城堡 · Bran, Brașov, Romania
A medieval border castle on a cliff above a mountain pass, which once guarded the route between Transylvania and Wallachia and collected customs duties. Inside it keeps furnishings from Queen Marie's time, and it is also famous from tourist marketing as "Dracula's Castle".
Know before you go
- Touching the exhibits
- crowding or stopping on the narrow stairs
- presenting the novel's plot as local history
This article is Not yet verified. Please check official announcements for prices, opening hours and dates.
Stories & people
Stories & people
Legend
The name "Dracula's Castle"
Bran Castle is often marketed as "Dracula's Castle", but the vampire Count Dracula comes from Bram Stoker's 1897 novel Dracula. The novel does not mention Bran Castle, and there is no evidence that Stoker ever visited Transylvania or the castle; the vampire story belongs to literature and legend.
Source: Wikipedia: Bran Castle
History
Vlad III and Bran
Vlad III, Prince of Wallachia, is often associated with Dracula, but most historians agree he never lived in Bran Castle. It was once claimed that he was imprisoned here after his capture in 1462; historians now conclude that he was held in a fortress in Budapest.
Source: Wikipedia: Bran Castle
History
A castle for the queen
On 1 December 1920, at the initiative of mayor Karl Ernst Schnell, the Brașov city council gave the castle to Queen Marie of Romania in recognition of her role in the union of Romania. From then on it became the queen's favourite home.
Source: Wikipedia (Romanian): Bran Castle; Wikipedia: Bran Castle
Culture
Culture & customs
Background
The castle stands in the village of Bran, about 25 km southwest of Brașov, Romania, on a cliff beside a Carpathian pass, commanding the route between Transylvania and Wallachia. At the foot of the hill, a small open-air museum displays traditional farmhouses from the Bran area. In 1377 King Louis I of Hungary allowed the Saxons of Brașov to build a stone castle at their own expense; the work was finished around 1388, after which the castle defended the pass and became a customs post between the two regions. In 1920 the castle was given to Queen Marie of Romania and became a favourite home of hers. It was nationalised in 1948 and opened as a museum in 1956; in 2006 it was returned to Habsburg descendants, who have run it since 2009, and it remains open as a museum.
Local customs
- Explore the castle's exhibition floors, courtyard and wall walk
- see the furniture and household items from Queen Marie's time
- visit the open-air village museum at the foot of the hill
- photograph the whole castle from the valley.
Etiquette & taboos
Etiquette & taboos
Don’t DON'T
- Touching the exhibits
- crowding or stopping on the narrow stairs
- presenting the novel's plot as local history
Locals appreciate DO
- Go up and down the narrow stairs in turn
- check the signs in the exhibition rooms before taking photos
- keep fiction and history apart when talking about vampires
Plan your visit
Practical info
Travel tips
- Visiting the castle requires a ticket, with prices as published officially. Queues are long in high season, so arriving in the morning is best
- some passages inside are narrow with many steps, so if you have limited mobility, check the accessible routes in advance.
- Buses or taxis from Brașov reach Bran village in about half an hour
- from Bucharest, you can take a train to Brașov and change there. Spring and summer bring pleasant mountain scenery for photography
- autumn colours the forests
- in winter the castle looks striking in the snow, but watch the mountain road weather. Check official sources for opening hours.
Photos
Photos
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Gary Todd · CC0
Yair-haklai · CC BY-SA 4.0
