Bran Castle Dracula – in the heart of Transylvania Romania

Dracula Castle – a romantic scary castle in Transylvania, Romania?

If you ask any foreign tourist what he knows about Romania, the first words are Dracula and Ceausescu. But  what attracts them the most is Dracula. For him, the Americans and other 500.000 tourists will travel thousands of kilometers every year to Bran. Actually, it’s one of the best places to visit in Romania. And all thanks to the novel Dracula written in 1897 by Bram Stoker. He placed the plot of the book in the enchanting scenery of Bran. A century later, there are still people who believe in the legend of Dracula. Even more, there are new films launched (this morning we just went to Hotel Transylvania 3, which I recommend it also to you).But back to the castle …. 10 years after my last visit, this fall I arrived again at Bran, at the famous Transylvania Dracula’s Castle. I have to admit that I had no expectations, last time finding an empty and cold castle … . But as our daughter insisted to see it because her friends have been there a while ago, we stopped. And it was a great idea!I highly recommend you  to see it :). Surprisingly I didn’t find it as a castle of terror, but it seemed to me a romantic castle, perhaps because of architecture and geraniums from the windows. It was WOW! The Castle turned into one of the most beautiful in the world! But let me tell you the whole story…

We bought Bran Castle tickets (very quickly), crossed the castle garden and went up on the road that led to the entrance. Here, another tourist like us, asked us if we want to have a tour of the castle. We had to be 15 people in order to have a free guide. Of course! We were already 8 persons, so we waited 3 more minutes and the group was ready. The Bran Castle tour was about to begin.I had no idea that I was about to meet the best guide in the world, that she is Romanian and that she will present me a Romanian castle. You might say that I am exaggerating, but not at all! I have seen many castles in my life, most outside of  the country and exactly a month before we got to Bran we visited the famous Neuschwanstein castle in Germany. This one is said to be one of the most beautiful in Europe, even that it was inspiration for the castle at Disneyland. I promise to write a comparison between the two castles soon. I can only say that it faded compared to Bran Castle Dracula from Transylvania, Romania.But let’s get back to our guide and  I’ll tell you why I liked her so much. I present you Loredana – our guide to Dracula Castle. From the beginning I admired her impeccable uniform, well-tailored,  the perfect hair and the branded castle badge. And not forget the chic scarf! Believe me she would have given class to any  guide in the world. And when she opened the mouth I discovered a very warm person, very attentive to detail and who knew very well her job.And she blended the history so well with the legend, passing from Queen Mary to Vlad Tepes Dracula, that it was a pleasure to listen to her. I also liked that she adapted the horror story so the only 5 years old girl from the group to understand something and not to get bored. Now Alexia tells me “how locals defended the castle with hot chocolate and hot tea” (instead of other terrifying things). She made us curious and then showed us the way through the castle. I would have liked her to come along, but I admit that  we discovered all the information from her stories in each room. I think for a free tour, it was enough. Speaking for myself, I would not have bothered to pay a guide, but I did not see any information in this regard.Anyway, it was nice and we liked the castle very much. Now I understand why so many tourists come to visit and we invite you to also do it. But still do not forget that Romania is much  more than Dracula and this is what we want to prove to the whole world … Romania is WOW … with beautiful places, great people and yes, with a romantic & scary Bran Castle Dracula in the heart of Transylvania, Romania!