Bran

Adventure Holidays to Bran

Perched high on a rocky outcrop in Transylvania, it is thought that an etching of Bran Castle was inspiration for Bram Stocker's descriptions of Dracula's castle in his classic vampire tale. Although Bram Stocker never set foot in Romania, and was careful never to give his ficticious character a real background of historical significance, Count Dracula is often confused with Prince Vlad Tepes of Wallachia. Depicted by historians as a ruthless and bloodthirsty ruler, these days his role in the history of the fortress is questionned. The Teutonic Order began construction of a wooden fort in the early 13th century. After the fort's destruction in 1242 by Mongols, King Sigismund of Hungary ordered the construction of a stone castle in 1377, while the settlement of Bran began to develop nearby. The castle guarded a strategic trade route between Transylvania and Wallachia. Find out more of its fascinating history on a journey to Romania.