The Two Castles of Dracula - Bran and Poienari

You can visit the two castles of Dracula in only one day.
We take you from the hotel in the morning and we drive two and a half hours to the fortress of Vlad the Impaler from Poienari.
This is on top of a mountain and we will have to climb the 1480 steps.
There our guide will tell you why Vlad the Impaler became the source of inspiration for the author of the Book of Dracula.
Then we will cross the Carpathian Mountains in two and a half hours to reach Dracula's Castle in Bran.
Here our professional guide will accompany you to the castle and tell you the history of the place that begins in the 13th century.
At the end you will have 30 minutes free time to walk in the castle garden or to buy souvenirs.

Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product

Stop At: Bran Castle (Dracula's Castle), Str. General Traian Mosoiu nr. 24, Bran 507025 Romania

Surrounded by an aura of mystery and legend and perched high atop a 200-foot-high rock, Bran Castle owes its fame to its imposing towers and turrets as well as to the myth created around Bram Stocker's Dracula.

Built on the site of a Teutonic Knights stronghold dating from 1212, Bran castle was first documented in an act issued on November 19, 1377, giving the Saxons of Kronstadt (Brasov) the privilege to build the Citadel.

Although Stoker never visited Transylvania, the Irish author relied on research and his vivid imagination to create the dark and intimidating stomping ground of Count Dracula, leading to persistent myths that it was once the home of Vlad Tepes, ruler of Walachia. While the association with Dracula is sketchy at best, the castle continues to hold a strong attraction for all fans of the Count.

From 1920 to 1948 Bran served as royal residence, a gift of the people of Brasov to Queen Marie of Romania. The castle is now a museum open to tourists.

Duration: 2 hours

Stop At: Poienari Castle, Transfagarasan, Arefu 117040 Romania

The ruins of Poienari Fortress stand high on a cliff overlooking the Arges River, at the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains. Built at the beginning of the 13th century by the first Walachian rulers, the castle changed names and residents a few times over the decades; eventually, it was abandoned and left in ruins.

Vlad the impaler (Dracula) recognized the potential of the location and upon taking over the throne, he ordered that the structure be repaired and consolidated, turning it into one of his main fortresses. When the Turks attacked and captured the castle in 1462, Vlad escaped via a secret passageway leading north through the mountains. Although the castle was used for many years after Vlad's death in 1476, it was eventually abandoned again in the first half of the 16th century and left to the ravages of time and weather.

In 1888, a major landslide brought down a portion of the castle which crashed into the river far below.

Duration: 2 hours