The real Dracula's Castle (Poenari Citadel) and his Palace of Targoviste, Privat

This is a privete tour which will take you to the real Dracula's Castle. This place is Poenari Citadel - stand high on a cliff overlooking the Arges River, at the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains.

Later you will see Targoviste Fortress which is one of the most important medieval monuments in Romania.
The legendary Vlad the Impaler (Dracula) built the emblematic Chindia Tower and reinforced the fortress.

Our tour include a visit to Curtea de Arges Monastery - one of the most famous monasteries in Romania and a must-see attraction if you’re looking to discover centuries-old religious sites.

Vidraru Dam is on our list, the dam's height is 166 metres, the arch length 305 meters and it can store 465 million cubic metres of water.

Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product

Stop At: Princely Court, Str. Justice, No. 7, Targoviste 130 014 Romania

Targoviste Fortress is one of the most important medieval monuments in Romania. With a history that goes back to the 15th century, this former princely court was used as a residence by some of the most famous princes of Southern Romania, including Constantin Brancoveanu and the legendary Vlad the Impaler who built the emblematic Chindia Tower. Targoviste was the capital of Southern Romania in the medieval centuries before Bucharest achieved this status. The princely court was mentioned starting with 1417-1418 in a document of Michael the 1st, the son of Prince Mircea the Old who built here a church in 1415. During this initial stage, the fortress was rather small, surrounded by a wooden defense wall. It’s Vlad Dracul who extended and modernized the court to the standards of a princely residence, fortified against enemy attacks. His son, the famous Vlad the Impaler built around 1460 the Tower of Chindia, restored hundreds of years later to its current look, a 27 meters high tower with three floors connected by a winding staircase, plus an open terrace on the last level. The tower hosts today an exhibition focused on the life and reign of Vlad the Impaler. By the end of the 16th century, Prince Petru Cercel built the Great Church, a new palace and fortified the court that reached an overall surface of 29,000 square meters. The last major restoration and period of glory took place during the reign of Constantin Brancoveanu (1688-1714) who connected the two existing palaces, added the stone kiosk and the royal children’s house and had the Great Church repainted. After his tragic death, the princely court from Targoviste was permanently abandoned in favor of the Old Court from Bucharest. This decision marked the decay of the monument that ended up in ruins.

Duration: 1 hour 30 minutes

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 Tepes ( Vlad the Impaler) 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. The castle underwent repairs and the remnants of its walls and towers stand to this day. You will need stamina to climb the 1,462 steps to reach the castle ruins, perched high above the surrounding area like an eagle's nest.

Duration: 2 hours

Stop At: Vidraru Dam, DN7C, Curtea de Arges 117040 Romania

Vidraru Lake and Dam - built between 1960 to 1966, for the production of electricity, irrigation and flood prevention, being now an excellent place also for recreation, tourism and sports, eg Bungee jumping extreme sport. The dam stood at its completion, measured at height, in 8th place in Europe and ranks 20th in the world. Thousands were drilled underground galleries of 42 km long, was excavated one million cubic meters of underground rock, was poured nearly one million cubic meters of concrete, and human sacrifices have cost over eighty lives. Between Fruntii Mountains and Ghitu Massif, in lake waters gather rivers Capra, Buda and several direct tributaries - Raul Doamnei, Cernatul and Valsan, Topologul, Valea lui Stan and Limpedea River, which have a total flow of about 5.5 m3 / s . The lake surface is 893 ha, length of 10.3 km, the maximum width is 2.2 km inValea Lupului - Călugărița zone and it has a circumference of 28 km and water depth is 155 m high near curved dam of 166 m, with a crest length of 307 meters. The volume of water is 465 million m³., the normal retention level beong of 830.00 meters above sea level.

Duration: 30 minutes

Stop At: Curtea de Arges Monastery, Bulevardul Basarabilor 1, Curtea de Arges 115300 Romania

Curtea de Arges Monastery is one of the most famous monasteries in Romania and a must-see attraction if you’re looking to discover centuries-old religious sites. It’s the monumental church and its unique architectural style that make this monastery one of the most representative in Romania, a country that has hundreds of religious monuments of venerable age. The burial place of Kings Carol the 1st and Ferdinand and Queens Elisabeta and Maria, this church – also known as the Cathedral from Curtea de Arges – had an overwhelming influence in the past on the architectural style of many religious monuments from the southern part of the country. From medieval plans to royal renovations Built 500 years ago by the medieval Prince Neagoe Basarab, the church was from the beginning a key religious landmark in Southern Romania given the use of expensive and rare materials and the hand-carved decorations inspired not only from the Byzantine tradition, but also from the Ottoman world. The consecration ceremony from 1517 highlighted the importance of the edifice, so high that the patriarch of Constantinople and many representatives of the monasteries from Mount Athos attended the event. The following centuries proved, however, to be harsh on the monastery. A series of fires, earthquakes and attacks seriously damaged the church that also served as a necropolis for its medieval founder and descendants. It was partly restored by Princes Matei Basarab and Serban Cantacuzino, but it’s the first king of Romania, Carol the 1st of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (1866-1914) who decided and completed the amplest renovation work.

Duration: 1 hour