Tour castles in Transylvania. Dracula. Peles.and Rasnov fortress

Peles Castle in Sinaia, the summer residence of the kings of Romania, was built at the request of King Carol I of Romania, according to the plans of architects Johannes Schultz, Carol Benesch [2] and Karel Liman, and was decorated by the famous decorators J. D. Heymann from Hamburg, August Bembé of Mainz and Bernhard Ludwig of Vienna.

Peles Castle is one of the most important historical buildings in Romania, having a unique character and is, by its historical and artistic value, one of the most important monuments of this kind in Europe in the second half of the nineteenth century. -lea.In 1883, the official inauguration of Peles took place, which the ruler saw as a "seat" of the new dynasty. And his settlement on Prahova Valley was not accidental. Not far away, in Predeal, was at that time Romania's border with Austria-Hungary. But later, after the union of Transylvania with the Old Kingdom, the castle came to be located right in the heart of the country.

Râşnov fortress is undergoing maintenance and restoration works;
as a result, access inside the fortress cannot be permitted.
Currently visitors can access the grouds / garden only and admire the exterior.

Râşnov Fortress (Rosenau in German), is located on a rocky hilltop in the Carpathian Mountains, 650 ft. above the town of Râşnov. First mentioned in an official document in 1331, the fortress was built by Teutonic Knights as protection against invading Tartars and was later enlarged by the local Saxon population.

Strategically located on the commercial route linking the provinces of Transylvania and Walachia, Râşnov differs from other Saxon fortresses in that it was designed as a place of refuge over extended periods of time. As such, it had at least 30 houses, a school, a chapel and other buildings more commonly associated with a village.

Bram Stoker’s character, Dracula, is a Transylvanian Count with a castle located high above a valley perched on a rock with a flowing river below in the Principality of Transylvania.

This character is often confused with Vlad Tepes (Vlad the Impaler), sometimes known as Vlad Dracul, who was a Walachian Prince with a castle, now in ruins, located in the Principality of Wallachia. Because Bran Castle is the only castle in all of Transylvania that actually fits Bram Stoker’s description of Dracula’s Castle, it is known throughout the world as Dracula’s Castle. Chapter 2, May 5 of “Dracula” describes the Count’s castle as “. . . on the very edge of a terrific precipice . . . with occasionally a deep rift where there is a chasm [with] silver threads where the rivers wind in deep gorges through the forests.”