Transylvania holiday, Dracula tours in Romania
Suitably quirky, but steeped in Romanian culture and folklore, this Dracula-themed holiday is a fun and informative way to discover the historical truth behind the legend.
Bucharest Snagov Monastery Targoviste Sinaia Poiana Brasov Bran Castle Sighisoara Sighisoara Medieval Citadel Birth and death place of Vlad the Impaler Dracula's coffin Dracula's Castle in Borgo Pass Bistrita Bistrita Citadel Cluj Turda Sibiu
Price
€1299 excluding flights
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3 days ( EUR 799) or 7 days ( EUR 1299) Dracula themed cultural tours with a fine selection of Dracula restaurants and hotels and creative happenings and Ritual Killing of a Living Dead as was seen on Travel Channel;
Description of Transylvania holiday, Dracula tours in Romania
It’s inevitable that even the most literal of cultural travellers will find themselves mentioning the D word at least once during Transylvania holidays so why fight it any longer? Embrace the facts, the legends and the sites that are associated with Dracula as you embark on a seven day tour that swipes back the cape of mystery and reveals what lies beneath, fangs and all.
This is a unique chance to discover Romania’s dark history on a cultural tour which tells Dracula’s tale through live performances, such as the Ritual of Killing the Living Dead, and gives travellers the chance to experience live re-enactments that are based on fact rather than fictional horror stories.
Of course, not only are holidays to Transylvania Dracula based they’re also an excellent means of discovering the rural lifestyles, undulating landscapes and medieval castles of central Romania with characterful guesthouses within traditional Transylvanian villages letting travellers step back in time and experience life far from the tourist hot spots.
Aside from rural guesthouses this Transylvania holiday also offer hotel accommodation within medieval surroundings where atmospheric bedrooms conjure up all manner of noir fantasies as well as a banquet of traditional Romanian dishes stemming from Saxon and Hungarian heritage.
This week-long tour of Transylvania includes an excellent blend of fact and fantasy with candle-lit dinners at Dracula’s Castle and live or, should that be, undead, performances just as integral to the overall spooky theme as visits to the citadel of Sighisoara and trips to the Turda salt mines.
From Bran Castle and Snagov Monastery to witch trials and the former fortress of Vlad the Impaler, if you’re looking for Transylvania holidays that combine the best of both worlds then this is certainly one seven day trip that crosses all of the right coffins.
Itinerary
| Day 1: | Touchdown in Bucharest, meet your English-speaking tour guide and transfer to your three-star city centre hotel accommodation to get ready for a week in Romania. After settling in you’ll be driven to Snagov before taking a short boat ride on Lake Snagov to the island monastery which is reputed to be the final resting place of Vlad the Impaler. Snagov Monastery is also well-known for its architectural style which mirrors the monasteries to be found on Mount Athos in northeast Greece. This evening you’ll get to enjoy a welcome meal in one of Bucharest’s top traditional restaurants. |
| Day 2: | Your first full day in Romania finds you taking a drive to the city of Targoviste on the banks of the River Ialomita whereupon you’ll be invited to inspect the ruins of Curtea Veche, the former princely residence of Vlad the Impaler. After exploring the courtyards and museum exhibits you’ll continue onwards to Sinaia, one of Romania’s top mountain resorts, which features one of Europe’s best-preserved royal residences, Peles Castle. Tonight you’ll be staying in the mountain resort of Poiana Brasov which is situated at the base of Mt Postavaru surrounded by pine trees and boasting magnificent views. This evening’s meal will be taken within the resort’s four-star medieval dining room where live music and medieval delicacies round off the day in style. |
| Day 3: | Bid farewell to Poiana Brasov and head to Bran and the famous medieval castle which sits atop of a tree covered hillside surveying the land below. Bran Castle is closely linked with Bram Stoker and the Dracula story and also contains a shrine dedicated to Romania’s Queen Maria. After exploring Bran Castle it’s off to the Saxon city of Brasov and one of southeast Europe’s largest Gothic structures, the Black Church, before finally transferring to Sighisoara to settle into your three-star hotel accommodation in the centre of Brasov. |
| Day 4: | This morning you’ll be able to stroll around the old cobbled streets of Sighisoara and find out more about Vlad the Impaler’s birthplace as well as the town’s church on the hill and unique covered staircase. Where better to settle for lunch other than Casa Vlad Dracul restaurant, the birthplace of Vlad the Impaler, although the chance to taste the meal that Jonathan Harker was presented in Bram Stoker’s novel is not to be missed if you’re passing the Golden Crown restaurant at Bistrita. This evening’s accommodation is going to be extremely memorable as you cross the Tihuta Pass (‘Borger Pass’ in Stoker’s story) and step into Hotel Castel Dracula and the realm of the dark lord himself. This atmospheric three-star hotel has been designed with Bram Stoker’s imagination in mind and a visit to Dracula’s coffin, a candle-lit evening meal, followed by stories told around the campfire, will all set pulses racing just that little bit faster before you finally retire to bed. |
| Day 5: | After a good night’s sleep you’ll drive to Cluj Napoca for a city sightseeing tour which includes some fine examples of medieval architecture, of which the cathedral of St Andrew is certainly no exception. In keeping with Vlad the Impaler’s on-going battles with Turkey, Cluj Napoca is rather ironically renowned for its kebabs which are highly recommended for lunch prior to heading from Cluj to the small medieval town of Turda, the home of Romania’s oldest salt mines. This evening’s accommodation in Turda is at a four-star hotel where an unashamedly vampire-inspired menu followed by a live performance of the Ritual of Killing of the Living Dead and a typically gothic masquerade ball keeps the medieval-themed fantasy at full throttle. |
| Day 6: | Turda’s vast salt mines provide this morning’s unique excursion where huge halls and colossal chambers help you piece together parts of Romania’s history as well as unveiling an interesting test of your inner soul, right at the very end. After exiting into sunlight you’ll transfer to the city of Medias in Sibiu County where preserved fortifications and fascinating structures, including St Margaret’s Church and the Tower of the Buglers, provide plenty of talking points alongside a unique local artist known for his paintings of spider webs. Your final stop on Day Six is the town of Sibiu which is one of the most beautiful cities in Romania and well-known for its German heritage-laden town squares and surrounding ringed fortifications. Get settled into this evening’s accommodation in a four-star hotel before heading out for a traditional Saxon meal in one of the city’s finest local restaurants where you’ll be introduced to a few of the local medieval rituals as explained by the Galdius Dei, also known as: the Knights of Sibiu. |
| Day 7: | Your week in Romania draws to a close today as you head back to Bucharest after taking the morning to visit the ruined fortress of Poenari Citadel that can be found perched over the River Arges close to the foothills of the Fagaras Mountains. If you’re feeling fit there are nearly 1,500 stairs leading up to the castle but fortune favours the brave as the views from the top are quite stunning. Your return to Bucharest will be made in the late afternoon, around 5pm, where the option to stay on for one or more days in the capital is always a great idea for those who have the time. |
Price information
€1299 excluding flights
Convert currency:
3 days ( EUR 799) or 7 days ( EUR 1299) Dracula themed cultural tours with a fine selection of Dracula restaurants and hotels and creative happenings and Ritual Killing of a Living Dead as was seen on Travel Channel;
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Holiday information
Our top tip:
If you have no reflection in the mirror and are over 200 years old, you travel for free.
Trip type:
Small group tour, 4-16 people, plus tour leader.
Activity level:
Leisurely.
Accomm:
3 nights 3* hotel, 4 nights 4* hotel.
Solos:
Solo travellers welcome. Single rooms available for a surcharge.
Meals:
6 breakfasts, 4 dinners.
Included:
Accommodation, transport, entry fees, English-speaking guide.
Reviews
7 Reviews of Transylvania holiday, Dracula tours in Romania
4.5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed on 06 Jan 2019 by Alicia Moreno
The most memorable must be staying at the Prince Hunter Hotel in Turda. It was a quirky hotel that certainly put us in a “Dracula” mood... It surpassed all my expectations! We had a lovely time and we loved Romania. Read full reviewReviewed on 06 Nov 2018 by Cory Maddox
We loved the way they handled the whole Dracula experience. We wanted to experience the full history of the real, larger-than-life, person on which Bram Stoker based his fictional antagonist as well as enjoy the Halloween ambiance. Read full reviewReviewed on 25 Jul 2018 by Anne Llewellyn
The highlights were certainly Bran Castle, Peles Castle and Dracula hotel Read full reviewReviewed on 24 Jul 2017 by Rebecca Sweeney
Hard to choose! Romania has beautiful scenery, a very interesting history and some of the friendliest people I've ever come across. As a history fan, climbing the 1480 stairs to Poenari Castle (Vlad the Impaler's actual castle) was the highlight. Read full reviewReviewed on 06 Nov 2017 by Neil Liversidge
We visited beautiful churches and palaces. the scenery was spectacular and the locals were wonderful, friendly and honest. Read full reviewResponsible Travel
As the pioneers of responsible tourism, we've screened this (and every) holiday so that you can travel knowing it will help support the places and people that you visit, and the planet. Read how below.
Planet
We encourage our guests do a little reading before coming to find out more about the environment problems in Transylvania: deforestation, pollution of waters, soils and atmosphere, soils degradation, soils erosion. We provide suggestions on how best to protect the surrounding environment. Guests will receive a pre-trip information pack via e-mail, to minimize the use of paper, which will inform them about issues relating to the place they will travel. Furthermore, our tour guides are well-educated multilingual people who can offer guests their advice about what each of our guest can do, during their trip, in order to minimize the impact for the environment and as an interpreter and offer insights on current regional issues.When in a museum first ask if it is permitted to take photographs. Many museums or heritage sites also ask for a small fee if you use your camera or video-recorder.
Have a recyclable garbage bag and that the waste will be disposed only on the special arranged areas.
Learn a few Romanian words and phrases - included in our pre-trip information pack.
Being small group tours, these trips not only minimize the negative impact on the environment but also allow you to interact more easily with the locals, giving you the possibility to learn about culture and traditions straight from the source.
People
These tours offer you a well rounded Romanian experience, introducing you to Transylvania’s finest scenery and folklore and providing you with the possibility of getting in contact with the genuine peasant culture by exploring rural areas, the work shops of famous artists and craftsmen, visiting museums or landscapes made famous in the Romanian literature. Besides the economic aspect – we use only local suppliers - your visit is of great importance for the artist, craftsmen, museums, castles or the small rural communities you’ll visit as it provides them with the a motivation, a reason to carry on the traditions. You’ll be able to purchase locally goods starting with food and ending with souvenirs, handicrafts.To give you a full taste of the local culture you’ll delight yourself with home cooked traditional meals, like in Ieud, in the Maramures region or shop for souvenirs in Madam Monica Cosma’s small but very interesting shop offering one of the finest selection of handicrafts in Romania.
To make sure the money stays where needed we only use local suppliers and where the itinerary allows us we also use small family run businesses, like in Ieud, a beautiful traditional village located in the magical Maramures, where you’ll accommodate in guest houses. This is actually an ideal opportunity to spend more time with the locals but also ensure that the financial benefits of your visit reach the people of the area and not some large companies based outside the region.
The entry fees will help maintain and even restore the precious tourist attractions visited throughout the tour. We’re also making financial contributions for every persons who books one of our tours, in the amount of £1 per person to support Saint Daniel’s Foundation programme entitled 'A grand father for a nephew – A nephew for a grandfather', helping elderly and orphans, people most in need.
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