Two Castles in one day: Peles and Bran Castles

Would you like to be a Queen or a King for a day? Well, make a tour that will allow you to discover two of the most beautiful and famous Romanian castles - the legendary Bran - Dracula Castle and Peles Castle - the most beautiful palace in Eastern Europe, once used to be the Romanian kings Summer residence.

In the morning, you will meet the guide and the rest of the group around 07:45 am, at the meeting point (in front of the Romanian Athenaeum Garden (next to Athenee Palace Hilton Hotel, 1-3 Franklin Str, District 1, Bucharest). At 08:00 am, we leave Bucharest and head to Transylvania.

*You can also book hotel pick up/drop off. The extra fee for hotel pick-up/drop off is 20 EUR/standard car (1-3 pers), 30 EUR/minivan (4-8 pers) and 50 EUR/minibus (9-16 pers), and the pick up time will be 07:30 am. Or you can come to the meeting point by yourself, by taxi. If your hotel is located within short walking distance from the departure point, there is no need for a hotel pick-up, of course.

**If you choose a private tour, the guide and car will be at your disposal for the entire tour, and the guide will pick you up directly from the hotel you are accommodated around 08-09:00 am, just as you prefer, and you will begin the tour. In the evening, he will drop you off at your hotel.

NOTE! Between 30 Oct - 30 Nov, Peles Castle is closed for cleaning and maintenance. During this period, its smaller replica - Pelisor Castle - will be visited. Peles Castle is also closed during Summertime on Mondays, and during Wintertime both on Mondays and Tuesdays.

In the morning, you will meet the guide and the rest of the group. 

We will be visiting today the magnificent Peles Castle, with its fairytale turrets and pointed towers nestling in the Carpathians. It is considered by many to be one of the most beautiful castles in all Europe. Indeed it was the first castle in the world to have central heating and electricity! It is also the final resting place for several Romanian monarchs including King Carol I, who died here in 1914. Throughout its history, the castle has played host to some important personalities, from royalty and politicians to artists. These have included Kaiser Franz Joseph of Austria-Hungary. Artists such as George Enescu, Sarah Bernhardt, and Jacques Thibaud often visited the castle. In recent times it has received guests such as Gerald Ford, Richard Nixon, Muammar Gaddafi, Yasser Arafat and many more. Our visit here will include the incredible weapons room.

After this, we will drive to Bran village where we visit perhaps the most talked about structure in the world - Bran Castle! Much older than Peles, this spectacular fortress was made famous by Bram Stocker's gothic novel, Dracula. The fortification popularly known as 'Dracula's Castle' was built on top of a steep rock in the Carpathian Mountains by Prince Mircea in 1377, where it protected the border of Walachia and Transylvania.
The building has four towers positioned at the four cardinal points. The walls are made of stone blocks, the rooms and narrow corridors constitute a mysterious labyrinth of ghostly nooks and secret chambers, whilst in the inner courtyard there are artesian wells, connected to an underground network. The castle had both a military and a customs point purpose.

Before leaving Transylvania, we will stop for a short walk in Romania's most beautiful and vibrant medieval city - Brasov, where you will have the opportunity to see how a typical Transylvanian old city looks like. We will stop in the Old Town, and visit the Council Square and Black Church - the largest Gothic building in Eastern Europe.  

In the evening, we will return to Bucharest and the guide will drop you off either at the meeting point (for the shared tours) or directly to your hotel (for the private tours or for those booking hotel pick-up/drop-off).