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Transylvania Vacations

Transylvania is the most famous part of Romania, thanks to the legend of Dracula, conjuring up images of haunted forests and werewolves, medieval towns, vampires, dramatic mountains and turreted cliff-top castles.

Transylvania is not just about Dracula, however. It has splendid mountain scenery and alpine peaks, some of the country's best hiking and skiing, rural villages and a way of life that remains almost as it was in the 18th century. Historic towns are scattered throughout the region, with their stone medieval streets, defensive towers and fortified churches. The charming town of Sighisoara is the most striking introduction to Transylvania, the birthplace of 'Dracula' (a medieval prince, Vlad Tepes, who led the Romanian resistance against the Turks), along with the impressive castles and churches of Brasov and Sinaia, and the dramatic castle at Bran, also known as Dracula's Castle, that looks every bit a vampire's lair with its soaring turrets and dramatic setting.

The populace is a mixture of different characters and customs that have been shaped by years of colonisation and the coming and going of different groups, and includes Romanians, Gypsies, Hungarians and Germans. Despite the creeping effects of modernisation into the large towns, visitors to this region will be rewarded by its medieval charm and the traditional character of the people. Endearing images will linger, and memories of horse-drawn carts piled high with cabbages, driven by elderly couples with scarf-covered heads and rough hands; lively food markets, quaint cobbled streets, and hilly pastures nestled among the Carpathian Mountains will be the lasting impressions left by the charm of Transylvania.

Source: wordtravels.com

Things To Do and See in Transylvania

Bran Castle (Dracula's Castle), Brasov
Built in the 13th century as a defense against the Ottoman Empire,

this castle was later inhabited by the Wallachia king, Vlad Tepes

(Vlad the Impaler). The actual Castle Dracula is in ruins.
Attraction type: Castle; Historic site; History museum; Historic village

Black Church (Biserica Neagra), Brasov
Brasov was for centuries the gate between Valachia (southern Romania ),

Moldavia (the Eastern region) and Transylvania having its own special

commercial privileges.
Attraction type: Religious site

Astra National Museum Complex, Sibiu
Attraction type: Museum complex

Museum of Traditional Folk Civilization, Sibiu
Attraction type: Museum; Specialty museum

Clock Tower, Sighisoara
Attraction type: Landmark/point of interest

Orthodox Cathedral, Timisoara
Attraction type: Religious site; Architectural building; Art gallery

Victory Square (Piata Victoriei), Timisoara
Attraction type: Town center/square/plaza

Tokes Reformed Church, Timisoara
Attraction type: Religious site

Turnul Sfatului (The Tower of the Council), Sibiu
Attraction type: Observation deck/tower;

Architectural building; Landmark/point of interest; Historic site

Bezdin Monastery, Arad
Attraction type: Religious site

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