Romania is like you think it is and also not at all. Yes, it’s superstitious and grimy, but it’s also colorful and friendly. We had no idea what to expect, and Romania far exceeded our expectations.

Like most people do, we flew to Bucharest and trained to Brașov, the biggest city in Transylvania. We assumed that Brașov would primarily serve as our transportation hub, but we quickly learned that the city is a gem in its own right, with a well-preserved medieval town square, charming side streets, and tasty twists on traditional food.

Brașov’s most iconic site: Casa Sfatului, “Old City Hall,” was built in the 1200s as a watchtower.

The Biserica Neagra, “Black Church,” is a rare Lutheran cathedral. It’s also the oldest Gothic church in Romania and has an extensive collection of Turkish rugs. 

Bran is a village with almost as many sheep as tourists. Almost.

For whatever reason, it’s hip now for travel bloggers to wave off Bran as a tourist trap. But honestly, it’s a fascinating place because of the tourists: an otherwise insignificant castle in a rural valley was saved and restored because an Irish writer (Bram Stoker) who never set foot in Transylvania used it as the setting of his unlikely bestseller about a vampire. And the castle has now become a major economic driver for the entire region.

Bran Castle is “Dracula’s Castle,” but it was never the home of the brutal warlord that the Dracula character is based on (Vlad the Impaler). And despite the castle’s best efforts at spooky lighting, it’s not nearly as creepy as the Budapest dungeon where Vlad was imprisioned for 14 years. In fact, parts of Bran Castle are downright charming, with intricately painted roof beams and cozy fireplaces. Matt called it “homey,” and that’s really the best word for it.

But folks don’t trek all the way to a pleasant village in the Romanian countryside for homey. So the castle also offers a “secret” torture wing with an extensive collection of medieval pain apparatuses, and signs describing Vlad’s violent tendencies far outnumber the halfhearted attempts at educating visitors about the various royals who actually lived in the castle over the years (ironically to us, it’s now owned and maintained by an Austrian aristocrat of Habsburg descent who lives in New York).

Bran Castle is, if nothing else, a major success story in one of Europe’s least-visited countries. So if you go to Romania, go to Bran. Go to other towns, too, but go to Bran.

Bran Castle.

Is that a Werewolf rug?

Now THAT’S a writing desk.

Sandy in the courtyard, next to the “Witch Scale.” Back in the day, if you weighed less than the townsfolk thought you should, you could be convicted of witchcraft. Hmm.

Yes, I bought a copy of Dracula in the castle gift shop, but I also bought some beautiful Horezu bowls at one of the many market stalls set up outside the castle entrance. Horezu is a UNESCO-protected ceramics technique used in northern Romania. Watch out for “imposter” Horezus; once you’ve seen the real ones, the knock-offs will be obvious. 

Romanian buses can be a little smelly. But thankfully ours had a solution.

You can’t see it in the photo, but elderly folks in Transylvania often tucks balls of cotton deep into their ear canals to keep out “the current,” an evil wind that can cause illness and headaches. 

On the way back to Brașov, we hopped off at Râșnov, a small town with a big fortress that dates back to 1211.

Râșnov town square. They have a Hollywood-style sign, too!

The fortress “backyard,” with stunning views of the Carpathian mountains.

Of course there’s a market inside the fortress walls. And every kid bought a fidget spinner.

 Matt really got into the medieval spirit.

The next day we hopped on a doomed train to Sinaia, which broke down twenty minutes after leaving Brașov. We sat for … awhile. We learned a lot about the Romanian oil industry from our talkative neighbor, though, whose young son shyly practiced his English with Matt. We were surprised to hear the the boy speak with a flawless American accent, which his mother credited to watching Youtube cartoons.

Our view from the train for about an hour. 

Eventually, we got a new engine and made it to Sinaia, a town that winds its way upward to several fancy mountain resorts. We then waited out a rainstorm at a hookah bar bar/cafe and hustled up the hill to the thing that everyone comes to Sinaia to see.

Peleș Castle. It only dates to 1873, but it’s a major tourist attraction for Romanians. The line to get inside was MUCH longer than the line for Bran Castle, and we didn’t have enough time thanks to the train and rain delays.

It really is a pretty spot, even if you can’t get in.

And yep, there’s a market. This one’s in the woods.

Our time in Bucharest was short by design, but we did have a few hours to explore the city’s Old Town, the Romanian equivalent to Amsterdam’s Red Light District or Dublin’s Temple Bar. It’s popular for bachelor parties, and we walked past several packs of young men squinting painfully in the early afternoon sun. The hungover mingled with the pious since Old Town is also home to some of Bucharest’s oldest churches, all of which were hosting weddings on the Sunday we were there.

The Instagram-popular Stavropoleos Church.

The Vlad the Impaler statue in Old Town, Bucharest. He never lived at Bran Castle, but he did live in that pile of red bricks for about six years.

I think Austria followed us to Bucharest …

Texas did too. Cowboys and food trucks!!

At the airport, I couldn’t resist buying a very overpriced bottle of plum spirits, a Romanian speciality. But this one had wings!

Honestly, we were sad to leave Romania, and we know we barely scratched the surface of the sites the country has to offer. I would highly encourage you to add a visit to Transylvania to your European itinerary. Your money goes a long way in Romania, in more ways than one.

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Getting from the Bucharest airport to the train station

Getting from the Bucharest train station to Brasov

Getting from the Brasov train station to Old City

Getting from Brasov to Bran

Extra Tips for Bran Castle

Final Thoughts