The Bran Castle was first mentioned in 1377. It was used as a defense fortress against the Ottoman Empire and as a mountain pass between Transylvania and Wallachia. The castle was not the property of a member of the nobility as it was the custom at that time. It was built for the fortification and protection of German colonists in Transylvania.
Although the Bran Castle has a long and meaningful history, it is almost unknown to the modern tourist. The castle became popular when it was associated with the novel Dracula, written by Bram Stoker. It became a strange-looking castle in the Carpathian Mountains where a story with vampires builds around Count Dracula. Only when you see for yourself the majesty and grandeur of this place you can separate the history from the story. The Bran Castle looks exactly how you want to see it: haunted and full of vampires or a strong and trustworthy guardian.
The Peles Castle is situated in Sinaia, also in the Carpathian Mountains, and has a completely different story. It was built at the end of the XIXth century by King Carol I as a summer residence for the Romanian royal family. As a result, the Neo-Renaissance castle looks like a fairytale. That’s no wonder that it was the filming location for many movies with princes and princesses.