Located on a remote mountainous area, surrounded by rolling trees in Transylvania, Romania, Bran Castle is said to be the hideout of the infamous vampire Dracula in the author’s 1897 novel of the same name. fake Bram Stoker. This is essentially just people’s speculation because there is no historical document proving that Bran Castle is related to the main character in author Bram Stoker’s fantasy story.

Ancient Bran Castle is surrounded by a hair-raising silence.

Bran Castle was built in 1212 by a group of merchants with the purpose of protecting shipments through the Rucar-Bran gorge and across the Carpathian mountains. In 1920, the castle was presented to Queen Marie of Romania to express gratitude for her great contribution in unifying the country. Now, the owner of this castle is still one of Queen Marie’s descendants. Thanks to that novel, this place has now become a famous tourist destination attracting a large number of tourists every year.

Talking about the vampire character in the novel Dracula, it is said that Mr. Bram Stoker was inspired by Vlad Tepes, a real historical Prince who ruled Vallachia, a part of present-day Romania, in 15th century. Vlad Tepes was famous as a cold-blooded man, his hobby was torturing and killing his enemies. During the invasions, Vlad Tepes stopped at nothing to kill his opponents, from poisoning water sources to burning forests.

The success of the novel attracted millions of tourists from all over the world to come to Romania to find real vampires. About a few decades ago, many readers accidentally visited Bran Castle and were extremely surprised to discover that the entrance of this castle was very similar to Bram Stoker’s description in the novel Dracula even though this author never set foot in Central Europe. Since then, the castle in Transylvania has been called “Dracula’s castle”. It is estimated that more than 600,000 tourists come here every year to see firsthand the “living space” of the scary bloodsucking creatures in horror novels.

Bran Castle exudes a magical and gloomy atmosphere when night falls, exactly like a vampire’s shelter.

The ancient campus with medieval architectural style inside the castle, although small, brings a feeling of peace and quiet.

The scene inside the vampire castle is not as scary as people imagine.

Every year, people still hold parties to celebrate Halloween with attractive gifts such as a night sleeping on a “coffin bed” at Bran Castle.

(Source: CNN, Atlas Oscura)