Dracula’s Castle Open For Courageous Guests

Tucked in the center of Transylvania, Romania, the notorious Dracula’s Castle has let those courageous enough to enter its shadowed passways. Deeply ingrained in a history as dark as the tales it inspired, this mysterious fortification invites guests to discover its secrets and embrace the terrible appeal of its past.

After almost seven decades, two adventurous souls were drawn by the promise of a night rich in gothic romance and spine-tingling thrills and first felt the castle’s sinister embrace. Theirs was a prize earned after triumphing over a startling 80,000 applicants for the opportunity to spend a night in this famous residence from a worldwide contest run by Airbnb.

Bran Castle, as it is formally known, radiates almost otherworldly appeal perched on a 200-meter precipice overlooking the Transylvanian countryside. Popular tourist destination since 1897, this 11th-century villa owes its reputation to Irish author Bram Stoker, whose gothic horror novel “Dracula” chilled the world’s imagination.

In the pages of Stoker’s book, young London solicitor Jonathan Harker travels to the far-off Transylvania wilderness in order to complete a real estate deal with the enigmatic Count Dracula. The Count turns out to be an ancient vampire, a creature of the night driven ravenous for young women’s blood as the story progresses. Ironically, Stoker never set foot in Romania, yet his horrific portrayal of Bran Castle confirmed its prominence in popular culture as the birthplace of the most well-known vampire.

Arriving at Bran Castle on October 31st, the contest winners matched the young Harker’s path in the book and were met by the descendants of Bram Stoker personally. They ate by candlelight as night fell, then were led to their sleeping quarters, a tribute to the castle’s vampiric links with two velvet-lined coffins.

Aiming to create an authentically terrible experience that went beyond simple carnivalesque thrills, Dacre Stoker, a self-described vampire expert and descended from Bram Stoker, oversaw the event.

More than 500,000 people visit Bran Castle every year in search of its maze-like passageways and dark chambers. Experienced tour guide Anemona Todor entices guests with cryptic announcements revealing the 57 rooms of the castle while keeping quiet on the vampire count.

Beginning in 1212, the castle was a stronghold for several aristocratic families. It is reported to have imprisoned the merciless Vlad Tepes, a prince renowned for his taste in impaling his foes and the source of inspiration for Stoker’s Dracula, in the fifteenth century Later, Queen Mary of Romania came to enjoy the castle as a summer home. Seized by the communist government following World War II, it was finally returned to the Queen’s grandson in 2006. It thrives today as a privately owned museum attracting tourists from all around.

The marketing director of the castle, Alexander Prisca, admits the difficulty of preserving the fine balance between fact and fiction. He says the castle has to live up to its promise of mystery and romance in equal measure, providing an enchanted but disturbing experience. Bran Castle is evidence of the continuing power of narrative and the attraction of the unknown with its gothic atmosphere, rich history, and ongoing relationship to the legend of Dracula.