Free Web Hosting by Netfirms
 Web Hosting by Netfirms | Free Domain Names by Netfirms

The Transylvania Travel Company

 

Curious western travelers have been fascinated by Transylvania for centuries.  Those who made the effort to visit this distant corner of Europe found a land of hidden and mysterious castles, medieval fortified churches, and vast expanses of stunning natural beauty.  In 1897, when Bram Stoker made the province famous by setting his gothic novel Dracula here, the southern Carpathians were truly “one of the wildest and least known portions of Europe.”

THE COUNTRY:

Due to its remoteness and recent history, Transylvania remains largely unexplored by Western travelers.  For those with an adventurous spirit and a sense of curiosity, this province offers some of the most fascinating history and tremendous natural beauty in all of Europe.  It is also one of the last places in Europe where the Old World is still lived rather than recreated in a museum.  Horse-drawn carts continue to be the most common method of transportation on the many country lanes and byways that still make up most of Transylvania’s road network.  Grass is still cut with the sickle and the scythe.  Peasants continue to dress in traditional clothing and work the land with centuries-old methods.  Even the enormous and misguided industrial projects of the Ceauşescu era are now abandoned, rusted, and overgrown with vegetation.  Indeed, this province is a place where, in many ways, time stands still.

 

The past is also still alive in the vast number and varied types of architectural remains which help to make Transylvania such a magical place.  Located at the ethnic crossroads of central Europe, this land has some of the most unique and significant ecclesiastical structures on the continent, from the intricate wooden churches of Maramureş to the celebrated painted monasteries of Bucovina, covered inside and out with scenes from the Bible.  Moreover, few castles match the awesome majesty of the Hunyadis’ imposing fortress of Hunedoara, or are as perfectly situated as Vlad Dracula’s notorious bastion towering over the Argeş valley.

  

 

The famous walled, medieval Saxon cities of Transylvania—the “Siebenbürgen” in German—are gems of old world architecture, with narrow alleys leading to haunting stairways and hidden courtyards.  Of all the cities in the region, Sighisoara—with its walled, mountaintop old town—is the most impressive.  It was here that Vlad Ţepeş, the historical Dracula, was born in the fifteenth century.  Throughout the region are small Saxon villages, each with its own fortified Lutheran church—veritable castles in themselves, capable of protecting the whole community from invaders.
   
Transylvania is also home to some of Europe’s most stunning natural beauty.  The southern Carpathians and the Bihor Mountains enclose the entire region.  Tall peaks and deep valleys characterize the East and South, while gently rolling hills and crystal-clear streams and waterfalls can be found in the northern and western parts of the province.  Under all this, large and colorful caverns—many of them open to the public—contribute to the area’s unique beauty.  One of these, called the Scarişoara Ice Cave, is filled with the glistening remains of a glacier trapped during the last ice age.

 

e-mail:info@transylvaniatravelcompany.com

 

The Transylvania Travel Company
Zona Odobescu, Bl. 16
SC.B., Ap. 16
Timisoara 1900
Romania

  U.S. Tel: (203) 397-3393