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Transylvania Tour: Peles Castle, Bran Castle, Brasov
4.6
2,670 Ratings
București
Escape the urban bustle of Bucharest and discover the legends and treasures of Transylvania. Explore Dracula’s Castle, Peles Castle, and the medieval village of Brasov on this enchanting day tour.
Escape the urban bustle of Bucharest and discover the legends and treasures of Transylvania. Explore Dracula’s Castle, Peles Castle, and the medieval village of Brasov on this enchanting day tour.
Duration:
12 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Statie Taxi Universitate - Meet with your guide and set out for your Transylvania trip.
- Peles Castle - Start your day trip with Peles Castle (inside visit), set in the scenic mountain resort of Sinaia, also called the Pearl of the Carpathians. Tour the Romanian royal family’s former summer residence, which showcases a magnificent palace in…
- Statie Taxi Universitate - Meet with your guide and set out for your Transylvania trip.
- Peles Castle - Start your day trip with Peles Castle (inside visit), set in the scenic mountain resort of Sinaia, also called the Pearl of the Carpathians. Tour the Romanian royal family’s former summer residence, which showcases a magnificent palace in the German Renaissance style. Built at the foot of the mountains between 1873 and 1914 by Carol I, the first Romanian king, the palace is considered one of the most beautiful of its kind in Europe.
- Brasov Historical Center - Next is the town of Brasov, previously known as Kronstadt. Its well-kept historical center filled with centuries-old homes connected by small streets paved with cobblestone retains its German medieval charm. Your walking tour of this lovely town starts from the main square, which features the Gothic Black Church (BisericaNeagră – inside visit), old City Hall, watch towers, walls around the former citadel, and the narrowest street in Europe.
- Bran Castle (Dracula’s Castle) - Final stop at Bran Castle, commonly known as Dracula’s Castle (inside visit). The imposing construction, originally built as a fortress at the former border between Wallachia and Transylvania, looks out over a valley from its strategic position. The function of this medieval landmark is evident through its grandiose towers as well as its winding narrow staircases and passages. The Gothic appearance adds to the allure while you learn about its infamous ruler, Vlad the Impaler, and its legendary vampire.
Conclude your tour with return transport to your hotel in Bucharest.
What's Included
- Free time at Peles Castle, Dracula’s Castle, and Brasov Historical Center
- Professional tour guide during the bus ride
- Departure from centrally located Meeting Point
- Transport by air-conditioned coach
- Free time at Peles Castle, Dracula’s Castle, and Brasov Historical Center
- Professional tour guide during the bus ride
- Departure from centrally located Meeting Point
- Transport by air-conditioned coach
What's Not Included
- Gratuities
- Lunch
- Castles entrance fees
- Gratuities
- Lunch
- Castles entrance fees
Additional Information
Travel to discover the sights and treasures of Transylvania. Reach Sinaia to enter the realm of a fairy tale on a tour of splendid Peles Castle, founded by the former Romanian kings and used as royal residence. Enter the Gothic chambers of Bran Castle, also known as ‘Dracula’s Castle’ thanks to its ties to Vlad the Impaler. Finally, reach one of…
Travel to discover the sights and treasures of Transylvania. Reach Sinaia to enter the realm of a fairy tale on a tour of splendid Peles Castle, founded by the former Romanian kings and used as royal residence. Enter the Gothic chambers of Bran Castle, also known as ‘Dracula’s Castle’ thanks to its ties to Vlad the Impaler. Finally, reach one of Transylvania’s founding and most well-preserved medieval towns on a walking tour of Brasov.
- Youth must be accompanied by an adult
- Peles Castle is closed on Mondays year-round and on Tuesdays.
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Children under 11 y.o. cannot attend this tour
- Minimum age of the participant is 11 years old
- No heart problems or other medical conditions such as car sickness.
- Not allowed for pregnant travelers
- No luggage or large bags allowed. One small handbag or small backpack per person allowed onboard the coach.Company or staff involved in the activity are not responsible for any of the guests belongings
- Not allowed to join the tour under influence of alcohol or drugs
- Not allowed with Food and drinks in the vehicle
- The duration of transfers are approximate, the exact duration will depend on the time of day and traffic conditions
- You must have cash in Eur or Ron
- Booking is confirmed only if validated by our guide through the check in process at the departure point. Voucher must be shown at the departure point for validation
- Boarding will be done only after booking is confirmed by our guide and if there are remaining seats. If booking is not confirmed or there are no remaining seats, you are entitled to refund.
- Peles Castle will be closed for maintenance from 3rd November to 2nd December. During this period you can visit Pelisor Castle.
- The order of the itinerary depends on the season, weather, and opening hours. Unforseen events (weather, special events, traffic, etc) may result in a visit only on outside of one castle. Delays in arrival time to Bucharest may occur also due to these uncontrollable factors.
Location
Statie Taxi Universitate
Bulevardul Nicolae Bălcescu
Taxi station located on the main avenue next to the Grand Hotel Bucharest.
Look for a coach with One Excellence Tours sign. Arrive 30 minutes before departure time
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.6
(2670 Ratings)
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Charles_c
Jul 16, 2025
The tour guide Silva did... - The tour guide Silva did make a clear rules and trip details to all of us to follow. We enjoy her arrangement and recommendations for lunch. Also she gave us details on the history for both Castles and Brasov. Driver did a great job for on time pick up and drop off. Even this was a 10 Hrs. Trip, we didn’t feel too tight. Overall it was a relaxing journey and I would recommend others to join it..
Review provided by Viator
Larsbjornwolfgang
Jul 15, 2025
Explore Two Castles in One Day from Bucharest - Highly recommended if you only have a day or two in Bucharest and want to visit both Dracula Castle and Peles Castle. This tour takes care of all the logistics, allowing you to see both castles in a single day from Bucharest.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Maria
Jul 15, 2025
It was so worth it! Must visit - We had an amazing time. The tour guide Bogdan was friendly and explained to us everything we needed to know about the castles. Would love to have some more time at every destination but we saw everything we needed to see and it was an amazing experience!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
P8766wlrobertj
Jul 11, 2025
Dracula Day Done Right - Long day but totally worth it—scenic drive, charming stops in Sinaia and Brașov, and spooky vibes at Bran Castle to top it off.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Yogendra_r
Jul 9, 2025
The tour was good but... - The tour was good but could have been better. There were few things that the tour operator could do to make it a memorable experience for someone visiting Romania for the first time. The first thing that I didn't like was charging extra 15 euro per person on top of paying the tour fee of 30 euro per person. This is something I experienced only in Romania, having done so many tours in various countries. I wonder why this was not included in the tour fee instead. Then there were separate entrance fees of around 35 euro to enter the castles (Bran castle and Peles Castle) which was not clearly stated in the tour description. The tour guide was good but I don't remember him introducing himself at any point of time. Normally it would be good to know him by name. Otherwise the tour was good enough to give 4 stars.
Review provided by Viator
Sophie_c
Jul 15, 2025
Ripped off! - It is worth seeing Peles Castle, and Transylvania was very scenic. Even though the description of our tour included the mention "guided tour", our guide required that we pay an extra 15 Euros per person in the bus. If we didn't pay, we got transport, but no "guided" tour. We felt ripped off! Still a nice day, and the guide was knowledgeable.
Review provided by Viator
Brettsharpe2
Jul 14, 2025
Not as expected - Too much travel in 12 hours with not enough time in each location. We drove almost 400km in the day, Everything was rushed as a result with not enough time in each location to truly enjoy the experience. Guide and driver did a good job. We were glad to be back in Bucharest and it was over.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Tim_s
Jul 12, 2025
Rushed and upsold - First, the tour was cut short because of bad weather and this is completely understandable and I don't fault anyone for that. However, the tour itself, what we got of it, was a disappointment. First, our tour guide, Marius was always trying to upsell us and charge us more for "extra information" - cash only of course. If you declined this or questioned it, he was quite rude and dismissive. The payment was for a guided tour, but he insisted that did not include him actually sharing information about the locations we were going. I reluctantly paid the extra $25 or so (75 Lei). The trip to Bran's castle was extremely rushed, basically had time to walk through the castle in a long line of people and hurry back to the bus. Just not enough time to really explore it. Then the trip to Brasov was much the same. Here those of us who paid extra got some of the "extra information" about the black church - which was basically the same information he shared on the bus, but on site for about 5 minutes. The time we had in the town was so minimal there was really not time to do anything but grab a quick lunch and return to the bus. WQe were really not able to check out the town or its shops for more than a couple minutes. Then, as said some storms hit the Pele's castle area so that part of the trip was cancelled. They gave us info on how to get refunded for the entrance fee but that has so far been ignored by the castle (not the tour;'s fault). Those of us who paid for "extra information" were not offered any kind of refund from Marius at all. Again, the storms were unavoidable and I don't blame the tour for that, but overall this felt like it was just an attempt to rush us all through some sites and hit us up for extra $$ while they had us captive. The bus was nice and air conditioned, which was great, and the sites were cool so I do give it two stars for that. Otherwise, I'd find a different tour, there are plenty to choose from.
Review provided by Viator
Charles_c
Jul 15, 2025
Inaccurate Viator discription of tour made it a huge disappointment. - Our tour guide, Bogdan, was very nice, but his English was not understandable at all. He spoke with a strong accent and pronounced words improperly, putting the accent on the wrong syllables, and speaking so fast that I couldn’t understand much of anything he was saying. No matter, the few things I could understand were pretty boring anyway. Plus, the Viator write up said we were going to tour inside Peles Castle, and it was closed on the day we were there. Very disappointing. Plus, the coach bus had a bathroom onboard, but it wasn’t working! Who does that on a 3+ hour ride? Also, we weren’t allowed to eat anything on the bus.
Review provided by Viator
Jessica_l
Jul 9, 2025
It’s a no for me - Trying to be objective here: you have to buy tickets for the castles. Our guide encouraged us to buy them on the bus online. They can also be bought at the castle. Before buying tickets our guide talked about an extended tour (I was unclear if this was to get into the castles) he said it would be 15€ or 75 lei cash only. This “extended tour” did not cover any cost to get into the castles. It was a separate fee to have the guide share info at each castle and in the town of Braşov. I did not do this and only bought the castle tickets online. Many people had difficulty getting tickets online and were told “just keep trying. Other people were able to buy them.” Additionally, I brought snacks (as a breakfast) to eat during the 2+ hour bus ride to Bran castle. Was told after getting on bus that there is no eating on bus. I signed up for an English tour. They said they had two buses and the English one filled up so we went on the Italian bus. So our bus had English and Italian speakers. Guides took turns talking to each group on bus.
At Bran Castle: uphill walk to get to castle. No lifts. Castle has some narrow halls and a lack of railings for stairs. Was nice to see! Didn’t buy the additional torture room ticket (you can peek into the room as they keep the door open) or the 5 minute video ticket. I liked the gift shop although they also have a lot of vendors selling items before you enter the castle.
Braşov: said by our guides to be such a nice little town and very beautiful. I thought it was basic. Our guide told us a couple food items that are traditional Romanian dishes to try but did not tell us what restaurants to go to. The guide took us to the center of the town, told us how to get back to the bus, and took the “extended tour” people on a walking tour (a guy in the group said they saw an old church that everyone can see). I didn’t like being left in the town center with no direction of places to eat, stores to go to, things to see. I knew nothing of this town. It also started pouring rain so I’m sure the “extended tour” was short.
Peles castle: so there was a massive rain storm that came through the town and took down lots of trees. This caused the roads to be blocked (and thus backed up traffic), the castle to lose power, and for our van to spend 2.5 hours in traffic from Braşov to Peles castle just to get into the town and have our guides tell us that nobody can go to the castle because it’s blocked and has no power. Wasn’t able to see it at all. Was also told later by our guides to email the Peles castle contact email requesting a refund and to “just keep emailing until you get an answer”. Another 30+ minutes in traffic to reach a gas station so people could use the bathroom after a little over 3 hours on the bus. We then headed back to Bucharest (which took 2 hours).
Less objective: Spent probably 8 hours total in traffic (traffic is common per our guide). Our guide appeared uninterested in the tour—yawning in front of us, saying “I’m not trying to be rude” when answering questions about tickets, not offering refunds on the “extended tour”, etc.
Review provided by Viator
