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0845 3000 247 +44 (0)1539 531258 |
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DATES |
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MIDSUMMER SPECIAL 18.06.2008 - 25.06.2008 8 Days / 7 Nights |
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HIGHLIGHTS |
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Bucharest (Folk Evening) Curtea de Arges (Princely Church) Poienari Castle (the real 'Castle Dracula') Lake Vidraru/ Fagaras Mountains Baile Govora Sibiu Biertan Sighisoara (Lunch at Vlad Dracula House) Lunca Ilvei 'Jonathan Harker's Trail' (Horse & Cart to 'Borgo Pass') Hotel Castle Dracula Bistrita (Golden Krone) Dracularea Bandului Târgu Mures |
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FLIGHTS |
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British Airways scheduled service: Heathrow 09:45; Bucharest 15:00 Bucharest 15:50; Heathrow 17:15 Flights depart terminal 1 |
Ultimate Dracula Midsummer 2008
Carpathian Mountains of northern Transylvania, to the realms of Vlad the Impaler
Prices £ 974.00 - £ 1044.00 per person - see below
DRACULA - HOME ULTIMATE HALLOWEEN BRIEF ENCOUNTER BESPOKE DRACULA FLIGHTS CAR HIREThis trip includes quality accommodation and meals throughout.
MIDSUMMER ITINERARY
DAY 1 - 18 JUNE 2008
"Settling In"
Arrival at Bucharest Otopeni airport; transfer to the city centre for an early dinner at the Count Dracula Club.
Note: we use scheduled flights and offer a range of options including
regional departures. Therefore, arrival times may be staggered.
In this case you may need to wait with your guide for other members
of the party. Enjoy a drink or a coffee in meantime!
Transfer to the North Station for your overnight sleeper train to northern Romania (departs 21:00; choice of 2 berth sleepers extra cost - or 6 berth couchettes). This is a true taste of the rail journeys of old.
Arges Gorge at Poienari Castle
CONTACT US0845 3000 247
+44 (0)1539 531258
Vlad the Impaler
DAY 2 - 19 JUNE 2008
Your train will deliver you at the wayside halt of Vama, deep in the Bucovina region in the early hours of the morning, long before the sun has risen. Breakfast at a local guesthouse. This is a day for contemplation as you tour some of the famous Painted Monasteries with their external frescoes depicting bible stories such as the famous scene of the Last Judgment at Voronet. Lunch and a demonstration of traditional egg painting before boarding the rickety old workers train . Despite its sedate speed it will take you safely over the passes of the Carpathians and deposit you deep in a remote forest in northern Transylvania. Hopefully, the villagers will have sent their horses and carts because the train stops only for a second or two, and once it has gone there is only the forest and perhaps the distant howling of wolves for company. You will follow a forest track to a nearby mountain village where you will enjoy an evening meal, drinks and music with the locals. This will bbe a celebration of Sanziene - the time when it is believed
that the gate of heaven remain open and fairies flit through the forest. Unmarried girls practivce superstitions to determine their future partner and dream of their future on midsummers night. As darkness draws in the villagers may try to dissuade you from venturing further but try not to lose any sleep. A century earlier the unsuspecting solicitor, Jonathan Harker was also warned against travelling up the 'Borgo' Pass to Castle Dracula. "Do you not know that tonight, when the clock strikes midnight, all the evil things in the world will have full sway? Do you know where you are going, and what you are going to?" the landlord's wife begged of him. As a precaution garlic should be hung over your bed. This would also be an appropriate time to wear the little crucifix you may have bought at one of the monasteries!.
DAY 3 - 20 JUNE 2008
Dont dally too long over breakfast, as the journey up to the Borgo Pass through the forests and over the plateau is lengthy and the hours of daylight are short. Note the red tassels worn by the horse pulling your cart to ward off the evil eye, for this is a land of myths, superstitions and the omnipresent feeling of danger. A picnic lunch will be taken in the forest, perhaps in the safety of a woodcutters hut if we can find one. The Counts Castle, Hotel Castle Dracula, appears as you cross the summit, standing out on the hillside guarding over the password. It has a crypt and a cemetery for good measure. Evening meal and overnight at Hotel Castle Dracula. A drink in the moon tower bar may calm the nerves.
Your train will deliver you at the wayside halt of Vama, deep in the Bucovina region in the early hours of the morning, long before the sun has risen. Breakfast at a local guesthouse. This is a day for contemplation as you tour some of the famous Painted Monasteries with their external frescoes depicting bible stories such as the famous scene of the Last Judgment at Voronet. Lunch and a demonstration of traditional egg painting before boarding the rickety old workers train . Despite its sedate speed it will take you safely over the passes of the Carpathians and deposit you deep in a remote forest in northern Transylvania. Hopefully, the villagers will have sent their horses and carts because the train stops only for a second or two, and once it has gone there is only the forest and perhaps the distant howling of wolves for company. You will follow a forest track to a nearby mountain village where you will enjoy an evening meal, drinks and music with the locals. This will bbe a celebration of Sanziene - the time when it is believed
that the gate of heaven remain open and fairies flit through the forest. Unmarried girls practivce superstitions to determine their future partner and dream of their future on midsummers night. As darkness draws in the villagers may try to dissuade you from venturing further but try not to lose any sleep. A century earlier the unsuspecting solicitor, Jonathan Harker was also warned against travelling up the 'Borgo' Pass to Castle Dracula. "Do you not know that tonight, when the clock strikes midnight, all the evil things in the world will have full sway? Do you know where you are going, and what you are going to?" the landlord's wife begged of him. As a precaution garlic should be hung over your bed. This would also be an appropriate time to wear the little crucifix you may have bought at one of the monasteries!.
DAY 3 - 20 JUNE 2008
Dont dally too long over breakfast, as the journey up to the Borgo Pass through the forests and over the plateau is lengthy and the hours of daylight are short. Note the red tassels worn by the horse pulling your cart to ward off the evil eye, for this is a land of myths, superstitions and the omnipresent feeling of danger. A picnic lunch will be taken in the forest, perhaps in the safety of a woodcutters hut if we can find one. The Counts Castle, Hotel Castle Dracula, appears as you cross the summit, standing out on the hillside guarding over the password. It has a crypt and a cemetery for good measure. Evening meal and overnight at Hotel Castle Dracula. A drink in the moon tower bar may calm the nerves.
The survivors will descend the Borgo Pass to Bistrita. Jonathan Harker stopped here at the 'Golden Krone' Hotel where he dined on 'Robber Steak' and supped 'Golden Mediasch'. You will also dine here before your journey over the Transylvanian Highlands. Notice the abundance of roadside crosses. We continue to the Hungarian-speaking stronghold of Târgu Mures, the place where the last witches were burned in Europe in 1784. Celebration Midsummer Meal and night on the town! Overnight in the 3-star Hotel Continental.
DAY 5 - 22 JUNE 2008
We now enter Saxon Transylvania, where we visit one of the most impressive at Biertan - listed as a World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. Learn about the culture and history of the Saxon Transylvanians with their churches and villages fortified against Tatar Marauders then, after lunch in the village, continue to the romantic, mediaeval walled-town of Sighisoara (Schässburg). Explore the cobbled alleyways, pretty squares and ramparts of this fascinating citadel. Overnight in one of the historic citadel hotels - Hotel Sighisoara, Casa Wagner or similar and dine in the house where Vlad the Impaler (Dracula) was allegedly born in 1431.
We head south into the high Carpathians via the city of Brasov to visit the famous Bran Castle - the tourists' Dracula Castle - it certainly looks the archetypal Transylvanian spooky castle but any Dracula connections are very tentative. After lunch in Bran, we head over the beautiful Rucar Pass, where Vlad the Impaler once hid from the armies of both the Sultan and the King of Hungary. This road takes us through a dramatic landscape to Poienati where we climb the steps (strong shoes and endurance required) up to the genuine 'Castle Dracula' - Vlad the Impaler's ruined stronghold perched high on a crag overlooking the Arges Gorge far below. His wife threw herself to her death onto the rocks of the roaring torrent below to avoid capture by the Turks. Overnight in Vlad's beautiful old capital of Curtea de Arges where a visit to the exotic Bishopric church is essential.
DAY 7 - 24 JUNE 2008
Our final full day takes us over the Baragan Plain, the battlefield of the Ottoman and Crusader Armies which leads towards the Danube, as far as Bucharest. We will see the palace of Romanias most recent Dracula the Dictator Nicolae Ceausescu. City tour, dinner and overnight at Hotel Opera or Ibis Parlament.
DAY 8 - 25 JUNE 2008
Free time after breakfast for shopping or sightseeing. Transfer to airport for your return flight.
OPTIONAL:
Additional nights can be added in Bucharest, or your holiday may be extended to include other regions.
Please note that Halloween tours are popular and early booking is recommended to secure a place.
Hotel Castle Dracula - inside the crypt
- Return Scheduled Flights from United Kingdom to Romania (see above)
- Airport Taxes and Passenger Facility Charges
- Travel throughout by air-conditioned minibus or coach
- Accommodation in comfortable 3 star hotels
- Full-board (as per itinerary)
- Sightseeing tours and special events as outlined above including the 'Jonathan Harker Trail' horse & cart ride
- Enrance Fees
- Professional English-speaking
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All applicable entrance fees
All prices are valid until further notice and are subject to tour and flight availability
Prices are based on scheduled departures from London Heathrow to Bucharest; Regional departures and alternative airlines may be available on request
Flight tickets are issued on receipt of your deposit to secure your price. They are Fixed dated and non-refundable.
Travel Insurance is highly recommended
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Midsummer Tour
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| >Ultimate Dracula - 8 days / 7 nights - includes flights |
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974.00 - 1044.00
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99.00
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Adult Prices are per person sharing a double room in £ Sterling (GBP) and subject to availability
Prices shown are based on good scheduled flight availability - lower prices indirect connections; higher range for direct British Airways flights from Heathrow.
Regional departures or flights booked closer to departure may be subject to additional supplements (typically £25.00-50.00 per person).
Flight tickets are issued on receipt of your deposit to secure your price. They are fixed dated and non-refundable. Travel Insurance is highly recommended.
Discount of £ 35.00 per person if group size exceeds 11 people
Please note that this is a very popular tour and early booking is recommended to secure a place on the tour.
is a Division of BCD Meetings & Incentives
1 Atkinson Court, Fell Foot, Newby Bridge, Cumbria, United Kingdom LA12 8NW
Tel. +44 (0)1539 531258 or UK local rate: 0845 3000 247; Email. [email protected]
ATOL 3319 - IATA 91267691
The air holidays and flights shown are ATOL protected by the Civil Aviation Authority. Our ATOL nrmber is ATOL 3319.
ATOL protection extends primarily to customers who book and pay in the United Kingdom.
Click on the ATOL logo if you want to know more.
Copyright © 2008 Transylvania Uncovered - the Romania Travel Specialists