ROMANIAN DRACULA FORTRESS THE JEWEL OF TOURISM OPERATORS

USPA NEWS - Tourism operators say the myth of Dracula can sell very well in Romania since it offers a unique perspective while it is well known all over the world. If explored properly, the myth alone can bring hundreds of thousands of foreign tourists a year...

Tourism operators say the myth of Dracula can sell very well in Romania since it offers a unique perspective while it is well known all over the world. If explored properly, the myth alone can bring hundreds of thousands of foreign tourists a year. The bloodsucking vampire Count Dracula was a purely fictional character, invented by the Irish writer Bram Stoker, and made famous in films starring sharp-fanged Christopher Lee.

Count Dracula´s Transylvanian castle has been put on the market by its Romanian archduke owner, with a reported asking price of at least £47million. Hilltop fortress Bran Castle is the eastern European country´s biggest tourist attraction and attracts 560,000 visitors annually. Previous owners of the castle, which dates back to 1211, range from Saxons to Hungarians and Teutonic knights.

Beginning of this year, was announced, via the head of the national tourism agency, that Romania wanted to build a Dracula theme park in Transylvania, reviving an idea which dates back to more than a decade ago but which never came to fruition.

The most vehement about this project was Dan Matei Agathon, Tourism minister in 2000-2003. The park was slated to be located near Sighisoara, but due to problems related to the land was later moved near Bucharest. In 2006 a state inspection body buried the project after it annulled a decision of the government to turn the site into an industrial park. (Independent Balkan News Agency)

In August 24, 2003, in LA Times, Father Frolich was mentioning about Dracula : "This Dracula legend deforms real history," he said. "It's not compatible with the Christian faith in any case. You might make money exploiting Dracula, but it makes a very bad image for Romania. In America and Europe, it's Transylvania equals Dracula. That's all anyone knows. This is a country with a great history and culture."