Brașov is a city built against a mountain. The wooded slope of Tâmpa rises straight from the old town, topped by a giant white sign in the style of Hollywood, and a cable car takes you to the summit for the view over red tiled roofs and the Carpathian foothills. Behind the city the high peaks of the Postăvarul and Piatra Mare ranges ring the horizon, and winter snow lies on them from late autumn.
The city was founded in the thirteenth century by Saxon settlers, who called it Kronstadt, and grew rich on trade between Transylvania, Wallachia and the Ottoman lands. Their legacy is the centre, laid out around Council Square with its baroque houses and the old Council House, and the Black Church, the largest Gothic church in southeastern Europe, named for the soot that darkened its walls after a great fire in 1689. Its organ is famous, and concerts in summer are well worth hearing. Do not miss Strada Sforii, Rope Street, one of the narrowest in Europe.
Brașov is also the starting point for some of the finest riding in Romania. An hour or two to the west lies the Transfăgărășan, the high road across the Făgăraș Mountains, which is usually closed by snow from roughly late autumn to early summer, so check the opening date before you plan. Closer by, Bran Castle, often marketed as Dracula's home, stands in the pass towards Rucăr, and the fortified church at Prejmer, a UNESCO site, shows how villagers once sheltered from raiders inside their own walls.
The city is big, with heavy traffic at rush hour and plenty of fuel on the main roads. Parking near the old town is metered but manageable, and cobbled lanes call for care in the wet. Come between June and September for the best mountain weather, but expect afternoon storms.
Eat well here: grilled meat with polenta, sour soup, and papanași, fried doughnuts with jam and cream, are all local favourites.