Exploring Transylvania: A Cultural and Natural Retreat
This forested region, a relic of another age, is a place where curious things are happening. We give the lowdown on this go-slow escape, and our fashion team visits the annual flower-gathering festival.
Count Dracula and Prince Charles are all that many travelers know of Transylvania. Beyond that, the green heart of Romania remains something of a mystery. Cut off from the rest of the country by the Carpathian Mountains and behind the Iron Curtain until its communist dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu fell in 1989, it is a self-sufficient throwback to rural living.
A place rich in Gothic architecture and 12th-century settlements, where horse-drawn carts clip-clop past farmers plowing fields by hand and lynxes and brown bears stalk the peaks. Non-profit initiatives are returning bison, nearly hunted to extinction, to these parts. Moreover, cycling through the region’s unspoiled villages offers a unique way to experience Transylvania’s untrammeled beauty.
It was from one of these historic settlements that Count Miklós Bethlen fled in 1948. Despite settling in Austria, he never severed ties with his ancestral home in Criș, continually supporting the community and restoring historic buildings. Since his death in 2001, his wife Gladys and son Nikolaus have continued this work, renovating structures around the hamlet into attractive stays.
The first, Caretaker’s House, was completed in 2020, and two more will be added soon: Saxon cottage Depner House and four-bedroom Corner Barn, with hearty local fare served in the Kitchen Barn. An old school and the family’s manor house will follow, although Nikolaus is in no rush. ‘Originally this was a place for us to reconnect with our roots. However, the project has evolved – we now own 10 buildings – to preserve this part of Transylvania for generations to come.’
Keep scrolling for pictures from our fashion shoot at the annual flower-gathering festival in medieval Transylvania.
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Tom Craig Wool corset trousers with suspenders, £1,470, Brunello Cucinelli. Vintage shirt, stylist’s own.
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Tom Craig Rose-tiered print dress with metallic-leather detail, £950; turtleneck, £225, both Coach.
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Tom Craig Silk and velvet dress, £2,370, Bottega Veneta. Skirt and headscarf, local woman’s own.
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Tom Craig Silk and cotton embroidered dress, £6,700, Fendi.
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Tom Craig Transylvanian countryside.
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Tom Craig Manufacture de Boucleries silk scarf, £245; straight cut dress, £795, both Hermès.
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Tom Craig Opposite, embroidered bomber jacket, about £10,220; embroidered skirt, about £8,440; sequin blouse, £975, all Dolce & Gabbana.
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Tom Craig Flocks of birds in Transylvania.
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Tom Craig Silk fringed dress, £1,995, Etro.
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Tom Craig Embellished apron dress, £1,895, Simone Rocha.
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Tom Craig Riders in Transylvania.
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Tom Craig Lace shirt combo sweater, $355, Sea. Vintage skirt and ribbon belt, stylist’s own. Gold-buckle ankle boots, £345, Russell and Bromley.
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Tom Craig Wool-cashmere coat with leather sleeves, £8,900; A-line dress (just seen), £2,500, both Louis Vuitton.
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Tom Craig Shredded-velvet fil-coupé jacquard coat, £8,490; black and red hybrid boots, £1,190, both Alexander McQueen.
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Tom Craig Printed crépe felt coat, £6,535, Chanel.
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Tom Craig A family gathering.
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Tom Craig Photographs, Tom Craig at CLM Agency.
Hair, Perrine Rougemont at Caren using Hair Rituel by Sisley.
Make-up, Anita Keeling at One Represents using Bobbi Brown Cosmetics.
Model, Juliet Soane at Storm Management.
Photographer’s assistant, Maya Skelton.
Fashion assistant, Ella-Louise Gaskell.
Producer, Mihai Barbu at Villa Abbatis.
