The “Brancoveanu” Monastery – is famous for being a place of recovery, comfort and spiritual balm for visitors who halt or pray in this sacred dwelling. The Brâncoveanu Monastery was build in the 17th century, when Preda Brâncoveanu erected on Sambata Valley the first church built in wood. On its place, around the year 1696, Constantin Brâncoveanu, the ruler of Wallachia (1688 – 1714), re-built a monastery in stone, in  order to strengthen and save the Romanian Orthodoxy from the danger of Catholicism, which appeared when Transylvania was ruled by the Habsburgs (1683). In 1785 the monastery was partially demolished by the order of general Bukow from Vienna All the cells were completely destroyed, the church became a ruin and the monks were driven away. The honor of becoming the second founder of the Brâncoveanu Monastery was given to Metropolitan Nicolae Balan, who started the restoration work in the 1926. Its consecration took place in 1946 , after the war (that is why the precincts were not rebuilt).
The architectural style fits entirely in the Brâncoveanu style, which emerged in Wallachia at the end of the 17th century and the beginning of the 18th century. Stones decorate the windows and the door frames and I took real interest in observing the front entrance door, the sculptured pillars and the stone panels of the church which add a special beauty to the monastery.

Balea Lake is a glacier lake situated at 2,034 m of altitude in the Fagaras Mountains and it’s also known as the most spectacular in Romania. This bit of the Carpathian Mountains is famous in all Europe for the wild scenery, it’s fauna and the amazing Transfagarasan road. A certain promise that you’ll not be disappointed in the lucky decision of choosing such an adventure. The Fagaras Mountains are world famous for the option to practice the virgin skiing where access is possible only with the helicopter.

Similar trips: Fagaras & Sambata de sus • Balea Lake (Transfagarasan), Horse Stable, Sambata Monastery & Fagaras Fortress