The very mention of Transylvania conjures up pictures of just one thing all over the world … the legend of Count Dracula. However, the region is starting to become famous for a different type of tourism unconnected to vampires, garlic, and wooden stakes.

Transylvania is developing a reputation for ‘slow tourism’ with hiking, horse riding, and other bucolic pursuits all growing in popularity. Much of the area’s charm comes from how incredibly unspoilt the landscape is. It has been described as “the last truly medieval landscape in Europe” and hikers can quiet easily encounter brown bears, wolves, lynx, and other wildlife while roaming.

One Krishan George left behind a busy life as an economist and consultant after falling in love with Transylvania on a horse riding trip.“I was riding around and saw this place in the valley and basically said what is it,” he explained.“[The guide] said it was an old state farm and that it was up for auction. He asked: ‘Do you want me to put in a bid?’ I didn’t think about it for three months – and then I found out I had won the bid. “[So then, it was] what do I do with this? By the time I’d got here, everything was stolen – the rooves, walls, electrical wiring, everything had gone.”