Bánffy Castle is located in Bontida village from Cluj county at 30 km North-East of Cluj-Napoca city.
Everyday: 09.00 AM – 07.00 PM
* opening hours may vary, they are just for guidance
Adults, Seniors, Students - 2 RON
For groups, the guide is on request.
* visiting taxes may vary, they are just for guidance
Considered the Versailles of Transylvania, Bontida Bánffy Castle is the biggest castle from this region.
It has the name of the most important noble family from Ardeal, Bánffy, who was its owner untill 1944. First, here was a fortress which King Sigismund of Luxemburg offered to Bánffy family in 1387. The construction of the castle, in Renaissance style, began in 1437 and ended in 1543. In XVII century, one of the family descendants fortified the castle adding Austrian Baroque elements such as: new buildings (the manege, the stable, the shed, the staff house), new U-shape of the castle by building two wings, the leisure park with walkways, one lake, statues and fountains inspired by Versailles gardens.
In 1820, Iosif Bánffy demolished gate tower and built a water mill stone. He also transformed the park into an english one, in romantic style. During his administration, one wing of the castle was the host of the equine school.
During the second World War, the German soldiers evacuated the castle and transformed it into a military hospital. After the retreat, they robbed, burned and destroyed the whole castle. Thereby, the library, the famous picture gallery and the old furniture were lost forever.
The castle degradation has increased during the Communist Regime: the buildings were used as storages, the park as grassland and the decorative trees were cut down for firewood. Only the stone statues which suggested the ‚Metamorphosis’ by Ovid were saved by the Museum of Art from Cluj-Napoca. In 1963, here were filmed a few scenes from ‚Forest of the Hanged’ Romanian movie and the scenographers set fire to one of the buildings causing huge distructions.
In 1999, the authorities decided the restoration of castle with the help from the Ministry of Culture from Romania, the Cultural Heritage of Hungary and the Institute of Historic Building Conservation from United Kingdom. The conservation works were supervised by Prince Charles of Wales himself and were awarded by European Union with ‚Europa Nostra’ reward.
Today, inside the castle there is a cultural coffee shop but according with the long-term strategies, in the future there will be a functional hotel, a congress hall, a restaurant and some souvenir shops.
