Snagov

Snagov is a village in Muntenia.

Understand


Snagov is a village that is part of a commune, located 40 km north of Bucharest in Ilfov County, Romania. According to the 2002 census, 99.2% of the population (population: 6,041) is ethnic Romanian and 0.4% are Roma. The commune is composed of five villages: Ciofliceni, Ghermăneşti, Snagov, Tâncăbeşti and Vlădiceasca. Located next to a large lake, Snagov was once a popular weekend destination. Snagov area is also a natural reservation, with two natural protected areas for fauna and flora, Snagov Lake and Snagov Forest.

The main attraction of Snagov is now the Snagov monastery, one of the alleged burial sites of Vlad the Impaler (famous for having inspired Bram Stoker's character Dracula), which is located on an island on the northern part of the lake. Other tourist sites include Lake Snagov, Siliştea Snagovului, Snagov forest and the Imre Nagy monument.

History
The name Snagov is of probably Bulgarian origin, from the word sneg (meaning "snow"). It might also derived from the Bulgarian snaga, meaning "human body". Archaeologists have confirmed human presence in Snagov since 400 BC. The first written record of the village, dated 1408, is found in a document from the court of Mercea cel Bătrân.

The village was built around the Snagov monastery, where it is believed that Vlad Ţepeş, or Vlad the Impaler, was killed by the Janissaries during a battle between Wallachian and Ottoman forces and then buried within the grounds surrounding the monastery. In 2002 the Romanian government decided to build in Snagov a Disneyland-style theme park, "Dracula Park", but the project's future has been uncertain as of 2005, and in 2006 the government canceled the project.

Get in
Frequent minibuses (departing from the public transport terminal at Presei Liberei square) link Bucharest with Snagov and the other localities around the lake. To get to Snagov monastery preferably use the minibuses heading to Siliştea Snagovului (a one hour trip), there's now a bridge linking this village to the monastery's island. It can also be reached by boat (rented from locals, as there aren't any ferries) from Snagov itself.

See




Do
In the Snagov area there are two natural protected areas: Snagov Lake and Snagov Forest with 4 main habitats and about 171 rare and protected species.

What you can do:


 * a trip by motor boat on the 16 km long lake while listening on audio guide (English, Romanian) a set of short stories
 * rent a bike and go on one of the 5 recommended circuits on the nearby oak forests
 * rent a kayak and do an (assisted) trip of one to tree hour's trip through the natural protected area
 * visit the Snagov Collections (located at Snagov Foundation). Here you can see the biggest collection related to Vlad Țepeș the Impaler (about 500 items)
 * visit the Vlad Țepeș island and tomb
 * watch and touch dozens of species (plants, fish, frogs, snails, crayfish, and insects) from the special built pond (located at Snagov Foundation)