Predeal (; hu, Predeál) is a town in
Brașov County
Brașov County () is a county (județ) of Romania, in Transylvania. Its capital city is Brașov. The county incorporates within its boundaries most of the Medieval "lands" (''țări'') Burzenland and Făgăraș.
Name
In Hungarian, it is kno ...
,
Transylvania
Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the Ap ...
,
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
. Predeal, a
mountain resort town, is the highest town in Romania. It is located in the
Prahova Valley at an elevation of over .
The town administers three villages: Pârâul Rece, Timișu de Jos and Timișu de Sus. Predeal is
twinned with
Macugnaga,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
.
Beginning in the 2000s, the area experienced a boom in construction, and now many wealthy families own mountain retreats in Predeal.
During the
2013 European Youth Olympic Winter Festival
The 2013 European Youth Olympic Winter Festival was an international multi-sport event held between 17 and 22 February 2013, in Braşov, Romania, with some of the events also held in Râșnov, Predeal and Fundata. It was the 11th edition of the E ...
, it hosted the
cross-country skiing and
snowboarding competitions.
Name
The name Predeal is derived from the
Slavic word ''
predel'', which means "border".
History
The town was severely damaged during the
Battle of Predeal Pass in World War I. Although the town itself was lost to the attacking Central Powers' forces, the battle ultimately resulted in a Romanian defensive victory.
Geography
Predeal is situated in the
Centru development region of Romania, in the Prahova Valley, in the southern part of Brașov County. Neighboring towns include
Azuga
Azuga is a small resort town in the mountains of Prahova County in the historical region of Muntenia, Romania. It is located at the foot of the Baiu Mountains and contains several ski slopes, including the longest ski run in Romania, the So ...
to the south,
Bușteni
Bușteni () is a small mountain town in the north of Prahova County, Muntenia, Romania. It is located in the Prahova Valley, at the bottom of the Bucegi Mountains, that have a maximum altitude of . Its name literally means tree-logs in Romanian. ...
to the southwest,
Râșnov
Râșnov (; german: Rosenau; hu, Barcarozsnyó; Transylvanian Saxon dialect: ''Ruusenåå''; Latin: ''Rosnovia'') is a town in Brașov County, Transylvania, Romania with a population of 15,022.
It is located at about from the city of Brașov ...
to the northwest and
Brașov
Brașov (, , ; german: Kronstadt; hu, Brassó; la, Corona; Transylvanian Saxon: ''Kruhnen'') is a city in Transylvania, Romania and the administrative centre of Brașov County.
According to the latest Romanian census (2011), Brașov has a pop ...
to the north.
The town is mountainous, with the
Piatra Mare mountains to the north, the
Bucegi mountains to the southwest and the
Postăvarul Massif
The Postăvarul massif ( Transylvanian German ''Schuler'' and ''Schulerberg'') is a massif in Romania; it is part of the Romanian Carpathians, which in turn are part of the Carpathian Mountains range. The altitude of the highest peak, also name ...
to the northwest. The
woods around Predeal have a rich and diversified
fauna
Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is ''funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as ''Biota (ecology ...
, including a high number of
wild boar
The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is ...
s,
European pine martens, bears, foxes,
gray wolves,
deer
Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the re ...
,
squirrels, rabbits,
badger
Badgers are short-legged omnivores in the family Mustelidae (which also includes the otters, wolverines, martens, minks, polecats, weasels, and ferrets). Badgers are a polyphyletic rather than a natural taxonomic grouping, being united by ...
s and
heather cocks.
Climate
Predeal has a warm-summer and cold în winter (with a lot of snow)
humid continental climate
A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...
(''Dfb'' in the
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
).
Tourism
The town of Predeal is a well-known
tourist destination
A tourist attraction is a place of interest that tourists visit, typically for its inherent or an exhibited natural or cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, offering leisure and amusement.
Types
Places of natural ...
in Romania, especially in winter.
Predeal has five major
ski runs, each with a difficulty grade. Most of them have
snowmaking guns, and some are fitted with floodlights and ski lifts. The slopes range from (Clăbucet variantă) to (Cocoșul).
Some of the town's tourist attractions include the 3 Brazi Chalet, The Susai Chalet and The Poiana Secuilor Chalet. In close proximity to Predeal are several tourist destinations, including the
Peleş Castle,
Râșnov Citadel,
Bran Castle
Bran Castle ( ro, Castelul Bran; german: Schloss Bran; hu, Törcsvári kastély) is a castle in Bran, southwest of Brașov. It is a national monument and landmark in Transylvania. The fortress is on the Transylvanian side of the historical bo ...
, The Old Town of Brașov,
Biserica Neagră and the
Seven Ladders Canyon.
The town has been certified as a climate resort by government decree (H.G. 226/1992) due to the strongly
ionized
Ionization, or Ionisation is the process by which an atom or a molecule acquires a negative or positive charge by gaining or losing electrons, often in conjunction with other chemical changes. The resulting electrically charged atom or molecule ...
air rich in
ultraviolet
Ultraviolet (UV) is a form of electromagnetic radiation with wavelength from 10 nm (with a corresponding frequency around 30 PHz) to 400 nm (750 THz), shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays. UV radiation ...
radiation and the low
atmospheric pressure
Atmospheric pressure, also known as barometric pressure (after the barometer), is the pressure within the atmosphere of Earth. The standard atmosphere (symbol: atm) is a unit of pressure defined as , which is equivalent to 1013.25 millibars, ...
. Because of this, Predeal is popular within the holistic healing community.
Infrastructure
The town is crossed by two national roads (DN73A and
DN1) and one national railway (
Line 300, one of the main lines in Romania). Predeal is one of the cities which will be crossed by the future
Bucharest – Brașov motorway.
Gallery
File:Manastirea Predeal Biserica.jpg, Predeal Monastery
File:Predeal 2009.jpg, Street in Predeal
File:RO BV Predeal train station.jpg, Predeal railway station
File:Peisaj Timisul de Jos.jpg, Timișu de Jos village
Notes
References
Strategia de dezvoltare a orașului Predeal
External links
Town mapPictures and landscapes from the Carpathian Mountains
{{Authority control
Populated places in Brașov County
Localities in Transylvania
Towns in Romania
Prahova Valley
Ski areas and resorts in Romania
Place names of Slavic origin in Romania