Cantacuzino Castle in Bușteni: Romania’s Real Nevermore Academy
Cantacuzino Castle (Castelul Cantacuzino) stands in the Zamora district of Bușteni, on the Prahova Valley below the Bucegi Mountains. Designed by Grigore Cerchez in the Neo-Romanian style and finished in 1911, it is a castle you can tour inside, with a park, a small wooden church and a terrace facing the Heroes’ Cross on Caraiman Peak.
A prince nicknamed “the Nabob” built a mountain palace in 1911 with electricity, sewers and drinking water. In 2022 it became the Nevermore Academy of Netflix’s Wednesday.
The history of Cantacuzino Castle
Cantacuzino Castle was built for Prince Gheorghe Grigore Cantacuzino, whom people nicknamed “Nababul”, the Nabob. He commissioned the architect Grigore Cerchez, a leading figure of the Neo-Romanian style, to design a residence in Bușteni, in the Zamora district. The site was not empty: it had held an old hunting lodge that the prince’s family used as a halt during their pilgrimages to Brașov.
Construction lasted five years and furnishing another year and a half. When the castle was inaugurated in 1911 it impressed visitors not only with its style but also with comforts that were modern for the time: electricity, a sewerage system and drinking water. The complex is of the pavilion type, a quadrilateral open on its southern side, made up of four buildings: a central pavilion, a service pavilion, an administrative villa and a chapel. The outside is carved stone, the inside brick, the foundation concrete and the roof tile.
Until 1930 the castle served as the summer residence of the family. In 1923 a text was carved above the entrance to the inner courtyard, in which the prince, with his wife Ecaterina, states that he built the castle in memory of his ancestors and as a shelter for his descendants. In 1928 the first-floor loggia was the setting for a famous photograph of Queen Maria, Princess Ileana and Patriarch Miron Cristea with the newlyweds George Cantacuzino, the Nabob’s grandson and a notable archaeologist, and Zoe Grecianu. In 1935–1936 a small wooden church dedicated to Saint George the Conqueror was added to the grounds, and it was consecrated on 13 September 1936.
The castle remained with the Cantacuzino family until nationalisation in 1948, when it became a sanatorium of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. During that period the interior walls were painted over evenly. After the fall of communism the building was returned to the family’s heir, and a restoration began that aimed to uncover the original paintings.
Today the castle is privately owned and has been open to visitors since 2010, receiving tens of thousands of people a year. An art gallery has used the upper floor since 2015, an adventure park for children opened in the courtyard in 2016, and in 2022 the castle served as a filming location for the Netflix series Wednesday.
Curiosities about Cantacuzino Castle
- The castle is sometimes called “Zamora” Castle after its district, but a local story says the name comes from a hound of the Cantacuzino family, which the hunters urged on with the cry “Za’ Mura!”.
- The oak staircase was designed to rest only on the walls, with no central support. The main hall also has Italian glazed pottery, and the stairs elsewhere are Carrara marble.
- A gallery of murals painted on Cordoba leather is described as unique in Romania. It shows twelve life-size portraits of the main members of the Wallachian branch of the Cantacuzino family.
- The ballroom holds a collection of heraldry with 27 coats of arms of noble families related to the Cantacuzinos.
- In 1911, electricity, sewerage and drinking water were rare luxuries in a mountain residence, yet the castle had all three.
- The wooden church in the park stands where, according to the sources, an older church once stood, brought from Maramureș by the prince’s ancestors in the 18th century.
Cantacuzino Castle in Wednesday
Cantacuzino Castle is a verified filming location. It was used as the setting for the Nevermore Academy, the fictional school at the centre of the Netflix series Wednesday.
- Wednesday (2022) – Netflix series by Tim Burton. The castle appears as the Nevermore Academy, the school for outcasts attended by Wednesday Addams.
Tours near Cantacuzino Castle
Experiences in the area that you can book online with Viator:
Visiting Cantacuzino Castle: what to see
- The interior can be seen on guided tours. Look for the Murano glass windows, the carved oak ceilings and doors, the fireplaces of Albești limestone and the Roman-style mosaic.
- The stone terrace on the park side has a view of the Bucegi Mountains and of the Heroes’ Cross on Caraiman Peak.
- The grounds cover 3.5 hectares, with three fountains, an artificial cave, a hunting tower and the small wooden church of Saint George; the courtyard also shows sculptures.
- Since 2015 the upper floor has housed an art gallery with changing exhibitions. The courtyard also has an adventure park and two restaurants with terraces.
- Opening hours and tour arrangements change, so check the current opening hours before you go.
Opening hours, access and conditions can change. Check before you go.
Map: where Cantacuzino Castle is
Map: © OpenStreetMap contributors
Photos of Cantacuzino Castle
Questions
Where is Cantacuzino Castle?
It is in the Zamora district of Bușteni, a town in Prahova County on the Prahova Valley, below the Bucegi Mountains.
Who built Cantacuzino Castle and when?
Prince Gheorghe Grigore Cantacuzino, nicknamed the Nabob, had it built to plans by the architect Grigore Cerchez. It was completed in 1911.
Was Wednesday filmed at Cantacuzino Castle?
Yes. In 2022 the castle was a filming location for the Netflix series Wednesday, where it plays the Nevermore Academy.
Can you go inside Cantacuzino Castle?
Yes. The castle is privately owned but has been open to the public since 2010, and the interior is visited on guided tours. Check the current opening hours before you go.
Why is it also called Zamora Castle?
The name comes from the Zamora district where it stands. A story says the district’s name came from a hound belonging to the Cantacuzino family.
What else is there to see near Cantacuzino Castle?
The Heroes’ Cross on Caraiman Peak is about 4 km away and Sinaia Monastery about 7 km, so they combine easily with a visit to the castle.
Also nearby
Heroes’ Cross on Caraiman Peak
Bucegi · 39 m summit cross for the First World War dead
3.5 km away
Sinaia Monastery
Prahova · the monastery that named the town of Sinaia
6.5 km away
Râșnov Citadel
Brașov County · peasant fortress with a legendary well
20 km away
Șchei Gate
Brașov · the only city gate to survive intact
25 km away