The Transylvanian castle famous for its connection with the 15th century medieval ruler who inspired Dracula is being offered for sale for 60 million euros (US$78 million), an attorney said.
The Habsburg family want to sell Bran Castle to the local council to ensure its future -- but a government minister has criticized the price tag as "too expensive."
"We are trying to find the best way to preserve the castle in the interest of the family and the people of Bran," the owner, Dominic Habsburg, said in a statement to reporters.
The 14th century fortress is associated with Prince Vlad "the Impaler," whose cruelty inspired novelist Bram Stoker's creation, the vampire Count Dracula.
Legend has it that Vlad spent one night there.
It was returned to Habsburg, a New York architect, on May 26, decades after it had been confiscated from Habsburg's mother, Princess Ileana, in 1948, the year the royal Habsburgs were forced to leave the country.
After their restitution, concerns were raised the family could sell the castle to a hotel chain and that the castle could end up being the centerpiece of an Dracula theme park, blighting the landscape.
But Habsburg is being forced to sell because of the cost of the castle's upkeep.
"A way of life cannot be returned and the restitution has come with financial sacrifice. ... We would like Castle Bran to remain a symbol of everything that is honorable and good in Romania," the statement said.
Lia Trandafir, an attorney for Habsburg, said the local authorities are interested in buying it.
"They'd like to see it coming back to the community and they consider it a central pillar of tourism in Brasov County," she said.
Aristotel Cancescu, head of the local city council, canceled a trip to Vienna to open discussions about a loan to buy the castle.
However, Romanian Culture Minister Adrian Iorgulescu said the planned purchase of the castle was too expensive.
"I have nothing against the castle being bought by the city council if they are stupid enough to pay this money," he said.
He added that he believed the castle was worth a quarter of Habsburg's asking price.
The fortress, perched high on a rock and surrounded by snowcapped mountains in southern Transylvania, is one of Romania's top tourist attractions.
In recent years, the castle has attracted movie makers as a backdrop for films about Dracula.
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