The listing had not mentioned what turned out to be the unique attribute of our holiday digs. ‘This cosy, charming two room apartment is located in a house right in the middle of Viscri,’ it simply stated. This was factually correct: it was cosy and charming, if in an extremely rustic, antique style. And it is in the middle of Viscri, the historic Transylvanian village which has developed an international profile since King Charles bought a property there in 2006. But what the Airbnb page had neglected to highlight was that we were actually staying right next door to the King – which seemed a curious detail to omit. 

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We only discovered this on the morning of our second day as we enjoyed the sun on deck chairs on our little lawn and noticed that in the adjacent, larger garden, there appeared to be groups of sightseers taking photographs. Some years ago, as a news editor on The Sun, I had accompanied a story about the introduction of holiday lettings on an estate owned by the then Prince of Wales with the headline ‘HeirBnB’ – and now this old gag came to mind to describe the status of our £66.50- a-night room.  

Charles does have a family connection with the place: his third cousin, twice removed, Princess Marie, was the last Queen of Romania. But his interest seems to be more social and historical than........

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