The locality is situated on a relatively low terrace on the left bank of the Olt River, cut by the old bed of the Berivoi stream. With its centuries-old citadel, it has long been the political-administrative center of the region, serving as a district residence until 1886, a county seat between 1886 and 1918, and then a county residence between 1918 and 1950, polarizing the entire economic, socio-political, and cultural life of the area. In 1968, with the new administrative-territorial reorganization, the former Făgăraș County became part of the current Brașov County, with the county seat transferred to the city of Brașov.
The Făgăraș Land has been, from ancient times, alongside the Burzenland, a refuge area against enemies, thanks to its favorable geographical position. Alternating between being part of Wallachia (the fiefs of Făgăraș and Almaș are found in the grand princely title of Mircea the Elder) and under the rule of the kings of Hungary, this ancient Romanian territory returned to the motherland with the Great Union of December 1, 1918.
The most important watercourse in the area is the Olt River, which, at the level of the Făgăraș municipality, has a flow rate of 49 cubic meters per second. The multitude of left tributaries of the Olt River almost doubles the flow of the great river on its Făgăraș course (there have been situations where floods have occurred, causing the valleys of these rivers as well as the Olt River basin to flood).