At the end of the summer of 2022 we spent 2 weeks in Bulgaria. (Part of our 2.5 month trip in the Baltics) Bulgaria has much more to offer then its stunning capital Sofia! We stayed in 5 different locations and got a good glimpse of this eastern European country.

We started with 3 days in the capital, SOFIA. Which is definitely a nice city with many options of entertainment including great parks, malls, museums, historic quarters, restaurants and everything a fun metropolitan city offers. Our favorites were: National Palace of Culture (and nearby park), Earth and People National Museum, Borisova Gradina park,

From Sofia we rented a car and drove south to BANSKO. On the way you can stop to see the famous Rila Monastery. (Which we didn’t do due to lack of time). Bansko is a very popular ski town but since we were there during the summer, it was not crowded and reminded us of ski towns in Colorado in the summer. A nice vibe, beautiful nature, good infrastructure but not too busy! A good day trip from Bansko is a 1.5 hour drive south to the town of Melnik (near the border with Greece). It’s famous for it’s historic houses and wines. We visited the Kordopulov house (which was a good 30min distraction) before a nice, typical meal at the main street in town (there are many options, but we ate very well HERE)

There are many wineries in the region (although we had not heard of Bulgarian wine before!), as we had the 3 kids with us we only visited one, Villa Melnik. It’s a nice winery and offers an informative tour and great facilities (we loved their cave!). Wines were also good and it’s a steal for 10bgn (5usd) for a wine tour, 3 wine tastes and a delicious cheeses & bread platter. There is also a great outdoor area for kids to run around.

Near Bansko you will also find thermal waters and perfect for a warm dip, even in the summer. We went to Regnum Banya Thermal. You pay an entrance fee and can enjoy the pools, sauna and other facilities. They also have an extensive food and drink menu. It is well maintained and worth an afternoon. Finally, if you are interested in some adventure you can head to Planinski Klub. An fun outdoorsy place to spend several hours. There are activities for everyone. My youngest wanted horseback riding and the older ones the rope circuit. There are also squad bikes and climbing walls. The owner is super friendly, speaks great English and everything was very efficient. We all had an amazing time and prices are very affordable!

From Bansko we drove for 2.5hrs to PLOVDIV. A charming historic town that pleasantly surprised us. It’s also known as the city of 7 hills and is the oldest continuously inhabited city in Europe! (And one of the oldest in the world). It has a mixture of great restaurants and shops but also a large amount of roman ruins sprinkled throughout town. It was the third largest city in the Byzantine Empire and has more then 200 archeological sites, including a well preserved Roman arena and a Roman theater (which is still active). Old town Plovdiv has picturesque winding cobbled streets, beautifully preserved ottoman-era houses, orthodox churches and Roman ruins. Plovdiv is also full of green parks and has many statues, water features and street art around town.

A day trip from Plovidiv is the Bachkovo monastery. It is stunning! We spent many hours admiring and walking around. The place is very well preserved. There are many vendors from the parking lot to the monastery selling trinkets, food, snacks, toys, etc. don’t miss the fun hikes starting at the monastery and going up the hill. You will find inspiring messages, hidden shrines and beautiful nature. (And not many people…)

From Plovidiv we drove 3hrs to VELIKO TARNOVO. On the way we took a quick break at the gorgeous Shipka Memorial Church (a quick 30 min stop to admire this historic and beautiful church and take some gorgeous pics!) and got refreshed at Mineralen Plaj-Ovoshtnik, a local hot spring and water park (it was a really hot summer day and this local water park was perfect to recharge with fun cool water slides and mineral hot spring!). We were the only tourists there!

Veliko Tarnovo is a cute, touristy small town with a beautiful fortress, Tsarevets Fortress. The town also offers many good restaurants, stores and museums. If you are in the mood for some pizza (they also offer local dishes), we highly recommend Restaurant Bianco. On a rainy afternoon we also visited the Museum of Illusions, a fun distractions and perfect for the kids and some interesting pictures! Another fun activity is mini Bulgaria park.

From Veliko we drove north east towards Ruse and we stayed at a local bed & breakfast, ran by a fun dutch couple, called The Hive. They have a nice outdoor area with a pool, a fish pond, barbeque area, volley ball and even archery. We highly recommend staying here to explore the area! From here you can visit the Rock Hewn Churches of Ivanovo (a 13th century monastery complex carved out of rock) and Rock Monastery St. Dimitar Basarabovski Basarbovo. Other day trips from here: the border town of Ruse or a day at the beach in Varna. Varna offers a dolphinarium a sea garden and a nice board walk by the Black Sea.

From there we drove back to Sofia, returned the rental car and hoped on a bus to Skopje, North Macedonia! (After a nice lunch and Hadjidraganov’s houses Restaurant, which offers delicious local dishes, friendly service and a nice atmosphere)

Bulgaria is a great country to explore! There is a lot of diversity, history, friendly people, good food and very affordable!