Bulgaria Tours & Trips

What our customers ask about Bulgaria Tours & Trips

• What kind of local cultural experiences can you join in Bulgaria and where do you find them?

  You can really get into Bulgaria's living traditions - there's these amazing fire-dancing rituals called nestinari that happen in villages near the Strandza Mountains usually between May and October during religious festivals they're actually UNESCO-recognized. If you're into food you can cook with Maria Jekova who won Masterchef she runs these great sessions in her mountain place in the Rhodopes where you'll go foraging and make traditional stuff like kapama and banitsa. Over in Veliko Tarnovo there's this historic street called Samovodska Charshia where you can try your hand at centuries-old crafts like wood-carving with rose wood patterns or making pottery using these really old Thracian clay techniques. And if you're around in August head to Gela village it's meant to be where Orpheus was born they have this huge National Bagpipe Festival with over 10000 musicians it's pretty incredible.

• How can you access Bulgaria's natural areas outside the cities?

  The protected areas in Bulgaria are really well connected you've got Pirin National Park which is UNESCO-protected you can take a cable car up from Bansko and explore 182 glacial lakes and peaks over 2900m. The Seven Rila Lakes are amazing you can get there by chairlift from Panichishte Resort and follow trails past these uniquely shaped lakes they've got names like The Kidney and The Eye. Then there's the Rhodope Mountains you access them through towns like Trigrad and Yagodina they've got Bulgaria's deepest caves and Europe's longest canyon system. Near the Black Sea there's Strandza Nature Park with trails through this massive Mediterranean forest it's actually Europe's largest preserved one. Most places have local guides who really know their stuff they can show you rare things like Edelweiss flowers and Balkan Chamois.

• What are some less-touristy routes around Bulgaria and why do people love them?

  There's these really cool alternative ways to explore Bulgaria like this narrow-gauge train they call the Alpine railway of the Balkans it goes from Bansko to Septemvri and climbs up to Bulgaria's highest station at Avramovo 1267m you go through 35 tunnels with these incredible mountain views. You can follow the old Via Diagonalis Roman road through the Rose Valley it connects amazing historical places like Plovdiv's Roman theater and these Thracian tombs in Kazanlak. There's also this Wine Route through the Melnik region where Churchill's favorite wine comes from you get to see these unique sandstone pyramids and traditional wine cellars. People really go for these routes because you get this perfect mix of history scenic beauty and real local experiences without all the crowds.

• Which places in Bulgaria are still pretty quiet but really worth visiting?

  There are some real hidden treasures in Bulgaria like Melnik it's actually Bulgaria's smallest town with just 385 people but it's got this amazing 18th-century wine cellar at Kordopulov House and these incredible sandstone formations. Shiroka Luka village is really special it's where traditional Rhodopean architecture meets the National School of Folk Arts they produce Bulgaria's best bagpipe players here. You should check out Dobarsko village too there's this 17th-century church with these fascinating "cosmic" frescoes that make Christ look like he's in a rocket ship. The Devil's Throat Cave in Trigrad Gorge has Europe's highest underground waterfall at 42m and the mountain villages nearby offer these great homestays where you can watch traditional weaving and go herb collecting.

• What local foods should you try in Bulgaria and where's the best place to find them?

  Bulgaria's got some amazing regional dishes you've got to try Bansko's kapama which is this slow-cooked layered meat dish and chomlek a clay-pot stew you'll find these in traditional mehanas with all these Revival Period decorations. Up in the Rhodope Mountains around Shiroka Luka try patatnik it's like a potato and herb pie and cheverme which is spit-roasted lamb local families often make these. In Kazanlak you can taste all these Bulgarian rose products they make rose jam liqueur and honey right there in the Valley of Roses. Plovdiv's got these restaurants built on actual Roman ruins where they serve Thracian-style clay pot dishes. And don't miss the Kurdish-influenced food in the Eastern Rhodopes especially the sarmi with Melnik's famous red wines served in these historic cellars.