8 days · 7 nights
All seven of Bulgaria's cultural UNESCO sites in one loop from the Black Sea, with your own guide and vehicle.
Choose your dates when you enquire
Ask about datesA loop of Bulgaria from Varna on the Black Sea for a group of ten or more travelling together, with a private guide and vehicle from day 2 to day 7. You see all seven of the country's cultural UNESCO sites, from the old town of Nessebar and Rila Monastery to the Thracian tombs and the Madara Rider, with nights in Plovdiv, Sofia, Veliko Tarnovo and Rousse along the way.
The same person from your first question to the flight home, with a wedding or vow renewal planned alongside if you like.
How the days unfold. Your advisor tailors the pace, the hotels and the extras to you.
Varna
Day 1 · Varna
A private transfer brings you from Varna airport to your hotel, where you meet the guide who travels with you. The rest of the day is free for the pedestrian centre, the promenade and the Sea Garden, or the beach. Dinner is at the hotel.
Nessebar and Plovdiv
Day 2 · Nessebar and Plovdiv
Drive south along the coast to the old town of Nessebar, with its cobbled lanes, wooden houses and medieval churches, and visit the Church of St Stephen and its wall paintings. Continue inland to Plovdiv to walk the old town, see the Roman theatre and step inside the merchant's Hindliyan House. Dinner is in a local restaurant with Bulgarian dishes.
Panagyurishte and Sofia
Day 3 · Panagyurishte and Sofia
Stop in the small Renaissance town of Panagyurishte, where the history museum holds a replica of the town's famous gold treasure. In the afternoon, a walking tour of central Sofia takes in the Parliament, the Russian Church, the Rotunda of St George and Alexander Nevsky Cathedral.
Sofia and Rila Monastery
Day 4 · Sofia and Rila Monastery
Begin at the National History Museum, then see the fine medieval wall paintings of Boyana Church. Drive into the mountains to Rila Monastery, with its painted arcades and the legends tied to Bulgarian history. Back in Sofia, dinner is in a Bulgarian restaurant, followed by an evening drive past the city lights.
Kazanlak, Shipka and Veliko Tarnovo
Day 5 · Kazanlak, Shipka and Veliko Tarnovo
In the Rose Valley, learn how Bulgarian rose oil is made at the Rose Museum in Kazanlak, then see the replica of the Thracian tomb and its Hellenistic paintings. Cross the Balkan Mountains by the Shipka Pass, stopping at the golden-domed memorial church in Shipka, and carry on to the old capital of Veliko Tarnovo. Dinner is in the nearby village of Arbanassi.
Veliko Tarnovo, Arbanassi and Rousse
Day 6 · Veliko Tarnovo, Arbanassi and Rousse
Take in the views from Tsarevets Hill, walk down Samovodska Charshia to the craft workshops, and have some free time above the river. In Arbanassi, visit the painted Nativity Church and a wealthy merchant's house, then the rock-hewn churches of Ivanovo and their frescoes. Finish with an evening walk through the Baroque centre of Rousse.
Sveshtari, Madara and Varna
Day 7 · Sveshtari, Madara and Varna
Visit the Thracian tomb of Sveshtari, known for its carved half-human, half-plant figures. In the village of Kyulevcha a local host welcomes you with bread and salt and a taste of home cooking. Then see the Madara Rider, an 8th-century relief carved into the cliff, before a farewell dinner in Varna.
Varna
Day 8 · Varna
Breakfast, then a private transfer to the airport for your flight home.
The hotels for each stop. Your advisor confirms them, or something just as good, for your dates.
Varna · 2 nights
Your first and last nights. Or similar
Plovdiv · 1 night
Or similar
Sofia · 2 nights
Or similar
Veliko Tarnovo · 1 night
Or similar
Rousse · 1 night
Or similar
Tell us when you would like to travel. Your advisor confirms dates and hotels, tailors the trip to the two of you, and stays with you until you are home.
Bulgaria
5 days · 4 nights
Sofia → Plovdiv → Bansko → Sofia
A short loop from Sofia for a group of ten or more travelling together, built around Bulgaria's food and its very old wine tradition. Taste wine at a Thracian temple, in the vineyards near Plovdiv and at a modern cellar near Rila Monastery, cook dinner in a Pirin mountain village, and finish with a folklore night back in Sofia.
Bulgaria
8 days · 7 nights
Sofia → Veliko Tarnovo → Varna → Plovdiv → Sofia
A round trip from Sofia for your own group of ten or more. You travel north to the old capital of Veliko Tarnovo, east to Varna and Nessebar on the Black Sea, then back across the country to Plovdiv and the Rose Valley before two nights in Sofia with a day at Rila Monastery.
Bulgaria
8 days · 7 nights
Varna or Burgas → Plovdiv → Sofia → Veliko Tarnovo → Varna or Burgas
Collect your car at Varna or Burgas and drive a loop of the country: south along the coast to Nessebar, through the Rose Valley to Plovdiv, on to Sofia, then over the Balkan Mountains to Veliko Tarnovo before a last night by the sea. Hotels, the car and a suggested route are arranged; the stops along the way are yours to choose.
A loop of Bulgaria from Varna on the Black Sea for a group of ten or more travelling together, with a private guide and vehicle from day 2 to day 7. You see all seven of the country's cultural UNESCO sites, from the old town of Nessebar and Rila Monastery to the Thracian tombs and the Madara Rider, with nights in Plovdiv, Sofia, Veliko Tarnovo and Rousse along the way.
Every trip can be shaped around you before you book.
Arrive early or stay on at the end, in the same hotel or somewhere new.
Your travel expert books flights that fit the first and last day.
Choose a better room or a hotel with a view for the nights that count.
A honeymoon, an anniversary or a birthday, planned into the trip.
Other ways to see Bulgaria, closest in length first.
Private tour | 8 days | Varna or Burgas · Plovdiv · Veliko Tarnovo
Self-drive | 8 days | Varna or Burgas · Plovdiv · Veliko Tarnovo
Private tour | 8 days | Sofia · Veliko Tarnovo · Plovdiv
Private tour | 5 days | Sofia · Plovdiv · Bansko
