Deciding to fly during the COVID period wasn’t easy for us. Fear of quarantine on the way out or back, worry about the bureaucracy and the stress that the flight could be cancelled at any moment. In the end we decided not to give up: after a year and a half without going abroad, we booked tickets. We chose Bulgaria for our holiday because its COVID situation was good, and it isn’t overrun with tourists, so we wouldn’t need to plan the itinerary in advance, and if it got cancelled, we wouldn’t be too disappointed.
We had 10 days to travel in Bulgaria. We rented a car and decided that our Bulgaria itinerary would pass through Bulgaria’s three great mountain ranges: the Rhodopes, Pirin and Rila. The trip plan was made on the go, depending on the weather.
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Car Rental in Bulgaria
We booked the car in advance and so saved ourselves the hassle of comparing prices and looking for a reliable rental agency during the trip. You can compare car rental prices on the Discover Cars website.
Note that you should bring an international driving permit to Bulgaria (you most likely won’t use it, but some car rental companies won’t give you the car without one).
Road Story: Our Bulgaria Itinerary
Our trip started in Sofia: we landed there, picked up the car at the airport and drove toward the picturesque city of Plovdiv.
Plovdiv: Bulgaria’s Second-Largest City
Plovdiv is the second-largest city in Bulgaria, after the capital Sofia, and the capital of Plovdiv Province.
You can meet Plovdiv’s history, which goes back to 4,000 BC, in the streets of the old town.
Where We Stayed in Plovdiv
We chose to stay in a small, really pleasant studio apartment in the city center. The air-conditioned apartment has one bedroom, a living room, a fully equipped kitchenette with a microwave and kettle, and one bathroom with a shower and hairdryer.
>> Click here for the accommodation.
We reached Plovdiv in the evening, so we spent the time mainly walking the streets of the old town and the new town. Finally we sat down to dinner at the HAPPY restaurant.
HAPPY Restaurant: A Bulgarian restaurant chain offering a wide range of dishes such as sushi, local food, meat and more. We’re fans of the chain and also ate at its branches inSofia andVarna.
We started the next day with a visit to the tourist information center in the city center.
We took a map of the center and started exploring the streets and alleys of the new town and the old town.
We visited the ancient Roman theater, walked through the Tsar Simeon Garden, wandered through the antique shops in the old town, and climbed in the old town to the top of Nebet Tepe, where we enjoyed the beautiful view of the city.
Plovdiv Mall
In the hot hours, we escaped the weather at the mall Plovdiv Mall.
The mall is a 10-minute drive from the city center and has organized parking.
After the mall we went back to the apartment, got ready and went out for dinner.
We drove to a neighborhood in the center called Kapana, the city’s nightlife district, full of shops, galleries, pubs and restaurants. We discovered we’d made a mistake by not booking the restaurants we wanted, because they were all full for the whole evening.
We sat down at the only restaurant in the area that had space, TAMS HOUSE.
an excellent fusion restaurant that makes you forget for a moment that you’re in Bulgaria. The food is very carefully made, and the dishes are beautiful and tasty.
Full and happy, we went back to the apartment.
The next morning it was time to leave the apartment and start heading south toward the Rhodope Mountains. Before we left Plovdiv, we stopped at the Mall Markovo Tepe, where we stocked up on snacks for the road (after all, we had 3 hours of driving ahead of us).
First Stop: Asen's Fortress
Our first stop was at the fortress about 30 minutes from Plovdiv. A small, nice fortress, with no explanations in English, and a stunning panoramic view. Asen’s Fortress is a medieval ruin on a high rocky ridge on the left bank of the Asenitsa River.
Bear in mind that there are quite a few steps.
Parking cost 1.50 BGN an hour (prices from our 2021 trip; Bulgaria switched to the euro in 2026).
Adult entry tickets: 4 BGN.
Second Stop: Bachkovo Monastery
An Eastern Orthodox monastery founded in 1083 that includes art, an ossuary and a cathedral.
The monastery wasn’t particularly impressive, but it was worth a stop because right next to the parking lot there’s a big market with lots of stalls.
Entry to the monastery is free.
From the monastery we continued on a drive of about two hours on a very, very winding road, until we reached our next destination: the city of Smolyan.
After the long drive our first stop, even before finding a place to stay, was a local restaurant Механа ,,Мечо Ухо”. I couldn’t find the restaurant’s name in English, but surprisingly they had an English menu and the waitress spoke perfect English.
The restaurant has an amazing view, rich and tasty Bulgarian cuisine and very cheap prices.
Where we stayed: While we were sitting at the restaurant we looked for a place to stay in the city, and found on Booking.com the hotel Luxor Hotel which was centrally located and had parking. The reception staff were really nice and helped us plan the next day, and the room was large, clean and bright.
We were disappointed to discover that Smolyan has no city center to walk around in the evening, so we stayed in the room updating our followers on our Stories.
The Rhodope Mountains
Smolyan is a city in southern Bulgaria, the capital of Smolyan Province, set on the central ridge of the Rhodopes. The Rhodope Mountains are a mountain range in southeastern Europe, in southern Bulgaria and northern Greece.
The range covers an area of 14,637 square kilometers and stretches about 240 kilometers from west to east and about 97 kilometers from north to south.
Because of the great heat, we decided to go for easy hiking trails in the Rhodope Mountains.
The Waterfalls Canyon
If you park on the main road, there are two kilometers of walking on a dirt road or rough track. You can save the walk on the dirt road and drive very carefully, depending on the car you have. We continued by car, parked next to a house and went on from there on foot.
An amazing walking trail along the stream and through the forest. There are several trail options.
The walk is uphill and the trail isn’t a loop (there’s an option to make it a loop, about 10 kilometers long), and it takes about two hours each way.
We stopped only at the first waterfalls for breakfast and went back to continue our drive.
The Smolyan Lakes
On the way to our next destination we saw a sign pointing to the Smolyan Lakes, a small detour from our route. We decided to go and check them out (even though I’d read that they aren’t as beautiful and blue as the lakes of Pirin or Rila).
The trail between the Smolyan Lakes is a loop and takes two to three hours, passing 3 small lakes in the forest. There’s an option to extend the trail up to two more lakes, which involves a climb of 500 meters (this part is linear).
On the way to our next stop, we made a photo stop in the picturesque village of Shiroka Laka.
The Devil's Throat Cave (Dyavolskoto Garlo)
About an hour’s drive from the village of Shiroka Laka you reach the Devil’s Throat Cave. Don’t let the scary name put you off: the visit suits the whole family (as long as they’re willing to climb about 300 steep steps at the end).
Entry to the cave is only on a guided tour, which leaves every hour on the hour, with a Bulgarian-speaking guide. At the ticket office they gave us a brochure with information about the cave in English and suggested we not wait for the group but simply go on ahead.
The cave itself is a nice short escape from the heat outside, but it isn’t particularly impressive. It’s called the Devil’s Throat because a 42-meter waterfall flows through it between rocks that reminded someone of a throat with a tongue. You reach a huge underground chamber, from which there’s a very steep climb of steps alongside the underground waterfall. Bear in mind that this cave has 300 steps and they’re really steep, with handrails on both sides.
In my opinion the most beautiful part of the visit was actually after we came out of the cave, into a steep canyon with a powerful waterfall.
Keep in mind:
- The temperature in the cave is 8 degrees Celsius.
- There are 300 steep steps on the way out.
- The path is slippery, so wear good shoes.
- To avoid disappointment: this isn’t a stalactite cave!
Prices (updated July 2021): 6 BGN per adult, 3 BGN per child.
Trigrad Gorge
The drive to the cave passes through the Trigrad Gorge, along the Trigradska River.
A canyon with huge vertical rock walls dropping dozens of meters into a stream bed with flowing water. The place is stunningly beautiful.
There are several viewpoints to stop at along the way.
After an indulgent picnic, we started heading toward our next destination, the Rila Mountains.
The Rila Mountains
We’d planned to stay at an indulgent hotel in the ski resort of Borovets, but when we got to the resort we realized its vibe wasn’t really for us: the streets were empty, the hotels closed and the restaurants touristy. So we cancelled our booking and moved to the nearby town of Samokov.
The town of Samokov is small and fairly ordinary (not a tourist town), but we found a nice hotel, great restaurants, a local market and big supermarkets.
Where we stayed: We chose to stay atHotel Sonata. The hotel is in an excellent location, close to a big supermarket and the town center. The rooms are air-conditioned, spacious and spotlessly clean, and the bathroom has an indulgent spa bath.
The hosts were very nice, maybe even too nice (is there such a thing?), and tried to help us with every request.
The only downside was the breakfast, which was really cheap (6 leva per person) but very meager, even by European breakfast standards.
We enjoyed it so much that we decided to stay there two nights.
We ate dinner at a Bulgarian restaurant in town called The Old House, good local food, authentic decor, cheap prices and a good atmosphere, though the service wasn’t particularly friendly.
The next day we set off on a hiking trail a 20-minute drive from town.
Beli Iskar Eco Trail: The Eight Bridges Trail
The trail winds along the Beli Iskar River, with eight wooden bridges built over the river. The scenery changes, with valleys with narrow gorges, interesting rock formations, old coniferous forests and the river’s crystal-clear water. The altitude along the trail stays around 1,200 meters the whole time and there are almost no climbs or descents, except for the Eagle’s Eye viewpoint, which you can skip.
The trail is about 9 km long and takes about 3 hours as a loop. It can be an excellent choice for families with kids.
If you have enough time, bring a picnic: there are shaded tables along the stream all along the trail.
After the trail we went back to town and walked around the center a bit until the heat wore us out, and we escaped to a shaded restaurant for lunch. Nicole Restaurant, in the town center on the grounds of the hotel of the same name. We were the only guests in the restaurant. The atmosphere was good, the decor pleasant and the food good, but the waitress didn’t speak a word of English. Even communicating with Google Translate didn’t help.
After a late lunch we went back to the hotel to rest.
The next day we woke up early and set off for our next destination, the town of Bansko.
On the way we planned another stop near an impressive waterfall in the Rila Mountains.
The Ovcharchenski Waterfall
At the edge of the village of Ovchartsi, a 5-minute drive west of Sapareva Banya on road 6204, there’s a lovely waterfall. You reach it from inside the village: the waterfall is at the edge of the village, where the road ends.
At the trail parking area there’s a pumping station with a few buildings and a blue gate, and next to them a cold drinks stand and benches by the stream.
The trail starts on the left, where you’ll see several signs with information about the area’s flora and fauna. The climb to the waterfall takes about ten minutes, is a little steep and partly has steps. At the top of the climb there’s a wooden bench and a viewpoint over a beautiful waterfall.
Bear in mind that the viewpoint is really small, so if others got there before you there won’t be much room.
We left the Rila Mountains and moved on to the neighboring Pirin Mountains.
Pirin Mountains
The Pirin range is the second-highest mountain range in Bulgaria, after the The Rila Mountainsrange, its neighbor to the north. Both are in the southwestern part of Bulgaria, between the Struma River and the Mesta (Mesta).
The largest town in the Pirin Mountains is Bansko. In winter it becomes the largest ski resort in Bulgaria, and in summer it’s an excellent base for hikes in the Pirin Mountains. We chose to stay two days atan indulgent hotel KATARINO SPA in the town of Razlog near Bansko.
Belizmata Dam
We reached the Bansko area relatively early, so before checking in at the hotel we decided to visit a lake near Bansko that I’d discovered a few days before the trip. The lake sits above the town of Bansko, between the mountains, with a beautiful view.
The access road to the lake is a rough dirt road. We did it in a low private car, but it’s not for the faint-hearted. By the lake there’s a restaurant with tables by the water. The saleswoman didn’t speak a word of English (and wasn’t keen to try to help us), so we settled for soft drinks and sat facing the lake.
On the way back down from the lake to Bansko, we had a small car accident.
I’ve attached the post I wrote on the blog’s Facebook page with all the details about the accident and, above all, about the amazing people we met who helped us so much.
We decided to spend the next two days resting at our indulgent hotel.
KATARINO SPA Hotel
I’ve stayed in a lot of hotels, and I’ve almost never come across service like here. The reception staff tried to help us with everything we asked. Room service was very fast and helpful.
We stayed half board, so we didn’t even need to leave the hotel.
The downsides: the hotel meals don’t have many vegetarian options, and there’s no air conditioning in the room.
Our next destination was Sofia.
Our car was a write-off, so we ordered a taxi to Sofia from the hotel, which cost us 180 leva. We shared the taxi with another Israeli family who happened to be staying at the hotel. The drive back to Sofia, without stops, took about two and a half hours.
Sofia
Where we stayed: We chose to stay at Light Hotel, a 5-minute walk from the city center. The hotel offers spacious, clean rooms, excellent service and a breakfast option (we skipped it because we preferred to eat at cafés I know from previous visits).
After checking in we hurried to the Lora lab to get a COVID test before flying home.
We took the test at 14:00, and the results were ready at 17:00. The test cost 85 leva per person.
Malls in Sofia
Prices in Bulgaria are cheaper than back home, and even at the chains you can see a difference of up to 20% in cost, so we decided to include a visit to two malls on our Sofia trip.
mall of sofia: A relatively small mall in the city center, a 10-minute walk from Vitosha Boulevard. The mall has a choice of international brand stores, phone companies (you can get a local SIM here), a large supermarket and a large electronics store on the lower floor. On the top floor there’s a big branch of the Happy chain, which we recommend.
Sofia Ring Mall: A relatively new mall at the foot of Mount Vitosha, a 20-minute drive from the city center. Unlike Sofia, which has an Eastern European atmosphere, the mall feels completely Western. Outside the mall there are cool cafés and good restaurants facing the mountain.
If you’re traveling with kids, the mall has a huge Gymboree, a play center, go-karting and a range of other activities. On the top floor there’s a new cinema with especially comfortable sofa seats.
Dinner at Shtastlivetsa
One of the best restaurants in the city, and the best I’ve ever eaten at there. The restaurant is decorated in an aristocratic style, with a wide variety of Bulgarian and Western dishes made to a high standard.
Besides the excellent food and decor, they have very special cocktails and excellent desserts.
We decided to take the last day easy.
We started the day at an indulgent café, then drove to the cinema at Sofia Ring Mall to see a movie, and gambled a little at the casino (really just a little, because smoking is still allowed in casinos in Bulgaria, unlike neighboring countries such as Romania, which banned smoking indoors a few years ago).
For our last dinner of the trip to Bulgaria we decided to go again to the Happy Barchain. There’s a huge branch at the start of Vitosha Boulevard. It was our third visit to the chain’s branches on our trip to Bulgaria.
The next day we were supposed to have a Wizz Air flight at 6:00 in the morning, but we got an email at 2:30 at night that the flight had been cancelled. Luckily, we managed to book the last two tickets on a Ryanair flight the same day.
Because our flight was delayed, we had time for one more breakfast in Bulgaria.
Café 1920
A cute café on Lions’ Square, a 2-minute walk from our hotel, offering a range of breakfasts. A great place for brunch, well designed with high windows and full of light.
I discovered this café on a previous trip to Bulgaria, and I love going back to places I’ve enjoyed.
Heading Home
Our trip to Bulgaria is over!
We took a taxi from the hotel to the airport (it cost about 25 leva).
Sofia Airport is relatively small and its prices are very expensive for Bulgaria.
Have you been on a trip to Bulgaria?
I’d love for you to share your experience in the comments.
Feel free to ask me any question.
