A Glimpse of Bulgaria 3-Day Tour from Bucharest to Lovech and Veliko Tarnovo

What's Included

Meeting and pickup

Itinerary

Day 1
Bucharest, Romania - Ruse - Ivanovo Rock-Hewn Churches - Krushuna Waterfalls - Devetashka Cave - Lovech, Bulgaria
4 stops
1
Rock-hewn Churches of Ivanovo
Early morning pick-up from your accommodation in Bucharest. Head south, toward the Bulgarian border. We cross the Danube river on the Friendship Bridge, not far from the Bulgarian border town of Ruse. Ruse is the gateway to the Rusenski Lom, a twisting canyon where medieval monks turned caves near Ivanovo into a rock-cut complex of monasteries. In the 14th century a large community of monks lived here. At the peak of the monastery complex, the number of churches was about 40, while the other premises were around 300, most of which are not preserved today. Only the Tsurkvata cave has been kept as a museum and is filled with vivid New Testament frescoes. During the winter season, when one can't visit Ivanovo rock-hewn church, we visit instead the Rock Monastery of St. Dimitar Basarbovski. Built into a sheer cliff east of Basarbovo, this is the only still functioning rock monastery in Bulgaria. The iconfilled church founded in the 15th century and named after the holy man and healer Dimitar of Basarbovo, is reached by a zig-zagging stone staircase.
1 hour • Admission ticket included
2
Krushunskiye Waterfalls
Continue toward the ancient city of Lovech, one of the oldest Bulgarian settlements. Before reaching Lovech, leave the main road and you will discover that the rolling hills hide intriguing natural phenomena. First on our itinerary - Krushuna Waterfalls, the place where tiny streams make mighty and beautiful falls. During centuries, water has forced its way through the rocks creating a series of spectacular cascades. The Krushuna Waterfalls is a cascade carved by the Proynovska River into the soft travertine rock, the largest formation of this sort in Bulgaria. Emerging from a large cave called Maarata, the first of the waterfalls is also the highest. It cascades from 15m, and is also the only one with its own name, Praskaloto, or The Sprinkler. The rest of the falls remain nameless. An easy to medium difficulty walk through the gorge leads you to the falls, with viewing platforms near each one. The waterfalls are always spectacular, but visit in the spring season or after a heavy rain to witness the most dramatic effects.
2 hours • Admission ticket included
3
Devetashka Cave
Next on our itinerary is Devetashka Peshtera or Maarata. A huge, impressive cave, which is 1,5 km NW of Devetaki on the right bank of Ossam river and on the northern slope of Devetaki Plateau. The entrance has a semi-elliptic shape of 30 x 35 m. The gallery widens into a colossal chamber (25 000 m2) with height of the ceiling up to 58 m. The chamber is lit by seven holes, called “okna”, the biggest one (Kilika) being 73 x 48 m. The volume of the chamber is 800 000 m3, making it the biggest cave chamber in Bulgaria. A stream runs in the cave, forming deep pools and huge sinters.
1 hour • Admission ticket included
4
Lovech
Late in the afternoon we reach Lovech. Because its position gave it control of the Troyan Pass, to the south, the site that Lovech occupies has been inhabited since Thracian times. In the 16th century the town’s population was swelled by the arrival of thousands of OttomanTurks, who stamped their mark on Lovech’s cultural life by building mosques and Muslim schools here. Lovech’s Bulgarian minority remained in the Varosha quarter, the old town on the slopes of Hisarya hill. Short orientation tour on the way to the hotel and evening at leisure.
1 hour • Admission ticket free
Day 2
Lovech Sightseeing Tour - Veliko Tarnovo
4 stops
5
The Covered Bridge
Hot and cold breakfast at the hotel. Start your day with a walking tour of the lovely Lovech Old Town, including the covered bridge. The bridge crosses the Osam River, connecting the old (Varоsha) and new town parts of Lovech, being possibly the most famous symbol of the town. The bridge is one of the few remaining in Europe that have shops on them like the Ponte Vecchio in Florence. After the bridge that then served the town was almost completely destroyed by a flood in 1872, the local police chief ordered the famous Bulgarian master builder Kolyu Ficheto to construct a new one. Ficheto personally chose the material for the wooden bridge. Each citizen of Lovech contributed to the building process, the poorer ones working themselves and the wealthier donating money and paying other workers. Building finished in 1874.
1 hour • Admission ticket free
6
Hisarya Fortress
The Lovech Fortress lies on the two terraces of the beautiful and picturesque Hisarya Hill in the old part of Lovech. .The fortress was built in Roman times, but it is best known as the place where the Lovech Peace Treaty with the Byzantine Empire was signed in 1187. It marked the birth of the Second Bulgarian Empire. The Lovech Fortress was one of the last strongholds which were conquered by the Ottomans – this happened in 1446.
1 hour • Admission ticket included
7
Lovech's old public bath house "Deli Hammam", originally built during the 16th century, has been turned into a water museum filled with surprises. The visitors can learn a lot of interesting facts about the water from the specially created multimedia effects and programs.
45 minutes • Admission ticket included
8
Veliko Tarnovo
In the afternoon, leave Lovech for Veliko Tarnovo, the former capital of the Second Bulgarian Empire, known as "the city of the tsars". With a picturesque hillside setting, fine architecture and a wealth of historic sights, Veliko Tarnovo is one of Bulgaria’s most beautiful cities. Short orientation tour on the way to the hotel and the evening at leisure.
2 hours • Admission ticket free
Day 3
Veliko Tarnovo Sightseeing Tour - Arbanasi Village - Bucharest
5 stops
9
Tsarevets
Hot and cold breakfast at the hotel. Start your day visiting Tsarevets fortress, Veliko Tarnovo's highlight attraction. With only pedestrian access one can peacefully wander around the ancient ruins, walk along the fortress walls, with views onto the surrounding hills of Sveta Gora, Momina Krepost and the overgrown Trapezitsa, at the foot of which is the picturesque old artisan’s quarter of Assenova Mahala. The main sites of the fortress are clearly identified and the visitor can follow a gentle path around. One can see the Execution Rock at the northern end of the fortress, Baldwin’s tower, the ruins of the tsar palace and on top of the hill, where once the Patriarch’s complex stood, the restored patriarchal church of the Ascension, with its stark modern interior and the dramatic murals painted by Teofan Sokerov in 1985. The murals depict the history of Bulgaria from the Second Bulgarian Kingdom (1185) onward and on the floor is a symbolic tombstone with the names of the Bulgarian Kings. For an additional fee you can take the scenic elevator up the bell tower of the church to get a panoramic view of the surrounding area.
2 hours • Admission ticket included
10
Samovodska Charshiya Complex
The ethnographic complex "Samovodska charshia" in Veliko Tarnovo is one of the main attractions of the city and consists of restored Renaissance-style buildings with high stone walls, houses with balconies overhanging over the street and small workshops. The quarter was developed during the second half of the 19th century, when the town began to grow. The two narrow cobblestone streets become the economic centre of the city with many commercial shops. One of the streets starts from the small square, known nowadays as the Samovodski pazar (market). In the past the villagers from the surrounding villages use to gather here and to offer their agricultural products. Gradually, around the newly formed market, the local merchants started to open stores, workshops and inns.
1 hour • Admission ticket free
11
Konstantsalieva House
After lunch, we visit the village of Arbanasi, a perfect example of the Bulgarian Revival architectural style. The house-museum "Konstantsalieva kashta" was built at the end of 17th century and was reconstructed several times. It is an example of the unique Arbanasi architectural style - solid house-fortress surrounded by high stone walls. Nowadays the house is turned into an ethnographic museum where they show on display an exhibition about the lifestyle of people from Arbanassi in the 19th century.
1 hour • Admission ticket included
12
This is the earliest and the most richly decorated church in the village of Arbanasi. It was built in different stages. The oldest layer of wall-paintings is from the end of XVI century.The entire interior of the church is covered with paintings of icons, this being carried out in stages – in the years 1597, 1632, 1638, 1643, 1649, 1681. In these almost nine decades arises the unique mural assembly, which has no equal in the Bulgarian lands as coverage and thematic encyclopedia. The church consists of a naos, a narthex, a gallery and a chapel dedicated to St. John the Baptist.
1 hour • Admission ticket included
13
Bucharest
Late in the afternoon leave Arbanasi village for Bucharest.
3 hours • Admission ticket free

Additional info

• Public transportation options are available nearby
• Specialized infant seats are available
• Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
• Please, make sure you owe all the necessary documents and permissions for crossing the border between Romania and Bulgaria.
• A current, valid passport is required

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