BULGARIA
Bulgaria's best days out.
The 10 best tours in Bulgaria. What each one involves, who runs it, and what you will pay.
Day trip from Sofia to Rila Monastery and Boyana Church, with guided history, UNESCO frescoes, and time for lunch and photos.
“City Tours was very organized and communicative. Departure location was easy to find. The tour was informative and entertaining. Tuni was a fabulous guide, with flawless English and Spanish. He really made the tour come to life. Great value for 20€.”
UNESCO Rila Monastery and Boyana Church in one day from Sofia, with an English guide, air-conditioned transport, and flexible free time.
“Svet was an awesome tour guide, made everything super engaging. Very knowledgeable about all things Bulgaria and a lot of historical references.”
Communist Walking Tour of Sofia: a 3-hour English walk past Soviet-era monuments, NDK, and a Berlin Wall piece, guided for $21.77.
“We had an incredible experience on the tour with Nikola today. He is extremely knowledgeable, and made the tour so engaging even in -6 degree weather. We learned so much about the history of communism in Bulgaria — this tour is a must when visiting Sofia!”
Walk Sofia’s top sights in 2 hours, from Alexander Nevsky Cathedral to Serdica ruins, with free entries and mineral water tasting for $19.35.
“This tour was a fantastic way to discover Sofia’s most important landmarks. What made it really special was our guide, Nikola — knowledgeable, friendly, and someone who made me feel completely at ease from the start. He shared fascinating insights into Bulgaria’s history and took the time to answer all my questions thoroughly. It felt…”
Small-group day trip from Sofia to Skopje with pickup, two English guides, Old Bazaar, Stone Bridge, Mother Teresa, free lunch time.
“This was honestly a great way to spend a full day while in Sofia, assuming you have the time in your schedule. The drive is long, but not brutal—mostly traffic-free and pretty smooth overall. Transportation was seamless and on time both ways, which made the day feel easy and well-organized.”
Sofia pub crawl to locals’ bars with free rakia, beer or wine, weekend club entry, and a 4–5 hour guided route.
“Kudos to Damien! You did a good job. Even though we are more than 20 in the group, you made our night worth remembering! Cheers!!”
Plovdiv day trip from Sofia with a small group, guided Old Town walk, optional Roman sights, and real free time to wander.
“We were crammed in to a small minibus bus and on return was so hit the whole 3 hour journey was uncomfortable. When we arrived in Plovdiv the tour guide was extremely rude and unhelpful in determining the pick up area. She refused to point out where to meet on a map on my phone…”
Sofia day trip to Devetaki Cave, Krushuna Waterfalls, and Lovech’s covered bridge and medieval fortress, with hotel pickup.
“An amazing and knowledgeable tour guide and great overall tour. Got to see a lot, cave, fortress, and waterfalls, were all worth the journey, as well as experiencing local culture and food at lunch. I highly recommend.”
Day trip from Sofia to Rila Monastery and the Seven Rila Lakes, with scenic mountain roads, chairlift hiking, and weather backups.
“guide that doesn't say anything about the trip,”
Small-group day trip from Sofia to Plovdiv’s Roman sites, Asen’s Fortress views, and Bachkovo Monastery, with hotel pickup and a pro guide.
“Great tour to get out of Sofia and explore a bit more of Bulgaria. I had a lovely day, although the tour did go a bit longer than expected. This was no issue for me but might be good to know if you wanted to make evening plans afterwards.”
