Best of Bulgaria - 2010..... on a Budget

8-day/7-night  budget tour for travellers with deeper interests and limited time, who are also on a budget. Along with Sofia and Plovdiv, you will visit the mediaeval capital Veliko Tarnovo and the famous Rose valley, known also as the Valley of the Thracian Kings. All your sightseeing tours will be guided by the best local guides.

Highlights: 3 UNESCO  sites visits in Sofia, Rila monastery,Kazanlak,  Plovdiv, and the Rose vally, Etara, Veliko Turnovo.         July 26-30.2010 - Entrance to 2 concerts of the International Folklore Festival in Plovdiv included.

Day 1 - SOFIA

Our guide will meet you at the airport and assist for a transfer to your hotel. Check in and time at leisure until the evening, when you will enjoy a dinner at a local tavern with folklore music and traditional Bulgarian cuisine. Accommodation at a 3* modern, downtown hotel.

Day 2 - SOFIA

After breakfast, sightseeing of Sofia, a city with 7000-year long history. Your Sofia highlights include the National History Museum, displaying the gold and silver Thracian treasures, and the Boyana Church, listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage site, one of Bulgaria's most significant historical treasures dating back to the 13th century. Other points of interest during the tour will be the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, the Rotunda of St George, the St Nicholas Russian Church and the Banya Bashi Mosque.

Day 3 - SOFIA – Rila monastery – SOFIA

After breakfast, take a full day private guided tour to Rila Monastery. Tour the largest monastery in the Balkans. With its unrivalled architecture and murals, you’ll understand why this marvel is included in the List of World Cultural Heritage. Following lunch in a local restaurant, the tour proceeds to the village of Stob. Enjoy a short uphill walk and see the Stob's Pyramids natural phenomena. Drive back to Sofia, where tour ends.

Day 4 - SOFIA - PLOVDIV

Following an early breakfast, drive to Plovdiv. Start your afternoon sightseeing guided tour of Plovdiv, not only Bulgaria’s second largest city, but also one of the oldest in Europe. Your mainly walking tour takes you through the Old City, with stops at the Ethnographic museum and the Roman theatre. Dinner and overnight at hotel in Plovdiv.

Day 5 - PLOVDIV-Rose Valley/Kazanlak–Shipka Pass–VELIKO TARNOVO

Following breakfast, enjoy a breathtaking drive through the Valley of Roses and Shipka Pass en route to Veliko Tarnovo. Stop over in Kazanlak and meet your local guide for a visit  of the Thracian beehive tomb, a unique monument of the Thracian Culture, included in UNESCO's List of World Heritage. The Thracians had an extremely original culture and created an amazing civilizations. Local history museum is also included in your tour. This small museum displays  one of the most precious gold artifacts, unearthed in 2004 by Prof. Kitov and his team.  Proceed to Etura. The 18th – 19th century crafts and lifestyle will come to life in front of you as you visit the famous open air ethnographic museum. Next stop is Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria’s mediaeval  capital city. Picturesquely situated on the three hills circled by the Yantra River, Veliko Tarnovo still preserves the typical 19th century architecture with its houses perched one above the other along the sloping hills!  Dinner and overnight at hotel in V.Tarnovo.

Day 6 - VELIKO TARNOVO – Arbanassi – VELIKO TARNOVO

Morning guided sightseeing tour of Veliko Tarnovo (partly on foot), including stops at the historical Tsarevets Hill with the remains of the Royal Palace, the Patriarchate and the fortress gates. Stroll through the Samovodska Market Place, where you’ll be taken in as pastry cooks, master goldsmiths, potters, and carvers still pursue their crafts as they did in centuries past.

Proceed with a visit to the neighbouring museum village of Arbanassi. Apart from a spectacular view over the city of Veliko Tarnovo, there are two musts here: the 15th century Church of the Nativity, repained in the late 17th century and the fortress-like house of Konstantsaliev’s, exellent example of the 18th century architecture at it’s height. Overnight in Veliko Tarnovo.

Day 7 - VELIKO TARNOVO – Lovech - Pleven - SOFIA

Following breakfast, drive to Lovech and Pleven. Walk in the old part of the city of Lovech and see the famous “Covered Bridge”designed and built by the self-taught master-builder Kolyo Ficheto. Pleven became very famous during the War of Liberation (1877-1878), when for over 5 months the Russian and Romanian troops were engaged in epic battles against the besieged forces of Osman Pasha. The fall of Pleven decided the outcome of the war, and the liberation of Bulgaria followed soon after that. Visit the Pleven’s Panorama Museum, representing the most dramatic moments of the battles during the Russo-Turkish war. Proceed to Sofia for overnight.
Accommodation at a 3-* hotel in Sofia.

Day 8 - SOFIA - departure

After breakfast, enjoy a last minute shopping opportunity in Sofia. Transfer to the airport to catch your connecting flight.

2010 TOUR PRICE IN EUR:

595 EUR per person for a party of four people.

790 EUR per person for a group of two to three people. Price based on double occupancy.Single supplement is 100 EUR.

RATES INCLUDE:

• 4 overnights at a 3-star hotel in Sofia,
• 1 overnight at a 3-star hotel in Plovdiv,
• 2 overnight at a 3-star hotel in V.Tarnovo,
• 11 meals: 7 breakfasts, 1 lunch/trout menu, 3 dinners, incl. 1 dinner with folklore show and wine
• transfers upon arrival and departure
• transportation by a/c car/van, according to above  programme
• all driver's and guides expenses,
• entrance fees according to above programme
• a map of Bulgaria.

RATES DO NOT INCLUDE:

air fare, - airport tax,- additional meals, - tips for guide, driver, hotel and restaurant staff,- items not specially mentioned above and/or in the itinerary,insurance, porterage.