10 things To perform in Plovdiv, Bulgaria

It only takes a few minutes inside the historical old town, or a quick stroll along the 1.7km long pedestrian street to recognize that Plovdiv is a special location all its own.

Roman ruins, a fun bar scene, excellent buying as well as super aylak (relaxed) people make this captivating town a should see for any type of traveller going to Bulgaria. We spent 5 days in Plovdiv as well as desire we had 5 weeks!

Here are 10 things to perform in Plovdiv:

1. walk around The Old Town

Plovdiv is the 6th oldest living city in the world as well as it is the second-largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia. The town was originally a Neolithic settlement of the Thracians back in 4,000 B.C as well as it has been occupied ever since, making it the oldest constantly occupied town in all of Europe.

This extremely rich history has given Plovdiv one of the most lovely old towns in Eastern Europe. huge stones cobble the streets, making for spectacular photos, bumpy cars and truck rides as well as sore ankles.

Parts of the ancient wall can still be discovered in specific areas of the town as well as there is a spectacular Roman amphitheatre that commands a cliff overlooking the Kapana neighbourhood as well as the much more contemporary part of the city.

Some locations of rate of interest aside from the ones I noted above include the Ethnographic Museum, the Eastern entrance to the city, as well as the asymmetrical home (you’ll see all of these if you join number 2 on this list).

2. join the totally free walking Tour

An outstanding method to take in many of Plovdiv’s finest sites as well as discover about the distinct history of the town is to join the totally free walking tour. You can satisfy the guide at 2:00pm in front of the Municipality building on the Pedestrian Street.

You truly can’t request a much better introduction to Plovdiv as well as the guides tend to be excellent characters themselves (we went out for beer with ours after the tour).

We suggest joining the trip on your very first day in Plovdiv, to ensure that you can get orientated in the city as well as in its location in history.

The walking trip will take you to numerous of the most essential historical sites, so I won’t listing those ones in this article.

For much more info about the walking tour, inspect out their website.

3. Take a stroll Along The Pedestrian Street

The primary pedestrian street (Knyaz Aleksander I or Aleksander Batenberg Street) runs for 1.7 km from north to south best with the center of town (not technically the “old town” however close to it). You can stroll back as well as forth along this street for hours.

There are numerous shops selling whatever from boots to bottles of red wine as well as there are likewise a few excellent cafes with tables spilling out onto the street.

Most of the buildings along Knyaz Aleksander were developed in the late 19th as well as early 20th century as well as while numerous of the very best examples of design have been converted into buying malls, they’re still lovely from the outside.

A part of the pedestrian street in Plovdiv
Quick Eats on the Ped Street:

Check out Sladoledena Kashta Afreddo on the pedestrian street for some excellent cafe style snacks & desserts. You can’t miss it since it’s the busiest location around.

Also stop in at the cafe connected to Dzhumaya (Friday) Mosque for a Turkish tea as well as snacks.

4. go on a red wine Tour

We headed out with Bulgaria red wine trips as well as we absolutely liked it. We went to two wineries on a personalized trip as well as we even got to taste some Bulgarian red wine directly from the oak barrel.

The vineyards around Plovdiv are a few of the oldest as well as many lovely in the world as well as I would state that missing out on a red wine trip right here would be missing a huge part of the culture in this part of Bulgaria.

The Thracians were the very first people to colonize these lands as well as they were crazy about their wines, with numerous of their rituals as well as traditions directly linked to the holy grape.

Make sure you try the regional Ruben as well as Mavrut wines, in addition to a blend of the two.

5. listen To online Music

There are numerous bars, bistros, nightclubs as well as cafes in Plovdiv as well as numerous of them have excellent online music playing every night. We were lucky to catch a Bulgarian band called “Party Party” playing in a small, dark tavern as well as they were fantastic.

6. get lost In “The Trap”

Kapana is a recently renovated area of Plovdiv that the locals phone call “The Trap”. They phone call it this since there are so numerous narrow alleyways aswell as hidden back streets that it’s extremely simple for visitors to get lost as well as “trapped”.

We suggest getting totally lost in this neighbourhood! It’s a lovely area as well as when you’re inside, you’ll question what took the government so long to fund the revival of this magnificent old quarter.

There are countless pubs as well as restaurants right here with tables spilling out onto the street. The vibe in the trap is buzzing all year round, however during the summer, there are celebrations as well as celebrations that shouldn’t be missed.

7. Do a customized Pub Crawl

The finest location to do your own pub crawl is in the trap, however you might likewise do it in parts of the old town as well as near the pedestrian street. You can actually stumble from one bar to the next to sample different beers from the region.

If you’re starting your pub crawl in Kapana, Don’t miss feline & mouse Bar (котка и мишка) as well as try the regional Aylak Beer in addition to a broad choice of other craft beers from Bulgaria as well as around Europe.

Also, stop by the “Stop Bar” for a quick beer as well as some tasty food. The service as well as music can be questionable, however there’s no concern that the locals like it.

8. museum Hop

There are a few museums in Plovdiv worth visiting. You’ll walk past them during the totally free walking tour, however the trip doesn’t really take you into any type of sites. mark them down on the map as well as return to them later. A few of specific rate of interest are:

Bulgarian Revival Exposition

1, Tsanko Lavrenov street (Old Town)

+359 32 623 378

Regional Ethnographic Museum

2, Dr. Stoyan Chomakov street (Old Town)

+359 32 625 654

Tsar Simeon Garden

Not truly a museum however worth a visit. The garden is found on the primary street at the Southwest side of the city.

9. sample Bulgarian Cuisine

There are a number of outstanding Bulgarian restaurants in Plovdiv where you can sample a few of the areas well-known dishes, like Zelevi Sarmi (cabbage leaves stuffed with minced meat & rice), Guvech (clay pot meal of veggies as well as meat), as well as delicious Pateshki Sŭrtsa (duck hearts).

Some of the very best restaurants for authentic Bulgarian cuisine include Rahmat Tepe on the hill in the old town just before the Nebe Tepe lookout.

Restaurant Dayana is likewise a excellent location to try Bulgarian classics as well as affordable (but tasty) regional wines.

Don’t miss Restaurant Megdana which has a lovely garden setting as well as nightly traditional Bulgarian people music as well as dance shows.

10.  Catch a Concert

If you’re lucky sufficient to be in town when there’s a concert, symphony or show playing in the Roman amphitheatre, don’t miss it!

The ancient auditorium still holds musicals as well as plays as well as obviously the acoustics as well as the view of the city lights beyond the stage produce an unforgettable experience.

We were in Plovdiv in the winter season so we didn’t have a possibility to catch a show, however after seeing the amphitheatre in all of its glory, we’d like to return to the city as well as catch a show one day. It would be just spectacular.

Give Plovdiv Time as well as Be “Aylak”

Aylak means “to be unwinded as well as do nothing at all” as well as that’s precisely exactly how Plovdivians online their lives. The expression is only utilized in Plovdiv as well as it’s a location that’s so special that when you see here, you’ll agree that it is worthy of its own word.

No words might discuss just exactly how captivating this location can be, however Aylak does a great task of summarizing the feeling you’ll have when travelling here.

Relax. soak everything in as well as autumn in like with Plovdiv. everybody who comes right here feels the exact same method as well as yet somehow, in spite of recent recognition as the 2019 funding of Culture, Plovdiv stays off the European traveler radar for the most part.

Get right here before the word is out.

Check out our quick video of Plovdiv

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