Bulgaria
Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeastern Europe.
It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey to the south, Serbia and North Macedonia to the west, and Romania across the Danube river to the north. It covers a territory of 110,994 square kilometres (42,855 sq mi), making it the tenth largest within the European Union and the sixteenth-largest country in Europe by area. Sofia is the nation's capital and largest city; other major cities include Plovdiv, Varna, and Burgas.
Getting to Bulgaria
Bulgaria is a member of the Schengen Agreement. See Travelling around the Schengen Area for more information on how the scheme works, what countries are members and what the requirements are for your nationality.
Worth seeing
There is a wide variety of historical, natural, religious and artistic sights to see in Bulgaria. All across the country there are remains of different epochs and eras, societies and peoples, that create a beautiful mix of ethnic cultures and unique traditions and rituals. The Bulgarian Tourist Union has compiled a list of "100 National Tourist Sites of Bulgaria" to promote internal tourism.
Things to do
Eurovision Song Contest is next held on 11-15 May 2027 in Arena Burgas on the coast. Winter sports – There is a large number of winter resorts all around the Bulgarian mountains. Some of the most popular are Bansko, Pamporovo, Borovets and Chepelare. Enjoy the beach – The Bulgarian seaside is full of enchanting resorts mixing the modern hotels and wild night life with ancient sights and traditional culture.
Where to eat
Bulgarian cuisine is representative of the Balkans and Southeastern Europe. The relatively warm climate and diverse geography produce excellent growth conditions for a variety of vegetables, beans, herbs and fruits. It has some Turkish and Greek influences (such as moussaka, gyuvetch, and baklava) as well.
Getting around Bulgaria the local way
- Get inThere are many charter and last-minute flight offers, however, to Varna or Bourgas leaving from Western Europe (especially Germany and Great Britain).
- Get inCharter flights can offer very good prices to the Black Sea airports of Varna and Burgas from a large variety of European cities in the summer (such as: Thomson, Balkan Holidays Air, Condor, UTair and many others).
- Get inIn winter, charter airlines may offer good bargains to Sofia and Plovdiv.
- Get inYou need to stay there overnight for connections to and from Athens, Piraeus and the ferries to the Greek islands.
- Get inIf you want to reach Bulgaria from Western Europe by car you will have to pass through either Serbia or Romania, or you can take a ferry from Italy to Greece.
- Get inBulgaria is connected to Romania with two bridges (at Vidin and Ruse) and several ro-ro ferry crossings (Bechet–Oryahovo, Turnu Magurele–Nikopol, Zimnicea–Svishtov, Călărași–Silistra).
- Get inOn the Black Sea, the only surviving ro-ro ferry line is between Burgas and Batumi (Georgia), run by PB Management.
- Get inIn any case, ro-ro ferries are targeted at cargo transport and passenger accommodations are very basic.
From Wikivoyage: Bulgaria, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us. Last edited 2026-09.
Text adapted from Wikipedia and Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photograph: Diego Delso (see Commons), Wikimedia Commons.