I was so surprised by Plovdiv. The second largest city in the country, it’s the cultural capital of Bulgaria, and was the European Capital of Culture in 2019. It’s also one of the oldest cities in the world, with the area being inhabited for over eight thousand years and seeing multiple civilizations and empires rise and fall. So my expectations were fairly high.
And wow, did Plovdiv meet them.
The hostel I stayed in was located in the Old Town neighbourhood of Plovdiv, and walking through those cobbled streets, I saw a couple of ruined Roman columns in a pretty garden, gorgeous old architecture, quaint window boxes and creaking doors. I instantly knew I was going to love this city. And as I continued to explore the different neighbourhoods, that feeling only grew.
I haven’t met many people (or any, really) who have travelled to Bulgaria. In fact, I almost overlooked it myself, except I wanted to visit Romania, and found a ridiculously cheap flight from Seville, where I was living at the time, to Sofia. I decided right then and there to add the country to my month’s travel. And I’m so glad I did, because it became one of my favourite countries in Europe. I would love to see more people experience it for themselves, but I also like the idea of it staying off the radar!
Bulgarian: Пловдив
Want to see more of this fascinating country? Then you need to check out my ten-day Bulgaria itinerary!
Plovdiv’s Roman History
Plovdiv’s history dates back eight millenia, all the way back to the Neolithic era. Archaeologists have found remains from every period since, but none are more obvious or impressive than those left behind by the Romans.
Ancient Roman Theatre of Philippopolis
Bulgarian: Пловдивски античен театър, Plovdivski antichen teata
Plovdiv’s Ancient Theatre is nestled in the gap between two of the city’s six hills, in the heart of the Old Town. But over the centuries, dirt and rubble had filled in the large semi-circular theatre, so no sign of it was visible from the surface. One of the main roads in the city actually runs through a tunnel dug directly below the theatre, a tunnel that was carved 20 years before anyone even knew the theatre was there. Thankfully, the construction didn’t smash right through it. Today, the theatre has been restored and is used for musical performances, plays and even award ceremonies.
It’s a typical ending point of the free walking tours that roam across Plovdiv, and to my complete surprise, no one else in my group was willing to pay the small entry fee to go inside. The rest were happy to see it from above, behind the gates. But I wanted to walk the steps, to see those columns up close. So I had the whole place to myself. I sat on the huge, carved rocks and looked out over the city.
Ancient Stadium of Philippopolis
Bulgarian: Античен стадион на Филипопол, Antichen stadion na Filipopol
The Roman Stadium or Hippodrome is the second most-visited of the more than 200 archaeological sites in Plovdiv, even though only a small portion of it is actually visible. The northern rounded end with 14 rows of seats can be seen below street level, steps leading down to the floor at Dzhumayata Square. The rest of the hippodrome runs underneath Knyaz Alexander I Street, the main pedestrian street in the city centre. The remains were discovered in 1923, but by that time the streets and houses above were well-established.
The almost-2000 year-old stadium could seat up to 30,000 spectators, and hosted games, sporting events and music and art competitions. You can sit on the large steps and admire the model of the full-sized stadium up on street level. It’s quite ingenious how they built the streets above the open area around the exposed part of the Hippodrome.
Plovdiv’s Street Art
Okay, so I knew going in that there was some street art in Plovdiv, but I had no idea just how much there was. And it was incredible too. I’m a big street art fan (as you can probably tell from this post about nine street art-filled cities around the world that I’m obsessed with), so it was so exciting to continuously turn down streets and find more insanely-good murals covering the walls.
Street art is particularly prevalent in the Kapana (Капана) neighbourhood, where murals abound, splashing every street with a rainbow of colours. There are some seriously talented artists out there. Like many cities, Plovdiv has fully embraced street art, allowing artists to paint on walls, post boxes, rubbish bins, even drain pipes. And don’t miss the beautiful murals in the underpasses that run beneath the highway dividing the Old Town from the city centre. It was in an underpass that I saw one of my favourite murals in the whole city – a large, proud lion backed by the Bulgarian colours.
It might seem strange that the symbol of Bulgaria is an animal that’s never lived there. Found on the country’s coat of arms, the lion lives in everyone’s pocket (so my tour guide liked to say), because the name of Bulgaria’s currency, the lev, comes from the Old Bulgarian word for lion.
Plovdiv’s Old Town
My favourite part of the city, the Old Town has architecture to die for. The whole area – located to the north-east of the city centre – is one large historical reserve, with every house and building in the Bulgarian Renaissance style, beautifully restored to their former glory during the 1970s and 80s. Some of the large homes are historically significant and now house various museums. This is the kind of place that deserves to be wandered, not just passed through.
Old stone walls, medieval cobblestones, wooden second storeys overhanging the street, octagonal towers – this neighbourhood has so much to see. Not to mention three of the six hills of Plovdiv and the Ancient Theatre. I even walked past a little public garden with some Roman columns dotted between grass and daisies on my way to my hostel.
Loved it.
Plovdiv’s Six Hills
Have you had your fill of Roman ruins yet? Good, me neither. Because you’ll find a whole lot more on top of Nebet Tepe (Небет Тепе – ‘hill of the guard’), the easiest of the city’s six hills to summit. To get to the top, you walk through the Old Town, so it’s the perfect spot to sit and relax after a day of exploring. Watching sunset from Nebet Tepe is an absolute must-do when visiting Plovdiv. I mean, just look at that view.
Nebet Tepe used to be the location of the city’s acropolis and citadel. The stone walls running across the hill and the other remains of buildings span multiple time periods. There’s even a secret tunnel beneath the hill, though no one is certain where it once led.
Another of Plovdiv’s hills that many people visit is Bunardzhik Tepe (Бунарджик Тепе), also known as Alyosha Hill. At the top of the hill is an 11-metre statue of a Soviet soldier, erected during the 1950s, which you can actually see in the photo below. The statue is now a point of contention in the city, because of the complicated and sometimes-fractious history between Bulgaria and the Soviet Union, but what everyone can agree on is that Alyosha is one of the city’s most notable attractions.
Today, Plovdiv sits on six hills, but there used to be seven. In the early 20th century, one of the hills was quarried, the stone used to pave most of the streets of the city, leaving a large shopping centre in its place.
Statue of Milyo the Crazy
Bulgarian: Паметник на Мильо, Pametnik na Mil’o
So this is a bit of a strange one.
Milyo was a homeless man who used to roam the streets of Plovdiv. Some people talk about his friendly demeanour, his crazy gestures, remembering him fondly as a strange, but fun, thread in the fabric of the city. Others, in more hushed tones, speak of his mental illness and rumours of inappropriate behaviour, especially towards women. I didn’t know anything about the latter when I visited Plovdiv. I just saw a funny-looking statue on the main pedestrian street, hand cupped around his ear to hear the gossip of the town. Whisper a secret in his ear if you dare, or rub his knee for luck.
Next to Milyo is the large Together Plovdiv sign, erected for the city’s turn as Cultural Capital of Europe in 2019. It’s a beautiful sign, but I have to admit I’m not entirely sure if it’s still there (if you’ve been recently or know the answer, let me know in the comments!).
BONUS DAY TRIP: Asenovgrad & Bachkovo Monastery
It’s possible to see these two places in one day as it only takes ten to fifteen minutes to drive from one to the other, so I highly recommend doing both.
Asen’s Fortress
Bulgarian: Асенова крепост, Asenova krepost
The town of Asenovgrad (Асеновград) has often been called ‘Little Jerusalem’ because around and within the city there are 5 monasteries, 15 churches and 58 chapels. But the most impressive attraction in the area is Asen’s Fortress, located two kilometres outside the town. Named for Ivan Asen II, a 13th century Bulgarian king, the fortress is easily reached on foot. Walk south out of the town until you see a road rising to the right with a signpost for the fortress. From there, it’s uphill the whole way, but the views just keep getting better and better. Being able to see the fortress across the valley was amazing and made me really excited to see it up close.
The orange-coloured building isn’t actually the fortress, but a restored church. The fortress is a series of low, ruined walls just above it. Built during the Middle Ages, the fortress passed through the hands of various empires before being left to decay. The church is now in use as a place of worship for the local Bulgarian Orthodox people and has preserved murals from the 14th century on display.
Though it’s a popular destination, I only saw two other people in the hour I spent exploring the fortress, so at times it felt like I was completely alone on the mountain top. From different vantage points I could see down the valley to Asenovgrad, and then across the Rhodope mountain range in the other direction.
Bachkovo Monastery
Bulgarian: Бачковски манастир, Bachkovski manastir
Once you’ve walked back to Asenovgrad from the fortress, you can hop on a bus out to Bachkovo Monastery, which is beautiful, if slightly less impressive than Sofia’s Rila Monastery, which you absolutely need to visit. But as the second-largest monastery in Bulgaria (the largest being Rila), it’s still definitely worth going, especially because it’s much quieter too.
Founded in 1083, the monastery has elements of three cultures preserved within it: Bulgarian, Byzantine and Georgian. Most of the current monastery buildings come from the 17th century, and there are some gorgeous murals to be seen, especially in the central church. Monks walk the courtyards, as do friendly cats. The path from the road to the monastery entrance is lined with stalls selling souvenirs, art and Bulgarian snacks, if you’re so inclined.
Getting there is fairly simple. The bus from Asenovgrad to the village of Bachkovo is the same one headed to the city of Smolyan (Смолян), which you’ll see written on the front of the bus. The monastery is a kilometre further on outside the village, and if you ask the driver, they will drop you outside the gates. On the way back to Asenovgrad, you can wait across from the gates (which could be risky, as I’ve been told the bus won’t always stop even if you wave at it), or walk along the pretty river back to the village and the official bus stop, which is what I did.
Practical Information:
- Language: Bulgarian, though in the more touristy spots and in hospitality-oriented businesses you should have no problem finding English-speakers. Keep in mind they use the Cyrillic alphabet in Bulgaria, which can make getting around either more exciting or more daunting (I’m the first, but I can understand if you’re the second). I found it handy to have a translation into Cyrillic for each place I was going written down somewhere, as well as the pronunciation, so if I needed to ask for directions I could at least try. You’ll be surprised how quickly you start to recognise the different letters!
- Currency: the lev, which is divided into 100 stotinki. It is tied to the Euro, so the exchange rate there never changes. €1 = 1.96 lev / US$1 = 1.61 lev / £1 = 2.28 lev (as of June 2021).
- Transport: Bulgaria has some amazingly cheap public transport, though I would guess the prices have risen slightly since I visited. I recommend getting trains between larger cities, as they tend to be more spacious and the scenery is beautiful. Plovdiv has an easy bus system, with regular schedules and a wide network, meaning you can get almost anywhere in the city. Your accommodation should be able to tell you which route numbers to look out for.
- Where I Stayed: Hostel Old Plovdiv – perfectly located in a beautiful Old Town house, this hostel is full of dark wooden beams and historical furniture, has a pretty courtyard and dorm rooms with no bunk beds and the comfiest mattress I ever slept on (no, really).
So have I convinced you that Plovdiv is worth visiting? If you have any further questions about the city, drop a comment below!
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