This is an alphabetical list of the most interesting churches and monasteries in Bulgaria. Choose your favorite place and click on it to see available rout.

ALADJA MONASTERY

This is one of the few preserved and accessible rock monasteries in Bulgaria, dating from the early Middle Ages and conforming to the hesychastic idea of silence, asceticism and moral perfection. Monastic cells and a small church have been dug into a sheer rock, 14 km from the city of Varna and close to the Black Sea resort of Golden Sands. Differently coloured 13th-14th century frescoes are still discernible on its walls.

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ALEKSANDER NEVSKI

"St. Alexander Nevski" cathedral is one of the most significant monuments of culture in Sofia. It was built between 1882 and 1912, in honour of the Russian king Alexander II, called "Tsar Osvoboditel" ("The King Liberator"), because his army helped liberate Bulgaria from Ottoman rule in 1878.
The cathedral of "St. Alexander Nevski" is one of the symbols of Sofia. It is the largest church-monument on the Balkan peninsula.

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ARBANASI MONASTERIES

There are two monasteries in the village of Arbanassi, 3 km from Veliko Turnovo - St.Nikola and Holy Virgin. Between the 16th century and its tragic devastation two centuries later the village - one of the wealthiest in preliberation Bulgaria, boasted a rich and unusual house architecture, the work of skilled masters from different parts of the country. St. Nikola Monastery was part of the widespread religious construction under the Assen dynasty, the founders of the Second Bulgarian State. Its artistic and historical value lies above all in the surviving murals in the St. Elija Chapel, probably dating from 1716: a monumental figure of Christ the Great Archangel, 12 scenes from the Holy Akathistos, and 6 scenes from the life of Christ. The effective colouring and rich palette, the confidence in the portrayal of the human figures, the unusually varied architectural decoration reveal the hand of a master from a superior and more erudite school. The filigree wooden iconostasis in the chapel, with its delicate and exquisite decorations, is valuable treasure. Though situated in the same village, the Holy Virgin Monastery suffered a different, though no less tragic fate. It is not known how it survived the attacks in 1393. What has remained of them warrants the assumption that they, too were painted by travelling artists - highly paid at the time, but quite affordable by the wealthy inhabitants of the village of Arbanassi. At the Holy Virgin Monastery too, the Tryavna School has left valuable icons behind.

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BACHKOVO MONASTERY

One of the oldest monasteries in the Bulgarian lands. Founded in 1083, Bachkovo Monastery is chiefly known for its original architecture, rich collections of old icons, jewelry, coins and church plate. Its most remarkable feature, however, are the paintings that are seen everywhere - in the church and ossuary, where the figure of the Bulgarian Tsar Ivan Alexander is discernible among the 11th and 14th century murals, in the refectory (1601), in the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin main church (1604), and in the Holy Trinity and St. Nicholas church (1840), which contain some of the first murals painted by the celebrated National Revival artist Zahari Zograph. Find a tour with thise church included HERE.

BOIANA CHURCH

The BoIana church is included in the list of UNESCO. The BoIana church is the most remarkable monument of the Bulgarian medieval painting art. At the same time it is one of the best preserved and interesting architectural monuments from the epoch of the feudalism. It was painted by a talented master from Boyana. The wall-paintings dates from 1259, and they are very precious and irrefutable contribution in the European art culture.
Nowadays it is a parish church in Sofia's section of Boyana, and it is a museum of Bulgarian art. Find a tour with thise place included HERE.

CHEREPISH MONASTERY

The Monastery Of Cherepish is one of the most remarkable Christian monuments in the Iskar defile. It is situated on the very riverbank and is surrounded by unscalable imposing rocks. It was the main center of the literary and the cultural life in the region for centuries on end.

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DRAGALEVTSI MONASTERY

Dragalevtzi Monastery was build in the 14th century near the village of Dragalevtzi,where the tourist trails begins.The monastery wall paintings were made in 1476.It was the center of the Sofia literary school.Two tetraevengelicas dating from 1469 and 1534,a psalter (16th century) and many other church books originated from the monastery.This monastery was also one of Levski's hiding places.

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DRYANOVO MONASTERY

Dryanovo Monastery of "St Archangel Michael" was founded in the 12th century and is in close proximity to the summer residence of the Bulgarian rulers from the Assen dynasty. In its present-day site the monastery exists since 1845. The main church was built in 1861. In the monastery there is a museum collection with exhibits from all historical epochs including neolithic finds from a nearby cave. During the 1876 April Uprising an armed detachment of 200 men who, pursued by the enemy, found shelter behind the walls of Dryanovo Monastery. Throughout nine days, they engaged in fierce battle before being crushed: the insurgents and monks were killed, the monastery burned to the ground. Find a tour with thise monastery included HERE.

ELENA BASILICA

The Basilica "St. Joan the Precursor" (11th - 12th century) is located in the Vesselchane Quarter of the town of Kardjaly. At the end of 1998 during continuing excavations a unique find was brought to the surface in it - the burial tomb of a senior Christian bishop (dated back to end of the 12th or the beginning of the 13th century) wearing his gold-knitted clerical attire. There are only three more dresses of this kind in the world but this has proved to be the first find of its kind in a burial tomb. A fantastic archaeological find!

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IVANOVO ROCK-HEWN CHURCHES

The Ivanovo churches are under the protection of UNESCO. The Rock-hewn Churches of Ivanovo are an integral part of the large monastery complex called “St. Michael the Archangel”, an exceptional spiritual and literary center of Bulgarian Medieval art. This complex was developed during the time of the second Bulgarian kingdom by church hermits. The 14th-century murals, rock-hewn churches, chapels, monasteries, monk’s cells, and unique mural paintings in the style of the Tarnovo and Constantinople School (14th century) survived to this day, having weathered the vicissitudes of history. Find a tour with thise place included HERE.

ST. JOAN THE PRECURSOR BASILICA

The Basilica "St. Joan the Precursor" (11th - 12th century) is located in the Vesselchane Quarter of the town of Kardjaly. At the end of 1998 during continuing excavations a unique find was brought to the surface in it - the burial tomb of a senior Christian bishop (dated back to end of the 12th or the beginning of the 13th century) wearing his gold-knitted clerical attire. There are only three more dresses of this kind in the world but this has proved to be the first find of its kind in a burial tomb. A fantastic archaeological find!

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KAPINOVO MONASTERY

The church of the Kapinovo Monastery, near the town of Elena, features an inscription of the year of its foundation on the cornice above the altar: 1272, under Constantine the Quiet's rule. Following repeated destructions and restorations of the monastery, the church was built in 1835 by two self-taught masters from Dryanovo.

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KILIFAREVO MONASTERY

The Kilifarevo Monastery has gone down in the annals of Bulgarian history as the "Second University of Mediaeval Bulgaria", following that of Clement of Ochrid's large School in Ochrid. It was founded between 1348 and 1350 upon the order of Tzar Ivan Alexander, 12 km south of Turnovo, for the purpose of providing shelter for the Hesychast and hermit Theodossius of Turnovo. The most remarkable work of art here is again in the chapel: the old carved iconostasis, probably the work of Tryavna masters. Find a tour with thise church included HERE.

KREMIKOVTSI MONASTERY

It was founded during the 14th century, again probably due to Tzar Ivan Alexander, when 14 monasteries known as the "Sofia Mount Athos", were erected around Sofia. As a compensation, the murals (partially preserved today) turned the interior into a glittering gallery. The spirit is here alive of the aristocratic Turnovo School. Kremikovtsi Monastery also contains some valuable examples of calligraphic art which was particularly perfected here during the 15th century, when the Sofia School of Literature was created and developed at Dragalevtsi, Kremikovtsi, Kokalyane, German and other monasteries. The so-called Kremikovtsi Gospel is an example of it. Find a tour with thise church included HERE.

OCHIN DOL - EARLY CHRISTIAN CHURCH

The village of Ochindol is situated up in the mountains. It is small and picturesque and offers the visitor the quietness and charm of the authentic well-preserved rustic everyday life and traditions. Nowadays village is a successor of an important settlement, which existed throughout the Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. There is an Early-Christian church on the most elevated place in the village which offers a splendid panoramic view. The church has a unique architecture. Find a tour with thise church included HERE.

PREOBRAJENSKI (TRANSFIGURATION) MONASTERY

Legend has it that the foundation of the Preobrazhenie monastery dates back to the reign of tsar Ivan Alexander (1331-1371). South of it there are remains from a mediaeval monastery. The main church built in 1834 by master Dimiter Sofialiyata was completed by Nikola Fichev and painted by Zahari Zograph in 1849-1851. The masterpriece of another age, of other principles in architecture and art, is the Transfiguration Monastery, erected 7 km from Veliko Turnovo in one of the pictureque gorges of the Yantra River. The famous architect of the Bulgarian National Revival, Kolyo Ficheto, embarked on the construction of the new church. Find a tour with thise place included HERE.

RED CHURCH IN PERUSTITSA

The Red Church is one of the oldest Christian temples in Bulgaria. Built in 5th-6th century A.D., it is situated at the foot of the Rhodopi Mountains near the village of Pastusha. Its Byzantine-style construction still amazes you with the huge 15-meters-tall walls and the precise building work. There are frescoes on its archs, portraying saints, as well as Greek inscriptions.

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RILA MONASTERY

The Rila monastery is under the protection of UNESCO. The Rila Monastery was founded in the first third of the l0th century by the Bulgarian monk St. Ivan of Rila - a hermit canonized by the Orthodox Church, and his disciples. Rila Monastery is the second largest monastery on the Balkan Peninsula and one of the most skillful Bulgarian masters of the time took part in its establishment and building.

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ROJEN MONASTERY

Situated far to the south in the Pirin area, 6 km from Melnik, this is the only monastery restored during the first centuries of Ottoman rule which has survived to this day. The present-day appearance of this old monastery (built by the Melnik ruler, despot Slav, during the 12th or 13th century) dates back to the 16th century. Valuable monuments of 17th century painting included the external southern wall (Doomsday, Jacob's Ladder), dated with an inscription from 1611, as well as scenes from the life of John the Baptist painted in 1622 in the ossuary. Rozhen Monastery has left us with a treasure in yet another art - that of calligraphy. Find a tour with thise place included HERE.

SEVEN THRONES MONASTERY

One of the most interesting monasteries in Bulgaria. The earliest information about the monastery dates from 1511 from a Gospel, and from 1554 from another official document. The appearance of the monastery is connected with the boyar Petar Delian and with the rising against the Byzantine rule in 1040. With its architecture the church is unique. The inner decoration of the church has 7 - meter founder inscription made in 1868.

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SHIPKA MONASTERY

Part and parcel of our history is the Shipka Monastery, a symbol of an epoch-making event for Bulgaria - her Liberation from Ottoman rule, the final outcome of the 1877/78 Russo-Turkish War. The monastery, together with an impressive memorial church, was erected near the town of Shipka, near Kazanluk, below the famous Shipka Pass in the Balkan Range, where in the summer of 1877 the Russian troops and Bulgarian volunteers achieved the break-through which brought about the victorious outcome of the war. Find a tour with thise place included HERE.

SOKOLOVO MONASTERY

Sokolovo monastery was founded in 1832-1833 by archbishop Yosiph of Sokolovo and hieromonk Agapi. In 1834 the main church was built with the financial aid of donors from the villages of Etura and Nova Mahala. The residential wings were consecutively erected between 1836 and the late 19th century. Of greatest interest is the guest-room with the gateway dating from 1836. The ossuary and the adjacent plastic fence were raised in 1860. The monastery fountain with falcons chiselled out in the corners goes back to 1868. A fire burnt the western wing of the monastery but it was restored in 1981-1982. Find a tour with thise place included HERE.

ST. 40 MARTYRS CHURCH

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ST. DIMITRIUS CHURCH

The church is related to the earliest manifestations of the Bulgarian rulers of the 12 th century. In 1185, when church was built the brothers Assen and Peter proclaimed the Uprising against the Byzantine invaders. It was a royal church up to the year 1230. The Bulgarian rulers Assen, Peter and Kaloyan were crowned in it. Here on 07.11.1204 Archbishop Vasilli was promoted to the rank of Patriarch of the Bulgarian church.

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SANT GEORGE CHURCHE IN SOFIA

It was built when Sofia was under the name of Serdica. It was then destroyed by the Huns, rebuilt and turned into a mosque by the Ottomans. Restoration work has revealed three layers of medieval frescoes, which had been hidden by plaster since the sixteenth century. Its frescoes were made by amateurs. According to the historians and archeologists those frescoes date to the middle of 10 th century and portray 22 prophets. Over the coupon there is a wreath - a symbol of the entireness. The impressive cupola bears a fourteenth-century portrait of Christ, surrounded by four angels. To the east lie excavated foundations of the Roman settlement of Serdica. Nowadays the church is a museum.

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ST.ST. PETER AND PAULUS CHURCH

After the fall of Tarnovo in 1393 and of Constantinople in 1453 mural ensembles continued to follow the high style of the 14th century fine arts. Thus the Church of SS. Peter and Paul in Tarnovo, together with the monastery churches at Kremikovtsi, Poganovo, Dragalevtsi, and Boboshevo are examples of a continuation of trends employed in previous centuries.

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ST. SOFIA CHURCH

St.Sofia is the oldest Eastern Orthodox church in Sofia. It was built on the site of several earlier churches and places of worship dating back to the days when it was the necropolis of the Roman town Serdica. The basic cross design of the present basilica, with its two east towers and one tower-cupola, is probably the fifth structure to inhabit the site and was built during the reign of Byzantine emperor Justinian in the middle of the 6th century (527-565). "St. Sofia" church is now one of the most valuable pieces of early Christian architecture in the Balkans, according to scholars. Find a tour with thise church included HERE.

TROIAN MONASTERY

Troyan monastery must have been in existence long before the 15th century, as legends suggest. It flourished again about the year 1600. From the oldest church it is only the throne stone that has been preserved. The Troyan Monastery, is known above all for the creative work of Zahari Zograph who painted both the exterior and the interior (a rare practice for the time) of the main church built in 1835, 7 km from the town of Troyan.

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ZEMEN MONASTERY

Completely different from both the official Byzantine style and the other official Turnovo School, are the architecture and painting of the Zemen Monastery, founded during the 14th century. It is located above the Strouma River, 76 km south-east of Sofia. A solid stone building, it was the only one to survive the monastery's ravaging and depopulation after Bulgaria's subjection to Ottoman rule. Such as it remains today, the Zemen church is an absolute exception to the whole of Bulgaria's mediaeval architecture: a cubic building, with three semicylindrical apsides with equal height, reaching up to the roof cornice which unites them in a single group. Find a tour with thise place included HERE.