Castles & Palaces
Tsarevets Fortress hilltop citadel at sunset in Veliko Tarnovo

3 historic sites

Castles in Bulgaria

Bulgaria's medieval fortresses tell the story of the Second Bulgarian Empire — the Balkan kingdom that rivalled Byzantium for supremacy of the eastern Balkans between 1185 and 1396. Tsarevets Fortress in Veliko Tarnovo, the imperial capital on a dramatic hill loop of the Yantra River, is one of the most spectacular medieval citadels in southeastern Europe. Bulgaria's castle heritage is among the least visited and most rewarding in Europe.

Tsarevets Fortress on its hilltop above the Yantra River gorge with the Cathedral of the Holy Ascension at the summit, Veliko Tarnovo

bulgaria · Veliko Tarnovo Province

Tsarevets Fortress

The hilltop citadel of the Second Bulgarian Empire — capital of the medieval Balkans

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Belogradchik Fortress walls weaving between giant red sandstone rock formations in Bulgaria

bulgaria · Vidin Province, Northwestern Bulgaria

Belogradchik Fortress

A Roman fortress woven between giant red rock sculptures in the Bulgarian wilderness

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Ravadinovo Castle ('In Love with Wind') on Bulgaria's Black Sea coast — the neo-medieval towers and formal gardens of Georgi Tumpalov's hand-built limestone castle still under construction

bulgaria · Black Sea Coast

Ravadinovo Castle

Bulgaria's self-built dream castle — 20,000 tons of Black Sea limestone constructed entirely by hand since 1996, still under construction, in a village 10 kilometres from Sozopol on the southern Black Sea coast

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