Travel China and Beyond

Our visit to Veliko Tqrnovo (Велико Търново)

Well, following our stay at the Black Sea coast (we liked the Kempinski hotel no joking….it is a nice place), we decided to take the Northern Bulgaria route to get back to Kazanlak (on the South side of the Balkan range). That meant we were going to travel from Zlatni Piasqci –> Varna –> Shumen –> Veliko Tqrnovo –> to Gabrovo –> cross the Balkan range via the Shipka mountain pass, and arrive in Kazanlak. On this trip our main objective was to stop in the town of Veliko Tqrnovo.
Why stop there — well take a look at these photos and you will see the reason — it is a beautiful and historic place:

The town which used to be the capital of the 2nd Bulgarian Kingdom is located on several large hills on both sides of the river Iantra (река Янтра). The 2nd Bulgarian Kingdom lasted between 1185 and the end of the 14th century at which time the Ottoman Empire conquered Bulgaria. One of the key places to visit while in Veliko Tqrnovo is the restored fortress on the Tzarevetz hill.

(me at the gate of the Tzarevetz fortress)
Some directions of getting to Tzarevetz — we approached Veliko Tqrnovo from Shumen. As you enter in the city look for signs (in brown color — denoting a national park) for Tzarevetz. There will be plenty of those. Eventually you will pass through the new town and enter the older part of Veliko Tqrnovo. This is the more interesting part anyway, but the streets are quite narrow, so if you are driving pay attention to oncoming traffic. In some cases you will have to move to the side (behind parked on the street cars) and wait for the oncoming traffic to pass. Sounds tedious, but this is part of the fun

Once you get to the parking lot right in-front of the Tzarevetz fortress entrance you could visit a small restaurant located right in-front of you if your right hand shoulder is pointing at the entrance of the fortress. I cannot remember the name of the restaurant, but you won’t miss it — the parking lot is tiny. The fee for parking by the way should be in the range of 2 leva for 3 hours.

The fortress museum is open daily till 7pm. It is an interesting place to visit and also a place where you could do some serious hiking up and down the trail along the fortress walls or climbing the hill to the church on top of if. Here are some more photos from the town:

View towards the old town from Tzarevetz;