Varna

The Archaeological Museum in Varna houses the oldest worked gold in the world, around 6,500 years old. If you're planning a vacation in Varna Province, you'll find not only this rarity but also Bulgaria's third-largest city, the beach resorts of Golden Sands and St. Constantine, and, in the south, the wild mouth of the Kamchiya River.

Landscape and Location

The province covers a coastal strip about 70 kilometers (43 miles) long on the northern Black Sea, along with hilly backcountry of limestone plateaus and wheat fields. The city of Varna lies on a wide bay, behind which Lake Varna and a canal to the port stretch inland. North of the city, wooded slopes rise above the coast; in the south, the Kamchiya flows through a floodplain forest protected as a biosphere reserve. Around Byala and the villages of Shkorpilovtsi and Bliznatsi, the coast grows quieter, with long sandy beaches and cliffs of pale marl.

Varna, the Sea Capital

Varna, ancient Odessos, is a lively university and port city. The Sea Garden runs for miles along the shore, with a dolphinarium, an aquarium, and a summer theater. The city center is home to the Cathedral of the Assumption and the Roman Baths, the largest surviving Roman baths in Bulgaria. The Archaeological Museum displays finds from the Copper Age necropolis of Varna. In summer, the Varna Summer festival and an international ballet competition take place, and clubs and fish restaurants line the beachfront promenade.

Sights in Varna Province

About 15 kilometers (9 miles) to the north lies the Aladzha Rock Monastery, whose cells and chapel are carved into a limestone wall. Golden Sands is one of the country's largest resort areas, while St. Constantine and Helena is a quieter spa resort with thermal springs and parks. Inland, near Slanchev Dar, the stone columns of Pobiti Kamani rise from the sand, a quirk of nature that looks like a petrified forest. Near Provadia, the medieval Ovech Fortress sits atop a table mountain, and in the resort of Kranevo, on the border with the neighboring province, the beaches of the north begin.

Food and Festivals

On the coast, you'll eat grilled fish, mussels farmed off Varna, and chorba fish soup. The wine region of northern Bulgaria produces fresh white wines such as Dimiat and Chardonnay. On January 6, the feast of Epiphany, priests throw a cross into the sea, and young men leap into the ice-cold water to retrieve it. Not far from Aladzha Monastery lies Golden Sands Nature Park, with deciduous forest and hiking trails above the coast. South of the city, Cape Galata juts into the sea, and in Devnya, a museum displays Roman mosaics from the ancient city of Marcianopolis. Families appreciate the shallower beaches near Shkorpilovtsi, where the dunes reach all the way to the forest, and the quiet campgrounds at the mouth of the Kamchiya.

Getting There and Best Time to Visit

Varna Airport is served by direct flights from numerous German cities in summer. Trains and the Hemus Motorway or expressway connect to Sofia; the train ride takes six to seven hours. The best time for the beach is June through September, while the city and surrounding area are also worth a visit in May and October. If you want more than swimming, combine a stay by the sea with day trips to Shumen, Madara, or Balchik, each about an hour from Varna.