What to See in Bulgaria Pt. 2: Pirin

In What to See in Bulgaria, part one: Rila. I gave you some ideas in where you could go. I talked about the beautiful mountain Rila. Now I would like to mention Pirin, another amazing and magical mountain. Pirin is situated in the South-Eastern part of the country. There is a place that connects Rila to Pirin and it is called Predela. It is narrow road surrounded by the two mountains. You could enjoy beautiful views in Predela. At a certain point the road getts a bit wider and you will find several restaurants which offer rich and dense Bulgarian yogurt. The Bulgarian yogurt is the best in the world. I am not saying this because I am Bulgarian but because it is true. In Bulgaria lives a bacteria called Bacilicus Bulgaricus which causes the density and the rich taste of the milk. You could find the same yogurt in some parts of Greece, Serbia... Well, in some of our neighbouring countries, even though I am not sure which ones exactly.

If you are travelling from Sofia to Pirin, you will reach the city of Blagoevgrad. It is one of the biggest Bulgarian cities (even though in reality it is not big at all). The town is famous for its two universities: Neofit Rilski University and the American University. The second, as the name suggests, is an American u niversity and the students recieve American diplomas. Blagoevgrad is nice but you will not find traditional Bulgarian architecture. It could be a nice place to see what Communist buildings look like. There was a Communist regime in Bulgaria in the period between the fifty's and the ninety's. There are many monuments that have survived until present day. They are far from beautiful but interesting to see.

After you have passed by Blagoevgrad and Predela, you reach the most famous ski resort in the country and that would be Bansko. Bansko used to be a nice, small town, whose central part still has old traditional houses. Unfortunatelly, at a certain point somebody realized that the mountain slopes above Bansko are quite good for winter sports, and huge hotels and buildings appeared quickly. The slopes are ok, quite good actually, but everything in the town and in the mountain above it has been done too quickly and without consideration for the nature, nor for the town. Still, if you are looking for a place to ski in the winter, you might like Bansko. The ski pass costs 50 levs (the local currency) or 25 €. Prepare another 2,5€ for a card deposit (it is magnetic and it could be reused). I think the parking near the gondola costs about 5 € per day. I am not sure about renting ski equipment, such as boots, skis, etc. The slopes tend to be too crowded during the weekends and on major holidays such as New Year's Eve, Easter, and Christmas. If you have spear time to go during the week, you might find some beautiful days when the weather is sunny, there is a lot of snow, and the slopes are empty. Be aware of the prices up there. There are several bars and they are far from cheap. The same applies to the town of Bansko itself. You can find traditional Bulgarian restaurants, which offer typical Bulgarian dishes, in combination with traditional live music, but these places are expensive. There are many bars and night clubs, so if you are looking for night life, do not worty, you got it. Many bigger hotels offer spa packages. If you want to pay less, you can rent a room at one of the many private guest houses. My favorite guest house is Dedo Maco, which is all wood and stone, very nice. You could enter many spa centers at larger hotels for about five to ten Euros. The spa centers usually have sauna, Turkish bath, steam bath, relax rooms, etc. Massages are paid separately.

Visit the nearby town of Razlog. It is only five or six kilometers from Bansko but it is very different. It is emptier than Bansko, even though it would take you no more than ten minutes to go from Razlog to Bansko's ski slopes. There are buses every thirty minutes to an hour (schedules depend on the period of the day and on the time of the year) and the bus ticket costs 0,50 Euros. I love Razlog because of its green center. The central alley is all white and full of flowers, fountains, and bars. At the end of it you could turn left and go to a small artificual lake in which you can take a boat trip. No, it is really small, so it is not a boat trip but rather a boat stay ;). Still, very nice, I promise. There is a restaurant next to the lake but it is nothing special. The menue consists of Coca Cola, French fries and not much more. The restaurant has nice atmosphere, though. Another great asset of Razlog is that you see both Pirin and Rila.

If you prefer to go to Pirin in the summer, you could still see the same places but you could choose to climb up and spend some time in Pirin natural park. It is one of the finest natural parks in Bulgaria and if you like the mountain, you will defenitely love it. The park resembles the Alpine region. It is quite high, reaching up to 2,914 meters (Vihren peak). If you are a serious mountaineer, you might want to go really high. There are several glacier vallies worth seing. Bring good mountain equipment because it would sometimes snow even in August. There is no water so high in the mountain, so you will have to melt some snow (there are always some remains of snow, even in the summer).

Another great region in Pirin is the Tevno lake. It is again very high in the mountain. You will have to walk for six or seven hours but it is a diferent world up there. The lake is very isolated. The only place to sleep there is a small hut or in a tent. The hut is cool, it even has a kitchen, so you will not stay hungry.

When in the region of Pirin, do not forget to go to the villages of Banya and Dobrinishte. They are nothing special but they have natural mineral springs and you could bathe in swimming pools, full of mineral water. The prices are also very reasonable. Unless you choose the swimming pool of some fancy four or five star hotel, I doubt it that you will pay more than three to five Euros. The water in Banya is warmer than the water in Dobrinishte, so you can choose what you prefer.

Continue a bit more to the bsouth and you will reach another nice town, named Gotse Delchev. It is also small and green like Razlog. On one side of it you will see Pirin and on the other side there is the Rhodopi mountain.

Photo gallery