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We visited Sozopol on the final day of our 11 day holiday in Bulgaria. We were staying in Burgas and used the local buses to explore the beautiful Black Sea coastline which included day trips to the ancient towns of Nessebar and Sozopol. Sozopol is one of the oldest towns on the Bulgarian coast and has a long and interesting history. The first settlement on the site dates back to the Bronze Age and many ship anchors from the second and first millennium BC have been discovered in the town’s bay. The town was founded in the 7th century BC by Greek colonists, but then in 72 BC it was conquered by the Roman’s. Later, it was fought over in the long series of Bulgarian-Byzantine Wars which eventually ended with the Ottoman Empire.
Summer in Bulgaria is typically hot and gets over 30ºC. However, on the day we were scheduled to visit Sozopol, the final day of our holiday, the weather had other ideas. The night before and well into the following morning, a massive storm came through bringing heavy rain and a rather cool change of temperature. We waited until late morning when it had finally began to ease before venturing out to Burgas bus station to take the bus to Sozopol.
How to Get to Sozopol from Burgas
During the summer months there are regular buses that run between Burgas and Sozopol. The buses leave from the bays behind the Burgas bus station building. There is electronic signage above the parking bays and the buses also display a sign in their front window. The bus drivers are used to tourists, so if you are not sure where the bus is going, then just ask. Some of the buses are rather old, but they did have air conditioning. Alongside the driver there is also a person that sells the tickets, so just get on the bus and find your seat and they will come to you. You will need cash to buy your ticket. The journey takes about 40 minutes due to stops (30 minutes by car), however, I think the storm had caused bad traffic so it ended up taking us longer. The bus terminates in the heart of the tourist area in old town Sozopol.
Exploring Old Town Sozopol
It was still rather gloomy and cool when we arrived in Sozopol, but it was still bustling with tourists. The cobbled streets were lined with market stalls trying to keep their items sheltered from the rain. We walked up through the old town where we past many churches as well as the ruins of a medieval church. There are many interesting churches in Sozopol including the Eastern Orthodox Church (pl. “Han Krum”, 8130 Tsentar, Sozopol), St. Martyr George Church (ul. “Apolonia”, 8130 Tsentar, Sozopol), and St Nicolai Chapel (8130 Tsentar, Sozopol). My favourite was the Church of the Holy Virgin built around the 15th century during the Ottoman Empire. It was constructed half-buried in the earth as the Turkish banned Bulgarians from building tall buildings. I loved the peaceful courtyard. If you are keen to learn more about Sozopol’s history, then visit the Archeological Museum (ulitsa Han Krum 2, 8130 Sozopol) and the Ethnographic Museum (ul. “Kiril i Metodiy” 34, 8130 Tsentar, Sozopol).
Similar to Nessebar, the buildings here are 19th century wood and stone buildings. They are made in the traditional style with a stone first floor and wooden upper floors. This, along with the cobbled streets, creates a feeling of stepping back in time. This old town has been turned into a tourist location, so these buildings are shops selling a range of traditional items including lace, pottery, and art. It’s like a maze of buildings in this little town so we just allowed ourselves to wander around and explore.
The old town area is not very large, so it didn’t take us long to walk down to the tip with views over the sea. We decided to eat at the cheaper and quieter west side looking out over the marina. This place has been a fishing village since its early Greek times, which still continues to this day. Consequently, there are lots of seafood restaurants which we were looking forward to enjoying. It had just started to rain again, so we found ourselves a restaurant with shelter and views of the water. We enjoyed a large helping of mussels, squid and local fish washed down with some local white wine.
In the afternoon we headed over to the east side of Sozopol which is the most picturesque. Here we found the southern fortress wall and tower which once protected Sozopol from attacks. It has been restored and now provides a beautiful historic walk along the coast. It is lined with restaurants with seats jutting out over the ocean. They are on the pricier side, but you are paying extra for the wonderful views. As the weather was finally beginning to clear, we decided to stop for some afternoon cake and coffee in a prime spot perched overlooking the water. Sozopol is cake mad, with delicious cakes displayed in glass cabinets everywhere we turned. Some of the cakes are really elaborate, like those crazy ones you see on Pinterest.
We continued our walk along the fortress wall and walked through the impressive ancient gate. There are stairs along the fortress that allow you to walk down to the waters edge. The views over the beach and coastline are amazing. Despite the grey weather, the sandy beaches in Sozopol looked lovely. We had planned to spend our final afternoon in Bulgaia lazing on them, so I was very sad that we did not get the chance to!
Accommodation Options in Sozopol
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Practical Tips for Visiting Sozopol
- How long should I visit Sozopol for? We visited Sozopol on a day trip from Burgas. However, if you are looking for a coastal escape, I think this would be a lovely spot to stay for a night or two.
- Getting to and from Burgas to Sozopol by bus: Read my section above about how to get the bus from Burgas.
- Language: Bulgarian. It can be difficult to understand signs when they are in Bulgarian, as it looks nothing like the English version. Many of the areas we visited in Bulgaria only limited people spoke English, so we tried to make an effort with some Bulgarian. I encourage you to try a little Bulgarian too. Fun fact – Bulgarians nod when they say no and shake their head when they mean yes.
- Yes = да (da)
- No = не (ne)
- Please = моля (molya)
- Thank you = благодаря (blagodarya)
- Hello = добър ден (dobar den)
- Where is the toilet? къде в тоалетната (kade e toaletnata)
- Currency: Bulgarian Lev, or Leva, which is the plural. Most places had card machines and there were plenty of ATM’s. However, you will need small change for the buses.
- Electricity: The electrical current is 220-240 volts, 50-60 Hz. Wall outlets take the European two round prong plugs. However, you are better off purchasing a worldwide adaptor that can be used in Bulgaria as well other countries. At least then you can potentially get some further use out of it on future vacations. If you’re taking a number of electronics with you, then I would recommend purchasing a couple of these adaptors.
- Driving: In Bulgaria they drive on the right hand side of the road with speed signs in kilometres per hour (km). The speed limits are 50 km (31 mph) within towns; 90 km (56 mph) outside towns; 120 km (75 mph) on expressways; and a rather scary 140 km (87 mph) on motorways. Some of the roads we drove on were very old with huge pot holes and the paint had long since faded, so we had to drive slower in these areas.
- Navigating: We used Google’s free Offline Maps. Google Offline Maps allows you to access free maps for navigating that can be used offline i.e. you don’t need WIFI, data, or roaming to be able to use them. Follow this detailed guide on how to use Googles Offline Maps. Using your phone as a GPS will drain your battery quickly, so use a portable battery charger which you can use to charge your phone and any other USB chargeable devices. If you prefer a paper map, then purchase a Bulgarian road map before you go. At least it’s reliable and won’t run out of battery or malfunction like the electronic options!
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