The alternation between reliefs and plains
If you arrive in Bulgaria via Sofia, you'll immediately notice that the city is surrounded by mountains. To the south, the Vitosha is a pretty massif where city dwellers like to stroll, relax and picnic at weekends. To get to the Danube plain, which occupies 30% of the territory, you'll have to cross part of the Balkan chain. On the other side, surprise! These mountains, better known to Bulgarians as Stara Planina, the "old mountains", are gradually disappearing, giving way to vast expanses of land. Along the way, however, you'll come across the rock formations of Belgradchik, where the hike offers fine panoramic views. The Danube plain is made up of limestone plateaus and river marches that slope down to the Danube. You'll encounter long valleys such as the Iskar, Vit and Lom valleys. This alternation between plain and relief continues as you leave the Balkans for the Black Sea, or to the southeast, to the Rhodopes, and to the southwest, to the two natural parks of Rila and Pirin.
The unavoidable summits
Bulgaria is not bad at high peaks. Mount Musala is the highest. It reaches 2,925 m and is located near Borovets, in Rila (or Pirin). The municipality is a very attractive place for winter sports. The ski resort is one of the biggest. It starts at 1350 m and has slopes up to 2560 m. The ski resort of Bansko in Rila is also very popular, with a difference of slopes between 925 m and 2 600 m. You should see, especially in the winter period, many advertisements on the high roadside signs praising Pamporovo as a winter destination par excellence. And they are not wrong. If there is no snow in season, artificial snow covers the slopes between 1,650 and 1,957 meters. In Chepelane, four trails culminating at 1,873 m will satisfy all members of the family. Outside of the winter season, there are many beautiful hikes in these mountains.
Few mighty rivers but some splendid lakes
The most majestic river in Bulgaria is of course the Danube, which is a natural border with Romania. By the way, to get to either country, river ferries often make the round trip in a few minutes. You can take a boat from Oryahovo in the northwest or Svichtov in the center. In Russe, a bridge crosses the river directly. That's why many Romanians often go back and forth to spend a weekend day in the city or vice versa. When you are in the northeast of Bulgaria, you don't need to cross the Danube to get to Romania.
Apart from the Danube, there are many rivers that cross the country and all of them have the same characteristic: they are quite small in length, as almost all of them have their source in Bulgaria and the territory of the country is not very big. Among those with the largest flow, the Maritza flows from Bulgaria into Turkey and flows into the Aegean Sea after passing through Plovdiv, Stara Zagora and Svilengrad. The Strouma, 290 km long, has its source in the southwest of Vitosha and continues its journey in Greece. The Iskar is the only river that flows only in Bulgaria, for 368 km, taking its source in the Rila and flowing into the Danube.
The rivers feed the lakes and dams, most of them artificial, like the beautiful lake of Batak, in the Rhodopes, not far from Velingrad, Vatcha, Stouden Kladenets, or the one of Ticha in the center. The largest natural lake of the country is the lake of Bourgas (Dam Bourgas) which is in direct connection with the Black Sea. It is an exceptional ornithological reserve. You will observe a great diversity of birds.
In Bulgaria, there are more than 1,600 drinking water springs and almost 600 different mineral waters, most of them located in the mountains in the center and southwest of the country. You can enjoy spas in the main spa towns of Hissarya, Sapareva Banya, Sofia, Bankya, Velingrad, Sandanski, Stara Zagora, Naretchen, Sliven, Haskovo, Kyoustendil, Varchets... The Sapareva Banya spring is the only geyser in Bulgaria. The water gushes out at 103,8 °C!
The gorges and caves dug by the water
Although few in number, the watercourses have carved out splendid caves and caverns in the rock, which can be seen throughout the landscape. The Ledenilzu Gorge, near Vratsa, is remarkable. The Magina gorge, near Belogradchik, has nothing to envy. In the Rhodopes, the Trigad Gorge is exceptional. Also not to be missed: the canyon along the Roussenski Lom river, the Krouchouna waterfalls near Letnitsa and the gorges of the Iskar river.
There are over 5,000 caves in Bulgaria. The deepest drops to 415 m and the longest is around 20 km. Nine caves have been developed and are open to the public. They are Ledenika, Magourata and Saeva Doupka, Batcho Kiro and Orlova Tchouka in the North and Centre, Snejanka, Yagodinskata, Dyavolskoto Garlo and Ouhlovitsa in the Rhodopes.
Caving enthusiasts beware: even if the caves in Bulgaria are not very deep, they are extremely difficult. For example, it takes over 30 hours to enter and exit the second deepest cave, Barki 14. So if you want to go caving, it's best to book a trip with a caving club or a specialized adventure travel agency.
The Black Sea coast, between cliffs and valleys
On the Black Sea, an inland sea shared by Bulgaria, Turkey, Georgia, Romania, Ukraine and Russia, the coast is not as easy to reach as one would like, except in Varna and Bourgas, the two main cities on the plain. In this case, there are small cliffs. There are about 130 beautiful sandy beaches. In summer the water is quite warm, reaching 28°C.
