Bucharest to Sofia tour
Highlights
Bucharest | Veliko Tarnovo | Tsarevets Fortress | Plovdiv Roman Theatre | Nebet Tepe | Dzhumaya Mosque | Bansko | Rila Monastery | Sofia |Description of Bucharest to Sofia tour
There can be few more nostalgically romantic and intrinsically exciting journeys other than the Eastern Europe tour through Romania, Bulgaria and into Turkey. Cultural travellers will revel in this opportunity to explore overland as the sights of Bucharest, Sofia and Istanbul create a kaleidoscope of contrasts alongside the Rila and Pirin mountain ranges, which in turn hide fascinating monasteries and lesser-visited towns filled with cultural monuments.Listing the highlights of this itinerary would take forever, but Plovdiv is utterly captivating. Over the centuries it has been part of Persian, Byzantine, Roman and Ottoman empires, a meeting point of two significant trade routes, and is thought to be one of Europe’s oldest cities. You can get happily lost for hours in narrow alleyways lined with the workshops of farriers, coppersmiths and potters, or visit the ruins of a 2nd century Roman theatre.
Bansko is another charming destination, blessed with a wealth of cultural monuments and a good base from which to see Europe’s largest bear sanctuary, a very moving experience.
The renowned Rila Monastery, with its astonishing architecture and frescoes, is a penultimate and memorable pitstop as you make your way over the mountains to Sofia. Bulgaria’s cosmopolitan capital makes a fitting place to say your goodbyes to the rest of the group, perhaps over a celebratory meal in one of the city’s many fine restaurants.
Travel Team
If you'd like to chat about this holiday or need help finding one we're very happy to help. The Travel Team.
01273 823 700 Calling from outside the UK? rosy@responsibletravel.com
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Small group adventure
What is a small group adventure?It's a great way to travel! Whether you are travelling on your own, with a partner or with friends, a small group trip is a fantastic way to see the world. You'll travel on a fixed itinerary that has been designed to help you discover the best of region. From the known highlights, the hidden gems that you won't find in the guidebooks.
Itineraries run on set departure dates, accompanied every step of the way by an English speaking local group leader. You chose the itinerary and the date that suits you best and you book on.
Why travel on a small group adventure?
Small groups allow us to explore where larger tour groups can't. Our maximum group size of 16 travellers allows us to use local transport to get from A to B, to visit rural villages, spend time with the locals and even stay at a local home overnight, and it allows us to give our travellers genuine, real life experiences of the countries we are visiting; what you'll be doing and how you'll travel depends entirely on your chosen itinerary.
Is an adventure right for me?
The word adventure means something different to everyone, and our range of trips reflects that. Whether you want to explore local markets, visit out of the way temples and meet local people or go on an early morning safari drive searching for the 'big five', we'll have a trip for you. If you are looking for a physical challenge such trekking the Kokoda Track or summiting Kilimanjaro, we can help with that too.
So what can I expect on this trip?
This is a classic style of small group adventure. You'll find your trip combines a good mix of included activities and free time, with some meals included as per your itinerary. We don't want you to feel chaperoned, it's your holiday not ours. Your group leader will be on hand to assist with organising anything you might wish to do in your free time, but how you spend it is up to you. Anything listed as included in your itinerary will be included in trip price; whereas anything listed as optional will be at an additional cost should you wish to take part.
These trips are great value, including things that you would struggle to organise independently, such as a night at a homestay in a remote village, or local guides around a remote place of interest. Transport will be a combination of private vehicle and public transport, whichever is the most appropriate for the route we are travelling; this might include train, plane, camel, tuk tuk, bicycle, boat…
On a majority of these trips you'll stay in 2-3 star accommodation, locally owned and reflective of the region you are travelling through. All solo travellers will be automatically roomed on a twin share basis with another group member of the same sex, unless you opt to pay for your own room at time of booking. There are no compulsory single supplements for solo travellers willing to share. Single rooms aren't available on camping trips, and you will be expected to help out with camp tasks such as setting up and breaking down your camp.
Responsible tourism
As the pioneers of responsible tourism, we screen every trip so you can travel knowing your holiday will help support conservation and local people.
Our focus is on making a positive impact, providing numerous opportunities for local interaction as we cover so much ground using all means of public transport. You’ll be surprised how much you can learn from a friendly local who strikes up a conversation during your journey. The Impacts of this Trip
Your leader and local guides will be able to direct you to many local eateries throughout the trip, helping you discover real local fare, at real local prices (and probably helping you learn some local language at the same time).
On the many guided town tours we use the services of a local guide, helping to bring money into the local community and giving our travellers the benefit of the experience through the eyes of a local Balkan. For a touch of history we sleep overnight in Oistrog in a very non-commercial 'konak' (simple night quarters) close to the lower monastery, whereas in Transylvania we have the unique opportunity to stay in private apartments run by local families – a very special experience to live as the locals do.
In Istanbul, you will have the opportunity to visit the Bakirkoy orphanage. We encourage our travellers to donate any unwanted items and we organise a small shopping trip prior to the visit to buy useful items such as notebooks, pencils and clothing.
Our focus is on making a positive impact, providing numerous opportunities for local interaction as we cover so much ground using all means of public transport. You’ll be surprised how much you can learn from a friendly local who strikes up a conversation during your journey. The Impacts of this Trip
Your leader and local guides will be able to direct you to many local eateries throughout the trip, helping you discover real local fare, at real local prices (and probably helping you learn some local language at the same time).
On the many guided town tours we use the services of a local guide, helping to bring money into the local community and giving our travellers the benefit of the experience through the eyes of a local Balkan. For a touch of history we sleep overnight in Oistrog in a very non-commercial 'konak' (simple night quarters) close to the lower monastery, whereas in Transylvania we have the unique opportunity to stay in private apartments run by local families – a very special experience to live as the locals do.
In Istanbul, you will have the opportunity to visit the Bakirkoy orphanage. We encourage our travellers to donate any unwanted items and we organise a small shopping trip prior to the visit to buy useful items such as notebooks, pencils and clothing.
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