Nestled right in the heart of the Bulgarian nation, Kazanlak sits encompassed by blooming valleys of Kazanluk roses, verdant hillsides and the looming ridges of the central Balkan Mountains. This historic town is famed for its wealth of ancient Thracian dig sites, aromatic rosewater trade and also boasts a curious cross-section of cultures and creeds, mixing Russian orthodoxy with Ottoman heritage at every turn.
Be sure to ask your Kazanlak tourist guide about the wealth of museums here that reflect the region’s long and rich history, from the literary and art museum of Chudomir, to the Iskra Rose Museum, which chronicles centuries of fragrant oil production in the hills.
For more adventurous types eager to make the ubiquitous jaunt through the nearby Valley of Roses, there are also possible excursions to the Shipka National Park and rugged rises of the Sredna Gora Mountains that may sate the appetite, boasting a wealth of royal Thracian tombs and old Liberation War battlefields along the way.