3-Day Bulgaria Capitals Tour with Pliska, Madara and Sofia

Start chronologically from the earliest sites in history to the present day.

Arrive in the Shumen area and visit the first Bulgarian capital, Pliska.

Continue to Veliki Preslav, which is in the same area. Preslav was declared the second capital a few centuries later. This town is known as a literary and cultural center of the first Bulgarian kingdoms.

After visiting the two sites, return to Shumen and have a late lunch.

After lunch, visit the local museum and see artifacts from the Neolithic, Chalcolithic, Bronze Age, Iron Age, Antiquity, and the Middle Ages.

Head to the ruins of the fortress above Shumen.

After dinner, rest at a local hotel.

After a quick breakfast, buy some supplies for the day in Shumen.

Continue to the shamanic center of the First Bulgarian Kingdom - the Madara Horseman. This monument represents the beliefs of the nomadic tribes and their horseman god, Tangra. The place is magical and special for many people nowadays.

After Madara, continue to Veliko Tarnovo. Have lunch in a restaurant in the old town with traditional Bulgarian food.

Next, visit the ruins of Tsarevets, the second Bulgarian capital. After visiting the site, go to the local museum and once again see some of the artifacts from the region.

Return to the hotel and, after a shower, continue with the cultural part of the day. Tarnovo, as a student town, has good nightlife, so if you still have enough energy after a long day, grab a beer in one of the local clubs.

On the last day of the trip, travel from Veliko Tarnovo to the last Bulgarian capital, Sofia.

Start again with breakfast and refill your provisions for the day.

Go on a nearly 200 km journey towards Sofia and visit the ancient ruins of Serdica, the Roman fortress in the center of the city, a unique Orthodox church from the 13th century, the biggest church in Bulgaria - Alexander Nevsky, and the Archaeological Museum.

Have lunch in one of the city's good restaurants.