Welcome to SOFIA! Upon arrival at the airport, we will transfer you to your hotel. You will receive the information about the beginning of your tour. At 15.00hrs approx., we include a city tour of the capital of Bulgaria, where we will see the Alexander Nevski Cathedral, the Russian Church, the Mosque, its squares and avenues of Stalinist architecture. Free time during the rest of the day.

In the morning we will leave for BACHKOVO MONASTERY, Bulgaria’s second most important monastery, founded in the eleventh century, with its three churches, we feel it as a place full of peace. We continue to PLOVDIV. Lunch included before the sightseeing tour of one of the oldest cities in Europe. Here we include tickets to the Roman Amphitheatre, the ancient chemist’s and the Armenian House.

Today’s journey takes us through beautiful scenery across the Balkans mountain range. In the valley of the Roses, we will see KAZANLAK, where tickets are included to the replica of the Thracian Tomb (UNESCO Heritage) and we will learn about the production of products derived from the roses. Amidst the mountains, we stop at the Russian church of SHIPKA, which commemorates the war between Russia and Turkey. Visit ETARA with its charming village/ethnographic museum. Lunch included. After this we travel to ARBANASSI, an ancient trading city with its fortress-houses, where we visit the Church of the Nativity (admission included). Travel to VELIKO TARNOVO, Bulgaria’s former capital, with a very picturesque medieval center.

Note: In some cases, Arbanassi may be visited on Sunday morning instead of Saturday.

We travel to Romania and on our way we will make a stop to visit the BASARBOVSKI MONASTERY, a place of pilgrimage dug out of the rock. We proceed to cross the border and the river Danube, arriving to BUCHAREST around 13:00 hrs. Lunch included. We will have a sightseeing tour of the city with its ancient quarter and the giant Parliament Palace. Free time afterwards.

Today we have a journey of a great scenic beauty, travelling to Transylvania across the Carpathian Mountains and through forests. In SINAIA, we will stroll through the gardens of the Peles and Pelisor Castles before going on to the 14th-century BRAN fortress, commonly known as Dracula’s Castle (tickets included). Time for lunch before continuing to SIGHISOARA, a very beautiful walled medieval city and UNESCO Heritage center. In the evening we will enjoy a very special dinner, in the restaurant of Count Dracula, at the house, where Vlad Tepes was born.

In Transylvania there are numerous fortified churches in areas that were inhabited by people of German origin; some of these churches have been declared Heritage of Mankind, and we will see one of them, BIERTAN (tickets included). After this, we continue to SIBIU, an important economic and cultural center, previously the capital of Transylvania, with its bustling narrow streets and squares. Time for a stroll and take lunch. In the afternoon, we visit the impressive Castle of HUNEDOARA (tickets included), which is considered the prettiest castle in Romania. We continue to TIMISOARA, with time to explore its elegant central squares.

We set off for SERBIA and cross the border. After a few hours travelling we will arrive in BELGRADE. Here you can enjoy a city tour of this active capital on the shores of the Danube as it flows into the Sava. We get the chance to admire its busy center, its parliament, and stroll in the Kalemegdan Fortress. A visit to the Museum of Yugoslavia, where Tito´s Mausoleum is located, will also be included. Free time in the afternoon.

We begin our beautiful stage traveling to the Voivodina region. We make a stop in SREMSKA MITROVICA, a city with a pleasant historic center on the banks of the Sava River that was one of the most important in the Roman Empire, the capital of the province of Pannonia. We include the admission to the grounds of the Imperial Palace of Sirmium, which illustrates us that period. Afterwards we continue towards Bosnia. We will make a stop in the city of ZVORNIK, one of the oldest cities in Bosnia, crossed by a river that forms the border with Serbia and make us sadly remember the Bosnian war. Its population since then has changed a lot since the majority of it, Muslim, was expelled while Serbian refugees from other regions settled. We are near the village of Srebrenica, known for the massacre. Time for lunch and a walk. We continue our route between beautiful landscapes to SARAJEVO. Arrival in the evening and time in the historic center during which you can stroll through the charming bazaar, an old Ottoman market famous for its architecture, oriental atmosphere and traditional shops. Dinner included.

In the morning we will have a sightseeing tour with a local guide in SARAJEVO, a fascinating city known as "Jerusalem of Europe" due to the coexistence of several religions. Mosques, churches and synagogues reflect religious diversity. We will observe the great Ottoman influence in its old town, with its great mosque of more than 500 years old and its beautiful fountain. After the visit we continue our route in an area of pure beauty. MOSTAR with its wonderful historic center and its stone bridge that separates the Orthodox, Muslim and Catholic communities. Time for lunch and stroll through the city. We continue to Croatia. Border procedures (can be long). DUBROVNIK, arrival at the end of the day. Dinner included.

In the morning we enjoy a city tour of DUBROVNIK with a local guide. We are undoubtedly in one of the most beautiful cities in Europe, surrounded by walls, bathed by the Adriatic Sea; its intact historic center is a jewel of world architectural heritage. The tour includes tickets to the Franciscan Monastery with the oldest pharmacy in Europe, and the Cathedral. We also include a boat trip to LOKRUM, a small island 15 minutes by boat from Dubrovnik and home to the ruins of a Benedictine monastery of the eleventh century, popular setting of the series "Game of Thrones". You can then enjoy free time, returning to the hotel at the end of the afternoon. Dinner included.

Note: in some departures, accommodation may be in Cavtat, a coastal town near the city of Dubrovnik.
Note: in the winter months, from November to March, there is no boat service to Lokrum and therefore we cannot visit the island.

We set off early for MONTENEGRO. Border procedures. The coastal scenery and the Bay of Kotor are beautiful. We take a ferry to cross the bay. Arrival in KOTOR to enjoy some time strolling in this beautiful walled town with its strong Venetian influence. After this we make a stop in BUDVA, a marvelous walled village surrounded by the sea to enjoy lunch. Then we travel to ALBANIA. We arrive in the capital of the Albania, TIRANA, and enjoy some free time. Dinner included.

Today we have a city tour of TIRANA, with its Mosques, the Clock Tower and the ministries. Around midday we leave for inland Albania, with high mountain scenery and small villages along the way. Enjoy the beautiful countryside around Lake Ohrid which forms the border with Macedonia. We continue to the Republic of Macedonia (border procedures). Time to have lunch in STRUGA, a picturesque town on the shores of the lake.
We continue to OHRID, a city with a strong Ottoman influence, a World Heritage Site. You will have time to see the Plaosnik Monastery or the ancient university founded in the ninth century. Dinner included.

Today we travel through Macedonia to GREECE, passing through BITOLA, a historic city that was called the “City of Consuls”. Border procedures, entering Greece. The North of Greece has a strong Slavic and Ottoman influence and a very rugged geography. Situated by the lake, with beautiful scenery, we see KASTORIA. Enjoy the city of 100 churches, with its medieval streets and its pleasant restaurants on the lakeside. Continuing to KALAMBAKA, we will arrive in the afternoon. We will visit the Valley of the Meteora, an impressive place declared UNESCO World Heritage. You will also have the chance to enter one of its most famous Monasteries (entrance included). Dinner included.

We travel through the North of Greece, amidst pretty mountain scenery to the Aegean Sea. We arrive in THESSALONIKI with time for a stroll and lunch in Greece’s second largest city. After this we continue towards BULGARIA, crossing the border. In Bulgarian Macedonia we will make a stop in MELNIK, picturesque museum-town among beautiful landscapes in the center of a wine-producing area. We arrive in SANDANSKI, at this beautiful small spa town, the birthplace of Spartacus. Dinner and accommodation.

Conocemos el bellísimo Monasterio de Rila, Patrimonio de la Humanidad, con su imagen de fortaleza entre bosques. Continuación a SOFIA, llegada al final de la mañana.

After breakfast, end of our services.