Location: Varna is located at the north part of the Black sea shore, at the north and west shore of Varna Bay and at the north-east shore of Varna lake. The city is located 450 km east from the capital Sofia.
Population: The residents of Varna are 362 605, which makes it the third largest city in the country after Sofia and Plovdiv. The population of the sea capital of Bulgaria is mainly Eastern Orthodox. The main seat of Varna and Veliki Preslav eparchy of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church is located in the city.
History: Varna is one of the oldest cities in Bulgaria. It has more than six thousand years of history – the first evidence for life here dates back from around the year 4200 B.C. On the territory of the present city, Varna chalcolite necropolis was discovered, where the oldest golden treasure in human history was found.
During the VIIth century B.C. Greek colonizers founded the polis of Odessos at the place of an old Thracian settlement. During the time of Alexander the Great, the city was included in the territory of his empire, preserving, however, its autonomy. At the beginning of the first century A.D., Odessos was the centre of the trade alliance between five cities: Odessos (today’s Varna), Tomi (today’s Constanţa), Kalatea (it does not exist anymore), Mesemvria (today’s Nesebar) and Apolonia (today’s Sozopol). Later it was conquered by the Romans and became part of the Roman Empire.
During the late Antiquity, Odessos was a Byzantine city, which was often destroyed by the Barbarian tribes, such as the Goths, Avars, Proto-Bulgarians and Slavs. During the 6th century the fortress Odessos was completely destroyed and the city was mentioned under the name of Varna later by the Byzantine chronicler Theophanes the Confessor. During the next centuries the city fell sometimes within the territories of the Bulgarian state and sometimes within the territory of the Byzantine state. During the 13th - 14th century there were not only Bulgarian traders in Varna, but also Venetian, Roman, Genoese, Dubrovnik and Florentine traders. From 1372 to 1389 Varna was included in the Principality of Karvuna of Balik.
In 1389 the city was conquered by the Ottoman Turks. On 10th of November, 1444 the united Polish and Hungarian crusade armies of king Vladislav III, who remained in history as Vladislav Varnenchik, together with the armies of the Transylvanian voyvoda John Hunyadi were defeated by the Ottoman army around the city. This was the last attempt to chase away the Ottoman conquerors from Europe. After the Liberation, Varna rapidly developed as a modern port. In 1980, the first modern sea baths were created, which attracted tourists from Central and Eastern Europe. Today the city is called the "pearl" of the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast.
Landmarks:
- Archaeological Museum was established in 1887 by the brothers Karel and Hermenguild Shkorpil. The museum stores the most ancient gold in the world, discovered in 1972 around Varna, which is also known as the Eneolithic Varna Treasure and which dates back to the 4600-4200 B.C. It consists of golden ornaments, with purity from 13 to 23 carats and total weight of about 6 kg.
- The Roman Therms constitute one of the monuments of ancient Odessos. Their remnants can be seen in the south-east part of today's Varna and they date back to the 2nd century A.C. They are the largest antique public building that has been discovered in Bulgaria and the bath with the largest area on the Balkan Peninsula. Its thick walls have been constructed according to a specific technology, alternating stone blocks and five or six rows of thick clay bricks. The internal stairs and the arcs of the doors are made of huge stone blocks, while at some places one can still see fragments from magnificent mosaics. These, together with the decorative marble fragments, the pillars and the chapiters are evidence of the exuberant decoration that ornamented the building.
- Naval Museum in Varna is a branch of the National Historical Military Museum. It is one of the 100 national tourist sites of the Bulgarian Tourist Union. Besides the naval guns and the old lighthouse of Varna port, in the yard of the Navy Museum one can see the Kor Karoly Yacht, which Georgi Georgiev used to make the first Bulgarian independent sailing tour around the Earth. In the museum one can also visit the Bulgarian naval torpedo ship "Drazki", renowned for its actions during the Balkan war and which has been transformed into a museum.
- Dormition of the Theotokos Cathedral is located at the very centre of Varna and it is the largest and most beautiful Orthodox Church at the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast. Through the years it has become one of the symbols of the city and it is one of the main sights visited by tourists. It has impressive architecture and rich internal ornamentation and it also fascinates with its gold-plated domes.
Surroundings:
- Aladzha Monastery is a Bulgarian medieval engraved monastery, which is located about 17 km from Varna and 3 km away from the Golden Sands resort. Its name originates from the Turkish word alaca, which means "multi-coloured, variegated". Aladzha monastery was built around the 12th - 13th century but was abandoned at the beginning of the 18th century.
- Euxinograd Palace is one of the few European style palaces built in Bulgaria after the Liberation of the country. With area of 800 acres, it is a national monument of gardening and landscaping art. Its architecture and historical monuments make it a preferred place for visit and recreation by the residents of Varna and the visitors of the city. It is a natural continuation of Primorski Park on the north and a connection to the Park of the Sts Constantine and Helena Resort. The palace is also renowned with its winery, built in 1891 for the needs of the royal family and their guests. Today, in the palace’ cellars, one can taste from 12 sorts of white wine and 7 types of brandies, the most popular of which is called "evskinyak".
- Botanical garden in Blachik the city Balchik is situated in a bay area on the Northern part of the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, at about 45 km Nord from Varna and 35 km South-East from Dobrich. The biggest botanical garden in Bulgaria is here, integrated in the park of the former royal palace of the Romanian queen Marie. The garden is designed by Swiss landscapist Jules Jany. It covers total area of 6,5 ha and shelters about 2500 different plants belonging to 85 families and 200 different types. One of the main attractions of the botanical garden is its collection of giant cactuses and succulent plants, that covers an area of about 1 000 square meters, and which is the second largest in Europe after the exotic garden in Monaco.
- Cape Kaliakra is extremely picturesque site situated at 12 km east from the town of Kavarna and at 60 km north-east from the city of Varna.
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