Holidays in Balchik Bulgaria

Balchik is an interesting old town and it is well worth spending some time here for a summer holiday or investing some hard earned money into a coastal property of your liking.

The town itself is full of street cafes and shop in the market.

Ancient Greeks traded here and the Bulgarians had a flourishing port for 700 years until 1396 when the Turks arrived. It then remained a mainly Muslim town until the last century.

Many older buildings have survived and as you walk down the steep main street to the harbour there are tantalising glimpses of bell towers, a mineret, terraced gardens, old granaries and the sea beyond. You’ll find traditional Balkan style houses around the market area and a Turkish mosque nearby.
The Museum of National Revival includes Balchik’s first Bulgarian church . The town’s two museums have interesting collections of costumes, crafts and pottery. Similarly to Kavarna, Balchik is quite a large town found on the coast to the North of Bulgaria. It has a population of around 14.000 people and a sea port which is mainly used for small passenger and commercial vessels.

Balchik can be found only 30km to the North of Varna and therefore gives easy access to the long long Bugarian coastline and sandy beaches, but also to Varna airport. Like Dobrich the town was annexed to Romania after the Balkan war which ended in 1913.

Enchanted by the town’s natural beauty, Queen Maria of Romania built a summer palace and botanical garden there, which prompted the town to turn into one of the most prominent resorts of the time.

After 1940 the town once again became part of Bulgaria.

Apart from the palace complex and the botanical garden, the town also appeals to tourists with its steep pebbled streets and houses made of stone and adobe.

In addition to the palace there are a number of historical places of interest to visit. St Nikola Church for example, a small ethnographic museum, Art Gallery and of course the harbour itself.

4km from Balchik is Touzlata.

Here you will find a Balneological Centre set beside two lakes, well known for it’s curative mud. There is also a mineral spring with a water temperature of above 30 C degrees. A camp site can also be found there offering opportunities for water sports, clubs and numerous bungalows for tourists. Closeby in neighbouring Obrochishte there is a well preserved fortress dating back to the early Ottoman rule, most interesting and well worth a visit.