This is the biggest and the most famous monastery in Bulgaria, a UNESCO world heritage site. It is a must see place for any tourist in Bulgaria. There one can feel the local culture and spirit. I strongly recommend trying the products of monastery's bakery...More

This is an excellent idea for a day trip from Sofia. We bought a shuttle tour via V Travel, the leaflets are available at the Sofia tourist office (i couldn't find any public transportation going there).The monastery is quite impressive, with a magnificent orthodox church...More

We read about the Rila Monastery prior to our arrival in Bulgaria and we were looking forward to the visit. We also booked a night's stay at the monastery so that we would have sufficient time to slowly explore the place. We found the architecture...More

It is quite hard to get here, so I got an organised tour from Sofia. It gave me lots of free time in the Monastery, and also some info on the way there and back. I think it was the best way to visit Rila...More

We drove from our hotel in Sofia to the Ria mountains via the 139km motorway. We then drove another 40 minutes through little villages on an OK minor road to the Monastery. You can park just before the large car park for free. The monastery...More

We decided that an organised tour would be easier, and with the inclusion of Boyana church, more time-efficient for us. The public service bus from Sofia to Rila would have been cheaper but the bus station is a little way from the centre, plus we...More

This monastery is quite a way from Sofia, but can be reached on a day trip from there. It is impressive and very well-maintained (it owns an efficient forestry operation that generates a lot of revenue for it). The church within the monastery is unlike...More