Troyan – Culture, Nature and Suitable Accommodation

Troyan Municipality extends across the Osam, Yantra and Vit river basins; about 80% of the municipality lies in the Osam basin. Most of the Sopot Reservoir is also within the municipality. Cultural attractions include Troyan Monastery, museums and exhibitions dedicated to regional crafts. Chiflik offers warm mineral springs and access points for marked hiking trails.

The Troyan Monastery of the Dormition of the Mother of God lies on the banks of the Cherni Osam River near Oreshak. It is considered the largest monastery in the Balkan Mountains and Bulgaria’s third-largest spiritual center. The monastery church features frescoes by Zahari Zograf dating from the Bulgarian National Revival. Visitors interested in church art and history will find this a distinctive highlight of the region.

In Troyan, the Museum of Folk Arts and Applied Arts focuses on craft products, tools, forms, uses and decorative techniques. It traces the development of local ceramics from the Ceramic Neolithic to the Bulgarian National Revival and documents the Troyan School of Ceramics. The museum offers visits to a pottery workshop, as well as demonstrations of icon painting and woodcarving.

In Oreshak, the National Exhibition of Arts and Crafts displays folk art objects by recognized masters from all of Bulgaria’s ethnographic regions. Visitors can try regional crafts such as pottery, woodcarving, pyrography and weaving. The municipality thus offers different ways to explore crafts and ceramics.

The Steneto Biosphere Reserve is in Troyan Municipality and forms part of Central Balkan National Park. Natural attractions visitors can explore there include Raychova Dupka, Ptichata Dupka and Kumanitsa caves, the Markova Dupka rock arch, and the waterfalls at Cher nokozhi and Konski Dol. The Natural History Museum in Cherni Osam complements these interests with insights into the region’s wildlife and natural attractions in the Balkan Mountains and nearby Central Balkan National Park. It preserves more than 700 exhibits and displays more than 25 species of taxidermied mammals.

A panoramic hiking trail leads from the National Exhibition of Arts and Crafts in Oreshak through the Sadina area and a mixed beech forest to the Natural History Museum and the Mountain Guides School in Cherni Osam. For a longer mountain hike, a route runs from the Smesite area near Cherni Osam to Ambaritsa Hut: it takes 3 hours and requires good mountaineering preparation.

Chiflik has several warm mineral springs with temperatures of up to 55°C. There are also warm mineral springs in Shipkovo. Several trails from Chiflik also lead into Central Balkan National Park and to Kozya Stena Reserve. One described route follows a 3.5 km asphalt road to Haydushka Pesenn Hut, then continues along a marked hiking trail to Kozya Stena Hut, taking 2 hours and 30 minutes. These details can help you plan your hike around the specific route and walking time given.

Other places in the municipality include Debnevo, Chiflik, Gorno Trape, Trojan, Oreshak, Balkanets, Shipkovo, Staro Selo, Kaleytsa and Balabansko.

The ancient Via Trayana road runs through Troyan Municipality. Sostra was the sixth road station on this route between Lower Moesia and Thrace. Alongside the Sostra Roman Fortress, there is a paved road and a parking lot. In Cherni Osam, the annual “Chukan Bob s Kopriva i Horo se Izviva” festival pairs the regional dish of beans with nettles with music and dancing. The municipality’s offerings thus range from archaeology and crafts to regional cuisine.

Where are the warm mineral springs?

There are warm mineral springs in Chiflik and Shipkovo. Several springs in Chiflik are listed with temperatures of up to 55°C.

How long does the route from Chiflik to Kozya Stena Hut take?

The marked hiking trail from Haydushka Pesenn Hut to Kozya Stena Hut is listed as taking 2 hours and 30 minutes. Before that, the route follows a 3.5 km asphalt road to Haydushka Pesenn Hut.

What does the Museum of Folk Arts in Troyan display?

It displays craft products, tools and decorative techniques, and traces the development of local ceramics and the Troyan School of Ceramics.

For the wider travel overview: Lovech Province.