Karlovo Travel Guide

 johngayton Says:  Whilst much of the town is dominated by Levski-inspired historical markers it does have a rich history and culture in its own right. Evidence dates it back to Stone Age times and through the Thracian and Roman periods it was a local trade and manufacturing centre. During the... 

 johngayton Says:  Vasil Levski was born Vasil Ivanovich Kunchev, the eldest son of Ivan and Gina Kunchev, here in Karlovo on the 18th July 1837. His father was a wool dyer by trade at a time when the town was one of the Ottoman Empire's main suppliers of woolen braid.The house where he was... 

 johngayton Says:  This is probably the Bulgarian people's best known monument and every year on February 19th, the anniversary of his execution, thousands come to pay homage from all over the country. The monument is situated, appropriately enough, on Vasil Levski Square in the old town. To... 

 young.chris82 Says:  The area around Karlovo and Sopot has suffered in recent years with a very distinct lack of decent quality restaurants. This has now been remedied with the opening of ‘River Side’ restaurant in Karavelovo on the 8th of April 2010. This is a very high specification... 

 johngayton Says:  One of my observations during my travels around Bulgaria is that there seems to be very few places where you can go just to have a few drinks. Even places that look like they should be pubs, with proper bars and barstools etc, often turn out to be restaurants and you do get... 

 johngayton Says:  For a day out from Plovdiv buses run from the city's South (Yug) bus station every hour with a journey time of 1 hour 15 minutes. Karlovo town's bus station (Avtogara) is south of the town centre but the buses stop and pick up from a stop in the centre itself. The service is... 

 johngayton Says:  ...then you can always try hitching a lift on the local's transport.OK Just gratuitous use of the pics! Karlovo actually does have a good local public bus system. However unless you want to visit somewhere out of the town everywhere of interest is in easy walking distance. 

 johngayton Says:  ...take the train!The single bus fare (Jan 2010) to Karlovo from Plovdiv was 4.60 leva (no matter which company you use) but the train is only 3.60 and the track follows pretty much the same route as the bus.The drawbacks though are that the trains take about 20 minutes... 

 mirchica Says:  The date of Vasil Levski’s birth it is celebrated on 18 of July. A national fair Vasil Levski’s Day is organized on this day with a traditional literary morning in the birth house of Levski.Also there are variety of performances, scientific conferences, sport and tourist... 

 lillyia Says:  A nice place on the Stara reka. The chalet is about 2 hours from Karlovo on one of the most beautiful hiking trails in Central Balkan National Park. It's a good choice for one day trip or, you could stay here overnight and continue on the next morning to Levski challet/hut... 

 johngayton Says:  Rose oil has been one of the Karlovo region's main livelihoods for well over 150 years. It seems that the valley has ideal growing conditions to maximise the yields. Even in winter there's still cultivation in greenhouses and polytunnels and as the bus travels through you'll... 

 johngayton Says:  When I first noticed this statue in Karlovo's 20th July Square I assumed it was a tribute to the heroes of Bulgaria's Nationalist Liberation Movement. Not so. The curator at the town's History Museum informs me that it is just "Komunista Propoganda". Perhaps this is why I...