Easy hikes and walks in Plovdiv Region

To get there, you have to take a steep, signposted dirt road from the village itself. The road is shared, so you have to keep one thing in mind when descending.

Tsar Asen's Fortress As archaeological finds show, the fortress was built by the Byzantines in the 9th century to both monitor the passage to the White/Aegean Sea and to protect the Byzantine border in this area. In 1231, Tsar Ivan Asen II carried out a series of improvements to the fortress to strengthen it. This is evidenced by an inscription carved into a rock of the fortress. The fortress existed until 1410. It occupied the entire rock massif and had an area of 12 decares. The only remaining building from the fortress's past grandeur is the Church of the Holy Mother of God of Petrich, built in the 12th century. The fortress has been declared a National Cultural Monument.

The lanterns in this neighborhood always light up briefly when a child is born in Plovdiv

The mosque is known as the Sultan Murad Mosque, Hüdavendigar Mosque, Cuma (Friday) Mosque, and Ulu (Great) Mosque. It was built during the reign of Sultan Murad I in 1358 and was part of the Sultan Murad Hüdavendigar building complex. The complex included Kulliye, Kursunlu Khan, the Great Bedesten (Bazaar), and the Hüdavendigar Mosque. Today, only the mosque remains. With its elongated shape and size of 30 x 40 m, it is one of the largest mosques in the Balkans.

ROMAN STADIUM OF PHILIPOPPOL The Stadium of Philippoppol was built at the beginning of the 2nd century AD during the reign of Emperor Hadrian. It is located at the northern end of the fortified city, between two fortress walls, in the natural area between the western slope of Taksim Tepe and the eastern slope of Sahat Tepe. The approximately 240-meter-long and 50-meter-wide facility can accommodate up to 30,000 spectators. Many different sports and other competitions were held on the Roman stadium's race track. Over the years, archaeological excavations, carried out in various phases and beginning in 1907-1908, have uncovered the monumental portal at the southern end and the curved part of the northern end – the sfendona. The 14 rows of seats, made of monolithic marble blocks decorated with stylized lion paws, are located beneath the buildings on both sides of today's main street. Like the spectacular buildings throughout the empire, some of the seats in the stadium bear Greek inscriptions designating the honored spectator positions. The northern curved section of the stadium (sendona) is exhibited in situ in the Roman stadium plaza. A covered vaulted passage was found beneath the amphitheater rows of seats (cavea), connecting the track to a corridor—a road excavated into the natural terrain. A hut was built over the vault. North of the corridor, a section of the Phili Poppol fortress wall was found, built in the 2nd century AD and renovated in the 3rd-4th centuries AD. In the 4th century AD, this area was crossed by an ancient aqueduct. The main entrance to the stadium consists of masonry columns decorated with marble pilasters and reliefs, and is now on display in the Regional Archaeological Museum in Plovdiv. On the pilasters are busts of Hermes (Hermai), with prize vases containing palm sprays placed above them, accompanied by Heracles' attributes – a lion's skin, a club, and a kite. In 1995, the Phili Poppol Stadium was declared a landmark of national and cultural importance. Between 2009 and 2012, the archaeological complex was renovated as part of the project BG 0041 "Ancient Stadium of Phili Poppol - Conservation, Rehabilitation, and Urban Renewal" with support from the European Economic Area Financial Mechanism.

Easily accessible. The area is very beautiful.

A wonderful place to seek salvation on hot summer days.

The panoramic terrace is located in the courtyard of the church of the Plovdiv Metropolis. During the day, the entrance is free, and the view, especially at sunset, is worth it.