National Astronomical Observatory “Rozhen”

The Rhodopi Mountains hide within them a lot of interesting places, but today we will introduce you to a particular one, which can take you far beyond the limits of Earth – the “Rozhen” observatory. It is an amazing choice for a tourist stop when you are having a trip around the area, even if you are not particularly inclined towards space and stars.

The “Rozhen” observatory isn’t just a place, where you can watch the vast universe. It is the biggest observatory on the Balkan Peninsula and in Southeastern Europe as a whole, so it is worth it to give it a visit. Especially, if you consider the fact that the views along the way are nothing to scoff at either.

Because the observatory is located on top of mount Holy Spirit, the panoramic view that you can see from there is another reason, because of which you should go and see the place. The fresh air you find at 1700 meters above sea level makes the trip around that location another great way to escape the burden of the everyday city life.

But the most interesting thing to find there is a jewel for the admirers of the Cosmos. The “Rozhen” observatory is not just the biggest on the Balkans, but it is also equipped with amazing super high class telescopes. The biggest one weighs tens of tons and Bulgaria is among the few countries, which can actually say that about themselves. Even more – it is accessible to tourists, so through it you can see faraway galaxies, comets, stars and other interesting objects in the sky.

While you can go to mount Holy Spirit any time you want, the working hours of the observatory trips are 10 am to 4 pm during the winter and 10 am to 5 pm during the summer. These trips happen with groups of 6 to 25 people, and a lecturer from the observatory will tell you more about the interesting sights and the history of the place. The visits themselves don’t include looking through a telescope, but that can be done outside of the scheduled lectures.

The best practice is to go there as a group when you have reserved a trip beforehand. Another even greater alternative is to call and ask about nightly observations. Then you can see the space bodies even more clearly and again a lecturer can tell you more about what you are watching. However, the nightly visits require you to schedule them with the observatory beforehand for days with appropriate weather forecast. The visiting group must also be larger than 4 people.

But whether you go there as a group or individual tourists, there will always be something interesting you can see, learn, or feel.

The observatory is located just 40 km away from Borovo. Exiting the village you have to hit the 8611 road towards road 861 and from there you go towards the town of Laki along the mentioned road. Soon you will go through another village and you will reach the Kutsinsko swamp, which is a Bulgarian landmark. Shortly after the swamp there is a crossing. Take the road to the right, which is road 8612. It leads directly to the observatory. This is the only way to get there so you cannot mistake it by any means.

We hope you have a nice day out to the amazing observatory. Don’t forget you have the option to book a stay at guest house “Kalina” in Borovo, where you can stay before or after your trip.