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Rila Monastery Tour: Explore Bulgaria's Heritage
4.6
21 Ratings
Sofia
Explore Bulgaria’s Rila Monastery with guided or audio tours. Discover medieval treasures and stunning landscapes. Book your adventure today.
Explore Bulgaria’s Rila Monastery with guided or audio tours. Discover medieval treasures and stunning landscapes. Book your adventure today.
Duration:
8 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Vasil Levski Monument - Departure is scheduled for 09:00 from the starting location. Please ensure arrival at least 15 minutes prior to departure.
- Rila Monastery - The Rila Monastery is a renowned symbol of Bulgaria and a favored tourist attraction. Nestled in the heart of the Rila Mountain, it lies between the Rilska and Drushliavitza…
- Vasil Levski Monument - Departure is scheduled for 09:00 from the starting location. Please ensure arrival at least 15 minutes prior to departure.
- Rila Monastery - The Rila Monastery is a renowned symbol of Bulgaria and a favored tourist attraction. Nestled in the heart of the Rila Mountain, it lies between the Rilska and Drushliavitza Rivers, at an elevation of 1147 meters (3760 feet) above sea level. It is located 120 kilometers south of Sofia.
- Rila Monastery - Following the guided tour, there will be free time available for further exploration, lunch, photography, and more.
- Vasil Levski Monument - The return to the starting location is expected around 17:00.
What's Included
- Driver/Tour guide in English
- Transport by air-conditioned minibus
- Parking Fees
- Driver/Tour guide in English
- Transport by air-conditioned minibus
- Parking Fees
What's Not Included
- Gratuities
- Food and drinks
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- Entrance fees
- Gratuities
- Food and drinks
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- Entrance fees
Additional Information
Experience one of Bulgaria’s UNESCO World Heritage treasures on this day trip from Sofia. Journey by minibus and enjoy the scenic views of rural Bulgaria as you head to the Rila Monastery, nestled in the pine-covered Rila Mountains. Participate in a guided tour of this medieval marvel, featuring a church adorned with frescoes, and explore its intriguing…
Experience one of Bulgaria’s UNESCO World Heritage treasures on this day trip from Sofia. Journey by minibus and enjoy the scenic views of rural Bulgaria as you head to the Rila Monastery, nestled in the pine-covered Rila Mountains. Participate in a guided tour of this medieval marvel, featuring a church adorned with frescoes, and explore its intriguing museum. Afterwards, take some time to wander around on your own. Please note that entrance fees are not included.
The tour provides three options:
- A guided tour with an English-speaking live guide.
- A tour with an audio guide available in Spanish, Italian, German, Russian, or English.
- Transport only (this option may not be available on certain dates).
- Due to uneven surfaces, this tour is not recommended for those with walking disabilities
- Comfortable walking shoes recommended
- All touch points in the vehicles will be cleaned frequently.
- Minimum traveler age is 5 years old
- The total duration of the tour includes the travel time
Location
bul. "Yanko Sakazov" 9
bulevard "Yanko Sakazov"
IMPORTANT: The meeting point is next to the Vasil Levski Monument, in front of the Embassy of Slovakia. Please be there 15 minutes in advance. This tour is not suitable for children under the age of 5.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.6
(21 Ratings)
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Ana_r
May 5, 2026
It is worth a visit to Rila! - The guide was very friendly and helpful and the place wonderful. The frescoes, the perfect arches, the peace of the place marked the day without a doubt.
Review provided by Viator
Lucy_s
Apr 20, 2026
Great guide made this a fun day - Well organized trip for such a big group. Our guide gave us a great explanation and history of Bulgaria as we were driving. He was very specific with departure times which kept us on track. It was nice to leave the city and see the monastery.
Review provided by Viator
Michelapn3474bh
Feb 18, 2026
Monastery of Rila - Unique and beautiful place despite the rain. Guide very prepared and helpful. Cheap tour and absolutely to recommend.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Kathleen_b
Jan 6, 2026
Didn't set off on time... - Didn't set off on time but considering the number of people going it wasn't surprising. The coach was comfortable and warm. The monastery is well worth a visit but it wasn't comfortable hanging about in such cold weather. Our guide was superb. Restaurant/cafe was well worth a visit and reasonably priced. All round - great day.
Review provided by Viator
Alianassar404
Dec 25, 2025
Great time - Was great tour. Bus was amazing, clean, charging outlet and new. The driver Assan and the tour guide Simone were great and funny.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Rosario_c
Oct 4, 2025
Tour Rila and Boyana Bulgaria. - We visited Rila Monastery and Boyana Church with Traventuria agency. We found a coach made up of only Italians with a guide in Italian. In the morning they welcomed us on a cozy and comfortable van. The guide, a Bulgarian girl who spoke perfect Italian was a cicero, very considerate and kind. She made sure, both on the way and on the way back she made the appeal to make sure no one stayed on the ground. 5 stars!
Review provided by Viator
Emanuela_d
Sep 30, 2025
Excellent... - Excellent experience, great driving and organization. Bus clean and comfortable. Highly recommended
Review provided by Viator
Carlos_v
Jun 30, 2026
Nice tour - I bought the 3-1 ticket, but I was mixed with people that only had Boyana and Rila, so they got the Bells for free. That's not a problem at all, even if I payed some more euros, but the thing was that the tour guide told me that my place to enter the Boyana church was not confirmed, but the website says that they book the place in advance for you and you have to pay on site. Hopefully there were some extra places and I could visit it. The rest of the tour was good, very well explained by Hristo, the ites we visit and Bulgarian history.
Review provided by Viator
Daniela_d
Oct 28, 2025
Tour guide was very nice,... - Tour guide was very nice, driver was very good. The monastery is awesome!
Word of advise: if you have mobility & severe chronic pains issues, do not just state so, speak up before the trip starts that the front seat is for such people, and be brave to ask your tour guide to put you there.
Beware that fellow travellers (like the ones I found) might be egoistic and cruel not caring enough to understand even if you explain your pain, that the level of vibrations in the rest of the bus is unbearable for you! If you stay shy and laid back like I did you are in for a nasty two hour ride.
Normal people though are perfectly comfortable in any part of the bus and vibrations are unnoticeable, apparently
Review provided by Viator
Alex_r
May 13, 2026
Itinerary was not as stated at time of booking - Unfortunately I have to leave a negative review for this tour.
The itinerary stated on the Viator site at the time of booking was to leave Sofia at 9am and return at 5pm after visiting Rila Monastery. However, when we left the Monastery (which is very nice) we were taken to a winery, where we stayed for 45 mins, and did not return to Sofia until 7pm. We had to significantly change our evening plans as a result of arriving back late.
When we asked the tour guide Hristo why the winery stop was included, he said it was a standard part of the tour and we would need to speak to the tour company. To be honest, he didn't seem bothered at all. Others on the tour were in the same situation, so this must surely happen all the time. I imagine the winery stop is for the guide to get commission from people buying the wine, regardless of whether it was on their original itinerary.
Overall, very disappointing. I messaged the Bulgarian tour company who runs the tours and who the guide works for (Traventuria) and have not received a reply.
I recommend booking the Rila Monastery tour through a different provider and with a different tour company.
Review provided by Viator
