Jul 24, 2026
Beautiful mix of culture and nature! - We had a wonderful day at Rilla Monastery and Seven Lakes! We were positively surprised that the hike was not too difficult. The start was a bit steep but that only lasted for 10-15 minutes! If you book both destinations you will most likely only see three lakes, as you will run out of time. It’s still worth it! We got lucky with the weather! Bring another layer as the way down gets a bit chillier than the way up!
Review provided by Viator
Jul 24, 2026
Beautiful and Informative - The monastery is beautiful and the setting incredible. You cannot believe the mosaics. The entire sanctuary is covered with beautiful works of art. And amazing gold work. The stairs to the old tower are no joke! Be ready to climb!
I was so fortunate to sit in front with Lyubo, who was a font of information about the history of Bulgaria from it's roots. I have never had a tour guide so well read and interested in everything. Thank you!
Review provided by Viator
Mar 20, 2026
The taxi driver the best - Essential to go, it is very nice, it is worth it! Besides our driver was very nice and explained many things about Bulgaria and the monastery.
Review provided by Viator
Dec 13, 2025
Rila - Amazing informative and thoroughly enjoyable tour, monastery was beautiful and then the blueberry wine from locals so tasty. Morgan was a wealth of knowledge and inspiration!
Review provided by Viator
Dec 13, 2025
Amazing - The experience was unbeatable. The driver couldn't have been better. He told us a lot about the history of Sofia and Bulgaria in general; he was clearly a very cultured person. He was incredibly kind and attentive to us, he adapted to our needs. I don't usually leave reviews, but this time he 100% deserves it.
Review provided by Viator
Nov 2, 2025
Great experience - This should definitely be visited when you are in Sofia. Very worth seeing in the middle of the mountains😉
Review provided by Viator
Sep 29, 2025
A Fabulous late afternoon experience Rila Monastery - Our leader was Nikolay on the 1/2 day trip from Sofia to the Rila Monastery. I cannot say enought about what a great and knowledgeable tour guide he was. It was a small group (7) in a van. We were on the 3:30 PM, so when we arrived, we had the place to ourselves; there were zero tour buses there. He also took great photos for us. He talked the perfect amount and pointed out areas of interest. Highly recommend this experience! And the Monastery cannot be missed.
Review provided by Viator
Aug 8, 2025
Half-Day Tour to Rila Monastery - Due to lack of time we had decided for the half-day tour to Rila monastery. Our expectations were not disappointed.
Review provided by Viator
Jul 10, 2026
Distracted Guide - My guide was distracted by flirting with a 19 year old German girl the whole trip. We received very little information during the ride, and a short tour at the Monastery. He was so distracted that it affected his driving. He was veering back and forth as he scrolled through videos to show her and making conversation with her.
Also the whole trip took about 6 hours instead of the advertised 4.5.
Review provided by Viator
Nov 2, 2025
First of all, we knew... - First of all, we knew only in the evening that the trip was cancelled and had changed. However, we were available for the whole day on sunday so they asked us if we were up for the same trip with an addition at no cost, which was nice but we were lucky we were available for whole day. The driver was quite rude and looked like he didn’t care about the trip; a lady asked for coffe and he kicked her out of the van. On top, he did not come in the mountains to do the hike and part of the goup and myself got lost and started paniking but he just sayd follow google maps that he could come up and help. Fortunately after a while i found the path again, but it was so scary. Time and pick up were respected, but not the best experience overall.
Review provided by Viator
