Discover Maglizh

Maglizh offers several points of interest to consider when planning a trip: its historic monastery and school, a festival of ethnic communities held in 2021, and the Stalba Waterfall hiking trail. If you’re looking for a hotel for your stay in Maglizh, consider whether you’d like to focus on cultural history or a hike.

Monastery, School and Earlier History

Maglizh Monastery is a complex comprising a church, residential and utility buildings, and two chapels. Its historical features include a museum cell restored in 2018 and associated with Vasil Levski, a former cell of the monastery school, and an incense burner bearing a Greek inscription dated 1233. The year 1233 belongs to the inscription on the object; the museum cell, by contrast, was restored in 2018. The complex thus brings together different historical connections.

The monastery’s school history also spans several stages. During the Bulgarian National Revival, a boys’ school was opened there first, followed later by a girls’ school. In 1870, the monastery became a progymnasium with a rich library. A year earlier, in 1869, residents of Maglizh founded a community center, considered Bulgaria’s first rural community center. The founding of the community center and the monastery’s conversion into a progymnasium therefore took place close together in time.

Maglizh’s history reaches back even further: in Roman and medieval times, the settlement served as a fortress and road station at the crossroads of ancient roads. Its earlier role as a fortress and station, the monastery schools, and the cultural history of the 19th century thus represent distinct historical periods.

Festival and Cultural Traditions

In 2021, Maglizh hosted the National Festival of Ethnic Communities, “Equal in Our Differences.” The event featured songs, dances and customs from various ethnic communities. Homemade foods and specialties from the Bulgarian, Karakachan and Roma communities who live and work in Maglizh were also part of the festival. One edition also included a tasting of dishes and ceremonial breads called “Grandma’s Kitchen.” If you’d like to plan your trip around a festival, check the current event dates separately before making plans.

Hiking at Stalba Waterfall

The “Stalba Waterfall” eco-trail is 9.4 kilometers long and rated difficult. The distance and difficulty answer different questions when choosing a hike: the kilometer figure gives the route length, while the rating provides another point of reference for your planning. The trail crosses the peaks of Popak, Stefancha, Krastilcha and Yaitseto. Near Vinishki Kamen, it then heads toward Big Skok. Stalba Waterfall has a stepped shape formed by flowing water. The trail offers a different focus from the monastery and school history: here, the route, peaks and waterfall shape the outing.

Discover more destinations: Yagoda

For the main travel overview: Maglizh.