Vratsa Province: Museums, Caves and Historic Routes

Vratsa Province lies in northwestern Bulgaria, between the Danube to the north and the Stara Planina mountains to the south. On your trip, you can explore archaeological and cultural heritage as well as caves, rock landscapes and trails. The province comprises ten municipalities: Vratsa, Roman, Oryahovo, Mizia, Mezdra, Krivodol, Kozloduy, Byala Slatina, Borovan and Hayredin. These names help you find your way around the region’s diverse places.

Museums and historical heritage

The Regional History Museum in Vratsa displays the Rogozen Treasure: 165 silver-gilt vessels collected over several generations of Thracian kings. Other objects in the museum displays include Thracian treasures from Mogilanska Mound and Rogozen, a silver-gilt greave, the Gradesh nitsa clay tablet and prehistoric remains from Ohoden. The arrangement of individual exhibits may change.

Finds from Mogilanska Mound include a Thracian chariot with two horses, as well as a gold wreath and earrings associated with the burial of a young woman. The Hristo Botev Monument in Vratsa is twelve metres tall and forms part of a sculptural and architectural ensemble. Its reliefs depict Botev’s work and military campaign. In Chelopek, the Baba Iliitsa House Museum is one of Bulgaria’s 100 National Tourist Sites.

The historical heritage of the Lyutibrod area includes the medieval settlement and fortress of Koritengrad, nine medieval Bulgarian churches, including St. George, and an ensemble designated a national cultural monument. The heritage therefore ranges from archaeological finds to medieval settlements and churches.

Oryahovo: Music, architecture and everyday culture

The Diko Iliev and Brass Music House Museum in Oryahovo features exhibitions devoted to the life and talent of Diko Iliev, the brass bands he founded and led in northwestern Bulgaria, and the actor Andrey Chaprazov. Urban life in the 1920s and 1930s is also a theme. The displays are housed in a room with original wall paintings.

The Ethnographic House in Oryahovo is a two-storey building in the Bulgarian National Revival style. Together with the Church of St. George, it forms an architectural complex. The house has three exhibition halls about local folk and urban life. The courtyard offers a covered seating area and space for reenactments of traditional patriotic activities.

Caves, rocks and trails

Ledenika Cave is 320 metres long and has ten chambers. Its name refers to seasonal ice formations, including stalagmites, stalactites and stalactones. The concert hall is known for its acoustics; the Vratsa Philharmonic gives symphonic concerts there. An asphalt road through Vratsata and the forests of Vrachanski Balkan leads to the cave entrance. Check road conditions before setting out.

The Rittlite near Lyutibrod consist of vertical walls arranged parallel to the southeastern slope of Vrachanski Balkan. The rock walls are 200 to 400 metres long, 2.6 to 7 metres wide and rise up to 80 metres above the Iskar River. Visitors interested in the landscape can observe how the walls are arranged along the mountain slope, as well as their striking dimensions.

The 120-kilometre Botev's Company Path runs within Vratsa Province from the banks of the Danube near Kozloduy to Vrachanski Balkan. The National Museum Ship Radetski is also anchored near Kozloduy. The Dado Yotso Complex includes a panoramic viewing pavilion, walking paths, a tavern serving traditional Bulgarian dishes, parking and carved animal sculptures. Individual offerings may change. A trail near the complex links the Iskar Gorge with Vrachanski Balkan and leads to Purshevitsa Hut; it takes about four hours to walk from the road junction to the hut.

Regional cuisine and wine

Kerkulek is associated with the Vratsa area and is made with cornmeal, fresh milk, butter and salt. The wine profile of the Vratsa area includes red varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir and Pamid; Gamza is considered the most widespread variety. Regional dishes and the described grape-variety profile thus complement the province’s cultural and landscape offerings.

Discover more destinations: Hayredin, Mezdra, Vratsa, Mezdra, Byala Slatina, Vratsa, Borovan, Krivodol, Oryahovo.

Go to the main travel overview: Bulgaria.