Bulgaria

Things to do in Varna

18 places14 stories2 routes

Sightlore has 18 places to explore in Varna, and 14 of them come with a 60-second story in 5 languages. Point your camera at a landmark to learn its name and story, and earn points and badges at the places you actually visit.

Varna's must-sees

The city's most important places. In the app you see how many you've visited and earn a badge when you've seen them all.

  1. 1
    Varna Opera Theatre

    Varna Opera Theatre

    The Varna Opera is an opera house in Varna, Bulgaria.

  2. 2
    Euxinograd

    Euxinograd

    Euxinograd is a late 19th-century Bulgarian former royal summer palace and park on the Black Sea coast, 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) north of downtown Varna.

  3. 3
    Varna Aquarium

    Varna Aquarium

    The Varna Aquarium or Aquarium Varna is a public aquarium in Varna, Bulgaria's largest city on the Black Sea coast.

  4. 4
    Madara Rider

    Madara Rider

    The Madara Rider or Madara Horseman is a large early medieval rock relief carved on the Madara Plateau east of Shumen in northeastern Bulgaria, near the village of Madara.

    Read its story →
  5. 5
    Festa Dolphinarium

    Festa Dolphinarium

    Dolphinarium in the northern part of the Sea Garden in Varna, opened on 11 August 1984, with 1,200 seats.

  6. 6
    Aladzha Monastery

    Aladzha Monastery

    Aladzha Monastery is a medieval Orthodox Christian cave monastery complex in northeastern Bulgaria, 17 km north of central Varna and 3 km west of Golden Sands beach resort, in a protected forest area adjacent to the Golden Sands Nature Park.

  7. 7
    Sea Garden

    Sea Garden

    The Sea Garden, or formally the Seaside Park is the Bulgarian port city of Varna's largest, oldest and best known public park, also said to be the largest landscaped park in the Balkans.

  8. 8
    Dormition of the Theotokos Cathedral

    Dormition of the Theotokos Cathedral

    The Dormition of the Mother of God Cathedral is the largest church building in Varna and the third largest cathedral in Bulgaria (after St. Alexander Nevski Cathedral in Sofia and St.

  9. 9
    Boris Georgiev City Art Gallery

    Boris Georgiev City Art Gallery

    The Boris Georgiev City Art GalleryBulgarian: Градска художествена галерия „Борис Георгиев“, Gradska hudozhestvena galeria „Boris Georgiev“) is the municipal art gallery of Varna, Bulgaria.

  10. 10
    Odessos

    Odessos

    Ancient city, predecessor of Varna, founded around 570 BC by Milesian colonists near an earlier Thracian settlement.

Discovery routes in Varna

Visit the stops in any order and tap "Check in" at each one; finish the route to earn points and its own badge.

  • Varna: from the cathedral to the Sea Garden

    From the Dormition Cathedral and the Archaeological Museum to the Roman remains of Odessos, past the opera, theatre and art gallery to the Naval Museum, the Sea Garden, the aquarium and the dolphinarium.

    Walking · 3 h · 11.7 km · 10 stops

  • Around Varna: Aladzha, Pobiti Kamani and Madara

    From Euxinograd Palace to the rock-cut Aladzha Monastery, from the stone columns of Pobiti Kamani to the Madara Rider rock relief.

    By car · 7 h · 108.4 km · 4 stops

Places to visit

Historic sites

  • Odessos

    Odessos

    Ancient city, predecessor of Varna, founded around 570 BC by Milesian colonists near an earlier Thracian settlement.

    Has a story

  • Varna Opera Theatre

    Varna Opera Theatre

    The Varna Opera is an opera house in Varna, Bulgaria.

    Has a story

  • Stoyan Bachvarov Dramatic Theatre

    Stoyan Bachvarov Dramatic Theatre

    The Stoyan Bachvarov Dramatic Theatre is a theatre in Varna, Bulgaria, founded in 1921 as the Municipal Professional Theatre.

    Has a story

  • Euxinograd

    Euxinograd

    Euxinograd is a late 19th-century Bulgarian former royal summer palace and park on the Black Sea coast, 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) north of downtown Varna.

    Has a story

  • Madara Rider

    Madara Rider

    The Madara Rider or Madara Horseman is a large early medieval rock relief carved on the Madara Plateau east of Shumen in northeastern Bulgaria, near the village of Madara.

    Has a story

  • Asparuhov most

    Asparuhov most

    The Asparuhov most or Asparuhov Bridge is a bridge in Varna on the Black Sea coast of Bulgaria. It connects the Asparuhovo district to the rest of the city over the canals between the Black Sea and Lake Varna.

Museums

  • Varna Archaeological Museum

    Varna Archaeological Museum

    The Varna Archaeological Museum is an archaeological museum in the city of Varna on the Black Sea coast of Bulgaria.

    Has a story

  • Boris Georgiev City Art Gallery

    Boris Georgiev City Art Gallery

    The Boris Georgiev City Art GalleryBulgarian: Градска художествена галерия „Борис Георгиев“, Gradska hudozhestvena galeria „Boris Georgiev“) is the municipal art gallery of Varna, Bulgaria.

    Has a story

  • Varna Naval Museum

    Varna Naval Museum

    Naval museum in Varna, a branch of the National Museum of Military History.

    Has a story

  • Varna Aquarium

    Varna Aquarium

    The Varna Aquarium or Aquarium Varna is a public aquarium in Varna, Bulgaria's largest city on the Black Sea coast.

    Has a story

Places of worship

  • Dormition of the Theotokos Cathedral

    Dormition of the Theotokos Cathedral

    The Dormition of the Mother of God Cathedral is the largest church building in Varna and the third largest cathedral in Bulgaria (after St. Alexander Nevski Cathedral in Sofia and St.

    Has a story

  • Aladzha Monastery

    Aladzha Monastery

    Aladzha Monastery is a medieval Orthodox Christian cave monastery complex in northeastern Bulgaria, 17 km north of central Varna and 3 km west of Golden Sands beach resort, in a protected forest area adjacent to the Golden Sands Nature Park.

    Has a story

  • St. Petka church, Varna

    St. Petka church, Varna

    Orthodox church in central Varna; its construction began in 1901.

  • Varna Monastery

    Varna Monastery

    Varna Monastery is a large preserved early medieval monastery complex, opened near Varna, Bulgaria, with the status of a cultural monument of national importance for Bulgaria since 2015.

Nature

  • Sea Garden

    Sea Garden

    The Sea Garden, or formally the Seaside Park is the Bulgarian port city of Varna's largest, oldest and best known public park, also said to be the largest landscaped park in the Balkans.

    Has a story

  • Festa Dolphinarium

    Festa Dolphinarium

    Dolphinarium in the northern part of the Sea Garden in Varna, opened on 11 August 1984, with 1,200 seats.

    Has a story

  • Pobiti Kamani

    Pobiti Kamani

    Pobiti Kamani, tubular concretions formed around "rising methane-bearing fluid plumes", is a desert-like rock phenomenon located on the north west Varna Province border in Bulgaria.

    Has a story

  • Bulgarian-Soviet friendship monument

    Bulgarian-Soviet friendship monument

    The largest monument in Varna Province, standing on Turna Tepe hill in the north-east of the city, 95 m above sea level.

Explore Varna with your camera

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