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Travel to Macedonia
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ITINERARY: SOFIA - RILA MONASTERY - BANSKO - MELNIK - ROZHEN - STRUMITSA - KAVADARTSI - BITOLA - OHRID - DURRES - TIRANA - STRUGA - TETOVO - SKOPJE - SOFIA
DAY 1: Sofia
Arrival at Sofia Airport. Transfer. Guided sightseeing tour of the city centre. Visit to Alexander Nevski Cathedral - one of the largest Eastern Orthodox cathedrals in Europe, as well as one of Sofia’s symbols and a primary tourist attraction; the Parliament Square, Russian Church, St. George Rotunda, St. Sophia Church, built by the Roman emperor Justinian in the 6th century, the National Theatre, former Royal Palace, the Presidency, etc. Free time in the city centre and main trade area around Vitosha Boulevard. Optional dinner at a traditional restaurant with folklore music and dances. Overnight in Sofia.
DAY 2: Sofia - Rila Monastery - Bansko
Breakfast. Departure for Rila Monastery - the most beautiful and the most important monastery in Bulgaria. Visit to the monastery church Nativity of the Virgin. One of its greatest valuables is the wooden iconostasis, some 14th and 15th century icons, wall paintings, made by the famous artist Zahari Zograph. Walk around the monastery - Hrelyo’s Tower, the old kitchen, and the history museum. Drive to the most famous mountain ski resort of Bansko.Sightseeing tour of Bansko. The most famous winter resort in Bulgaria, recently discovered by foreign tourists, provides an interesting combination between the virgin nature of Pirin Mountain and the atmosphere of that ancient Bulgarian small town. Bansko is a town of secrets - the houses are barely seen from the street, hidden behind the stone walls that exceed human height, with huge iron studded gates of fir wood. Bansko House is a peculiar type of house whose structure resembles the medieval boyar’s mansions. Visit to Holy Trinity Church - the largest, most interesting and rich in Pirin area. Overnight in Bansko.
DAY 3: Bansko - Melnik - Rozhen Monastery - Strumitsa
After breakfast departure for the smallest town in Bulgaria, famous for its excellent wines and sandstone pyramids in the area - Melnik.Walking tour including Kordopulova Museum-House, the church and other sights from the period of the National Revival. Optional wine tasting in Melnik. Drive to Rozhen Monastery - one of the biggest monasteries in the Pirin Mountain, well preserved until today. The monastery reached its peak in the 19th century, when it became a regional centre of Orthodox Christianity and owned a lot of land in the area. Departure for Macedonia. Arrival in Strumitsa in the evening. Accommodation and overnight.
DAY 4: Strumitsa - Kavadartsi - Bitola - Ohrid
Breakfast. A short hiking tour to Koleshino waterfalls near town of Strumitsa. Departure for the famous Tikvesh wine region and the town of Kavadartsi. Wine tasting at Tikvesh Winery. Departure for Bitola. Once most important trade center in Macedonia, for which reason even today there are honorary consular representatives of France, Great Britain and Turkey, and Bitola is known as the City of Consuls. Visit to the Revival church of St. Demetrius from 1830. Visit to the archaeological reserve Heraclea Lynkestis. Free time. Drive to Ohrid Riviera. Accommodation and overnight.
DAY 5: Ohrid - St. Naum Monastery
Breakfast. Walking tour in old Ohrid – tourist pearl of Macedonia, city of 365 churches, part of the list of world cultural heritage of UNESCO. During this tour (appr. 3 hours) you will have the chance to see some of the masterpieces of Byzantine architecture and art on the Balkans: St. Sofia Church, St. Virgin Mary Peribleptos Church, St. John Kaneo Church, St. Clement and Panteleymon Church, the Ohrid collection of icons. Old town of Ohrid hides many other treasures too: Ancient Theater, Tsar Samuel’s Mediaeval Fortress, Robevi House – local historical and ethnographic museum, craftsmen workshops for production of paper, Ohrid pearls, wooden sculptures, etc. Free time in the town center. In the afternoon – drive to St. Naum Monastery, located 27 km south of Ohrid, on the lakeshore. Founded in the beginning of 10th century by one of the patrons of this area, St. Naum, this monastery is considered to be sacred place by both local Christians and Muslims. Tour of the complex – Church of the Archangels, St. Petka Chapel. Boat trip to the 14th century church of St. Virgin Mary – Zaum, accessible only from the lake, where the oldest icon depicting St. Naum has been discovered. Return to the hotel. Overnight in Ohrid.
DAY 6: Ohrid - Durres - Tirana
Breakfast. Departure for Albania. Visit to the port town of Durres - the Albanian Second City. Sightseeing tour including the Ancient Theatre. Free time for a beach walk or visit to the Muesum of Martyrs. Drive to the capital city of Tirana. Panoramic sightseeing t