Sozopol - the town living for a millenia

Apollonia Festival of Arts

Every summer in early September, Apollonia Festival of Arts attracts audience and gives tourists the most exciting experience from theater, music scene and arts.

Sozopol becomes the cultural center of Bulgaria for a month.
Talented Bulgarian musicians and bands, popular artists from around the world participate in the festival. Join in to see the premieres of concerts and performances, exhibitions, literature-dedicated happenings, and to see modern Bulgarian movies.

Architectural – historical complex with museum collection

“Southern fortress wall and tower” - Sozopol​

In the Southern part of the beautiful Sozopol there is a small and amiable museum. A restored old house of Sozopol, perched on the cliff seashore, touching with walls the Southern fortress wall.  This is one of the first private museums in the country.  In the museum you can see a granary of the V - VІ century, one of the very few completely preserved wells of the ancient Apolonia Pontica and the Bulgarian Black Sea coast from ІV - ІІІ century before Christ, restored part of the fortress wall and one of the great defence towers, which served the town until the ХІV century. You can also see there a chapel dating back to the XIII – XIV century. Together with this, in an exquisite manner are presented small historical and archaeological artifacts and details of ancient times. An incredible view to the Southern Bay of Sozopol and the calm sea invoke unforgettable memories.

If you are attracted to underwater depths and want to reach harmony and tranquility underwater, in Sozopol you will meet people ready to reveal the secrets of the sea for you.
Diving is a hobby or profession to many people in Sozopol. Under the waters in Sozopol stories are no less exciting than the story of the town. Under the sea near Sozopol lies RODINA ship – one of the nine pre-war cargo ships, ownership of the Bulgarian Marine Shipping Company, produced by Vulkan - Werke A.G.  The ship was launched on water in 1922 and has a displacement of  - 4159 brt.
On September 19^th 1941 RODINA sailed loaded with grain from Istanbul to Varna, guarded by two Bulgarian minelayers. In the area of Sozopol, opposite Kolokita cape /where nowadays Sozopolis is built/, the ship encountered simultaneously two mines and sank. The guarding ships saved 37 people. Today, the ship lies well preserved, at an average depth of about 35-39 meters bent under angle of 45º. Its height from the bottom is 14 meters. The bow anchors are still there. There is an easy access to the super-structure and the holds. Coordinates are 42°24.'N 27°46.'E.

In the deep of the Black Sea, at a distance of 5 кm North of Sozopol also lies MOPANG – American cargo ship of the Liberty ships type. The ship was constructed by Submarine Boat / Ship-building company in New Jersey, owned by Electric Boat Company /and later - General Dynamics /. It was launched on January 20th in 1920 with displacement 3545 brt. MOPANG had an engine of 1500 horse powers.It lies well preserved on its right board at a depth 24-32 meters. Its height from the bottom is 7 meters. Clearly distinct are the superstructures, parts of the stack and the upper deck. There is a free access to the hubs and parts of the cabins. Part of the load – heap of shoes, chests with spare parts and other, are visible in the hubs. At its place is also the screw of a diameter of three meters and the stern winch. Along the body slides the anchor chain, sinking in the sludge on the bottom. Coordinates are 42°28.' N 27°41.'Е

Sub-aquatic stone forest Sozopol

Are you familiar with immersion? This term gives the most logical explanation for the presence of a sub-aquatic stone forest along the sea bed near Sozopol. Presently many are searching the truth for the formation of an attractive and unique underwater stone formation, but secrets are many, which makes excitement in diving into history still greater.

Ropotamo  tour

Only 10 km south from Sozopolis the reserve Ropotamo is located. The area along the flow of Ropotamo river was declared a reserve in 1940. It is known for its virgin nature, its variegated relief, cliff beaches, large sand strip, sand dunes, longose forests and swamps near the sea.  The rriver is named after the Greek goddess Ro (Ro in Greek means "to run” and “potamo” means “river”), who, with her songs and beauty has won the mercy of the pirates, who terrorised ancient Apolonia. The region was populated in the early Iron age XІ – X B.C. and later here came Thracians, Greeks, Romans, Slavs and Proto-Bulgarians.  Since then there are remnants of the fortresses Burhama, Valchanovo cale, Dolmenite, the ancient ports along the mouth of Ropotamo river. You can also visit the sacrificial stones Apostol Tash, Beglik Tash and the Saint Paraskeva church.
There are lots of natural objects there – the estuary of Ropotamo river, the Arkutino swamp, longose forests, rock phenomena, wet lands, swamps and many other.  The estuary of Ropotamo river is one of the main tourist landmarks in the reserve. Within the boundaries of the reserve 257 species of birds can be traced, out of which 71 are recorded in the Red Book of Bulgaria.
The reserve is a habitat of rare animal species. The reserve is inhabited by 50 types of mammals: noble deer and lopatar – deer, roes, muflons, foxes, jackals, otters and colonies of bats live in the rock caves.  The extinct species of mammals are the bear, the lynx and the monk seal.

Beglik Tash

The unique Thracian sanctuary Beglik Tash was discovered in 2003, only 30 km south from Sozopol. It was defined as the earliest, found so far, Thracian megalith sanctuary in South-Eastern Thrace along the Black Sea coast.  Researches prove that since the end of the Bronze age (XIII B. C.) here thrived active human activity. The materials found prove that the sanctuary was mostly visited by Thracians. In its essence the location served similar functions as monasteries have nowadays.
It is basically connected with the cult to fertility, the Goddess - Mother and the Orphic dedication and immortalisation of Heroya.  The gifts of semi-precious stones testify this theory. No animal traces were found in the very well preserved sacrificial altar, only vegetative - only plants have been sacrificed instead.
The sanctuary consists of 1 central part and 2 circles of smaller structures around it, with total area of the sanctuary around 6000 sq. m. It is a circle of large boulders, placed on rocky surface in the middle of a green field. The stones which were brought there by humans are arranged in a unique manner, forming a clock, calendar and an observatory. For this Beglik Tash is famous as Bulgarian Stonehenge. The large boulders are partially processed by human hand and mounted there, and the stone slabs are arranged in unique shapes. In the flat cliffs stone circles, bathing pools and "mark steps" are cleft.  The residential buildings and the cult fireplaces complement the evidences for human activity there.
The legend says that Yason and the Argonauts have passed through the sanctuary as to consult the prophets and to grant gifts to Gods before setting off on their journey in seeking the Golden Fleece.
Now the archaeologists "reign" the ancient sanctuary and they still have to interpret its secrets.