8 Day Guided Super Special Tour: Explore the Culture of Bulgaria Motorcycle Tour

Day 1

• Arrival at Sofia International Airport (SOF)
• Transfer to the hotel
• Meet the Enduro-Ride team
• Discuss the tour details and necessary arrangements
• Dinner at the hotel and leisure time

Day 2, 3, and 4

• Breakfast at the hotel
• Ride enduro with different routes every day and plenty of joy
• After you've had enough of enduro riding and fun in the mountains, you will return to the hotel via forest routes
• Your stomachs will be ready for refuel
• Dinner at the hotel
• Optional: Relaxation at the mineral pools, spa treatments, and massages

Day 5

• Day for recovery and leisure time

Day 6 and 7

• Breakfast at the hotel
• Ride enduro
• Enjoy beautiful landscapes and eat good food

Day 8

• Transfer back to Sofia International Airport (SOF) (approximately 2 hours)

Motorcycle models available

• KTM EXC 250 TPI
• KTM EXC 300 TPI
• KTM EXC-F 250

Skill levels

The tour will be adjusted according to your skill levels.

Beginner:

• can ride for 2-3 hours
• minimal riding experience
• assistance required
• comfortable with curves and leans
• basic experience with unsurfaced roads
• short distance ascents and descents

Intermediate:

• can ride for 3-4 hours
• average riding experience
• little assistance required
• comfortable with extreme curves and leans
• average experience with unsurfaced roads
• steep ascents and descents

Advanced:

• can ride for 5-6 hours
• extensive riding experience
• assistance on demand (if required)
• experienced with riding a variety of motorcycles
• comfortable with any terrain and weather conditions

This tour will take place in the Balkan Mountains region. Stara Planina, also called the Balkan Mountains, gives the name to the whole peninsula. The range is 560 kilometers long and separates Bulgaria in two parts – Northern and Southern.

In Bulgaria, the mountain starts from Vrashka Chuka peak (on the border with Serbia) and ends with Emine Cape on the Black Sea. The highest peak is Botev, 2376 meters. The Thracian name of the mountain is Haemus. The Turks called it Balkan, which means “a chain of wooded mountains”.

In Bulgarian, the name “Stara Planina” means Old Mountain, but in fact, it is one of the youngest mountains in Bulgaria, part of the Alp-Himalayan chain.

As a long mountain, Balkan can be divided first into two parts – the main Balkan Chain and the Pre-Balkans to the north, which intrude slightly into the Danubian Plain. The main chain is divided into three parts – Eastern, which is the lowest and not very visited; Central, the highest and most popular part; Western, with some peaks above 2000 meters.

The climate of Balkan Mountains is moderate-continental, in the Eastern parts it’s transitional-continental. The windiest places in Bulgaria are Botev and Murgash peaks, the speed can reach 10 m/s. There are chances of avalanches during the winter. But if we should say only one word about the climate of Stara Planina – it is unpredictable, so be aware of everything. Fogs appear very often too.

Up to 800 meters, the majority of the forest is formed by deciduous trees, such as hornbeam, oak, beech. Above this level there are small formations of white fir and black pine, most of the coniferous trees are fir trees and spruces.

The highest part of the mountain is occupied with meadows, wild briar, hawthorn, blackthorn, juniper, and others. If you are lucky, you can find Stara Planina’s cowslip, which is an endemic species, or even an edelweiss in the central part of the mountain.

Representatives of the fauna of Stara Planina are brown bears, wild goats, wild boars, deer, wolves, foxes, etc.

Natural and cultural sights:

• Botev: the highest peak of the mountain, 2376 meters
• Golyam Kupen: the most alpine peak in the mountain, 2169 meters
• If you like hiking, during your hikes you can see lots of waterfalls. Some of the most visited are Babsko Praskalo, Borov Kamak, Karlovsko Praskalo, and the highest one on the Balkan Peninsula – Raysko Praskalo (124 meters).
• Some of the famous caves you can visit are “Temnata Dupka”, “Saeva Dupka”, “Ledenika”, “Magurata”. The last one is in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites, because of its cave paintings, made with guano, dating between 3000 and 1200 B.C.
• Some of the most picturesque eco trails in the country: “Borov Kamak”, “Byala Reka”, “Roman Route”
• Lots of monasteries are situated in the mountain and its foothills, such as Kilifarevo, Dryanovo, Klusura, Sokolsky monastery and of course Troyan Monastery, the third biggest in the country.
• The towns of Tryavna, Kotel and the village of Zheravna – with preserved old houses and a special spirit.
• Etar: an open-air architectural ethnographic complex presenting Revival-style architecture and typical crafts related to this period in Bulgaria’s history, near the town of Gabrovo
• Bozhentsi: a village near Gabrovo, which is an architectural-historical reserve.
• Shipka Pass: close to the pass is a peak with the same name and an interesting Russian church situated in the village with the same name. On the peak, there is a famous monument to which 890 stairs lead. The monument is dedicated to one of the most decisive battles in the Russian-Turkish war that led to the re-establishment of the independent Bulgarian state.

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When you ride, you will have lunch at small rural restaurants, traditional taverns, or barbecue at picturesque places along the route. You will have breakfasts and dinners at the hotel.

The spa treatments and massages are not included in the tour price and have to be paid at the hotel.

• Motorcycle rental
• Mechanic
• Safety car support
• Professional guides
• Free branded Enduro-Ride t-shirt and jersey
• Certificates and stickers for riding with Enduro-Ride
• Fuel
• Transfer from the airport and back
• All local transportation costs
• 7 nights accommodation
• Breakfast, lunch, and dinner

• Insurance (mandatory)
• Alcohol
• Spa treatments and massages

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• A reservation requires a deposit of 10% of the total price.
• The deposit is non-refundable, if the booking is cancelled.
• The rest of the payment should be paid on arrival.