Valentin Georgiev
Founder and writer, Mestala
I started Mestala to make Bulgaria easier to plan, in English and Bulgarian: the mountains, the coast, the old towns and the places in between.
Every guide on the site is written after visiting the place in person: the trail walked, the car parked, the ticket bought.
How every guide is made
Four rules every guide on Mestala follows, from the first draft to every later update.
I go there first
Every guide starts with a visit. I walk the route, find the parking and note what the signs do not tell you.
Facts checked at the source
Prices, opening hours and transport are checked with operators, municipalities and park authorities. Quoted prices show the month they were checked.
Honest about the trade-offs
I write down what surprised me, what felt overhyped and what first-timers get wrong, not only the highlights.
Kept up to date
Every guide shows when it was last updated. When something changes on the ground, the guide is revised.
If I have not been there, I do not write a guide about it.
The place directory and the map cover more than a thousand locations and are built from official and public sources. The guides are where first-hand experience lives.
Latest articles by Valentin Georgiev
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Devin and Zlatograd Weekend: Rhodope Spa Towns, Struilitsa and Old Zlatograd
A Rhodope spa weekend: Devin's mineral water and the Struilitsa eco-trail, Zlatograd's ethnographic complex and Revival quarter, with Trigrad and Yagodina nearby.
Kotel and Zheravna Weekend: Revival Houses, Kotel Carpets and Medven
A winter weekend in Kotel and Zheravna: Rakovski's Pantheon, Kotel carpets and the natural history museum, Zheravna's 200 wooden houses and Medven — getting there from Burgas and Varna.
Sapareva Banya and Panichishte Weekend: the Geyser, Hot Pools and Rila
A weekend in Sapareva Banya and Panichishte: the geyser with 103 °C water, mineral pools in winter, Panichishte as the snowy side, and the way up to the Seven Rila Lakes.
Troyan, Oreshak and Apriltsi Weekend: Pottery, Plum Rakia and the Central Balkan
A weekend in Troyan, Oreshak and Apriltsi: Troyan pottery and plum rakia, the crafts museum, the Oreshak exhibition by Troyan Monastery, and Apriltsi as a Balkan base.
Tutrakan Weekend: the Fishermen's Quarter, the 1916 Battle and the Danube
A weekend in Tutrakan: the Fishermen's Quarter and the Danube fishing museum, the 1916 military cemetery, Danube fish — and Srebarna and Silistra for day two.
Weekend Getaways from Plovdiv: 8 Autumn & Winter Escapes
8 overnight getaways from Plovdiv: spa towns, Rhodope villages and caves, Troyan and skiing — with drive times, transport and what is open in winter.
Spotted something out of date?
Prices and timetables change. Tell me and the guide gets fixed.