If one of your New Year's resolutions is to travel more around Bulgaria in 2026, you have probably already encountered a problem: how to plan your trips so that you get the most out of this country's impressive nature, history and heritage. If you need inspiration, information or advice, the following pages offer a list of ideas for escapes and activities from January to December.

January: Bansko

Bulgaria's best-known winter resort is popular for more than one reason. Tucked at the foot of Pirin mountain range, the once-traditional town turned busy international haunt is an excellent base for skiing in the pristine nature of Pirin National Park, suitable for all types of winter sports lovers: children, beginners, advanced skiers and free riders.

January is still early season, but Bansko is just as good as it is in the high season of February and March. Snow levels often peak at the beginning of the month, creating perfect skiing conditions. With longer days, you have more time on the slopes. The temperature tends to be colder than in February and March, but there is a flip side: fewer people on the pistes. This also makes it easier to find tables at restaurants and generally results in more affordable accommodation.

February: Sofia

Sofia's notoriously bad sidewalks are a pain to walk on in the dark, often wet February. Yet even these cannot dampen the capital's vibrant life, especially in the emerging artsy neighbourhood creatively branded KvARTal. It is what used to be Sofia's old Jewish neighbourhood between Dondukov, Levski, Slivnitsa and Marie-Louise boulevards. Old houses and condos define the area's look, complete with narrow streets and municipality-funded graffiti. After years of targeted interest and special events, KvARTal has been rapidly gentrifying, which has led to a number of new soulless developments replacing crumbling old houses and the opening of many specialty coffee joints and overpriced hip eateries. One of the highlights: Sofia's best arthouse cinema.

March: Spring in the Rhodope

When the warm wind begins to blow, the Rhodope mountain range becomes a wonder to wander around. The sky is a particularly happy shade of blue and the meadows turn emerald from the new grass, yellow from the crocuses and white from the blossoming wild plums. The mountain's rivers are at full volume, forceful and crystal clear.

The mild sun invites exploration and the Rhodopes are full of places to choose from: the rocky labyrinths of the ancient city of Perperikon, the mysterious Thracian shrine at Tatul, the bends of the Arda river west of Kardzhali, the spas of Devin, the traditional houses and lanes of Shiroka Laka and Kovachevitsa. There may still be some skiing conditions in Pamporovo, the mountain's biggest winter resort.

Do not miss the local food: hearty potato dishes, steamy rice pies (they are more delicious than they sound), thick yoghurt, aromatic honey and herbs that will make your head spin.

April: Easter in Rila Monastery

This year East Orthodox Bulgarians will celebrate Easter on 12 April. It is the perfect time to experience the most important religious day of Orthodoxy at the nation's most significant religious site.

Founded by a medieval hermit in the 10th century, over time Rila Monastery grew into not just the largest religious compound in Bulgaria but also a centre of Bulgarian identity and literacy. Its role became even more important under the Ottomans when Bulgarians were politically subjugated to the sultan and religiously to the Constantinople patriarch. For generations of Bulgarians living then, Rila Monastery was the closest thing they had to a national institution.

Through the centuries the brightest, wealthiest and most ambitious Bulgarians contributed to the creation of a fort-like compound that hosted hundreds of monks, thousands of guests and scores of precious frescoes, important books and documents.

Today Rila Monastery is far from its glorious past. However, its location deep in the Rila mountain is unsurpassed.

For Easter the monastery becomes even more mesmerising. On Saturday night hundreds of Bulgarians flock to the church to attend midnight mass. After the priest announces the resurrection of Christ they cluster to light their candles from the flame distributed by the abbot. Then they leave the monastery, candles lit, turning the dark mountain night into a river of light.

May: Peonies in Kaliakra and Yaylata

Despite climate change and increasingly unreliable weather conditions, come May a tiny but picturesque part of Bulgaria becomes the realm of blossoming wild peonies. The sight is a marvel to behold: a sea of green bushes speckled with the heavy, dark red orbs of peony heads.

The place where they grow is equally spectacular: the environs of the rocky Kaliakra and Yaylata plateaus in the northern reaches of Bulgaria's Black Sea coast.

This corner of Bulgaria combines nature, history, archaeology and beauty in a way that is hard to beat. Yaylata is a rocky expanse that marks the southern tip of Europe's great steppes. It is defined by picturesque rocks rising above the sea, by caves carved by waves, ancient hermits and medieval settlers, and by some over restored remains of a fortress.

Long and narrow, Kaliakra Cape was the home of an ancient fort and a medieval town. Some of the walls still rise amid the windswept terrain, and old legends tell stories of foreign invaders, hidden gold treasures and 40 maidens who leapt into the cold waves below to escape captivity by enemies.

June: Guns & roses in Kazanlak

Early June is the time when Bulgaria's emblematic oil-bearing roses bloom, and this makes the trip to one of the centres of rose attar production, Kazanlak, a must. Driving along the road that goes through the length of the Valley of Roses may make you slightly dizzy, but do find time to visit an organised rose-picking event, which usually takes place on weekends.

With the economy booming from the ever growing arms and munitions production, Kazanlak has become livelier and hipper than it was a decade ago. The town is now a place where good food and coffee are de rigueur and its cultural institutions are experiencing a new life in the hands of young, ambitious managers. The local history museum and art gallery are among the finest in Bulgaria; there is even a gallery dedicated to a single painting, the mesmerising Ahinora, created by Ivan Milev in 1925.

Once you are there, do not miss another stunning piece of art, this time ancient. The UNESCO-listed Kazanlak Tomb was painted in the 4th century BC by an artist with the talent to create lifelike frescoes of feasting nobles, riders and servants, capturing a long lost world's minutiae and mysteries for posterity.

July: Primorsko's beaches

With its bright sun, heatwaves and sticky calm, July is best experienced from one of Bulgaria's beaches. Primorsko, on the southern Bulgarian Black Sea coast, is a an excellent option. It is less crowded than Sunny Beach, less pretentious than Lozenets and has two wonderful beaches.

The southern one ticks all the boxes for a developed Bulgarian beach of the 2020s: parasols, bars, taverns, sea activities and crowds. The northern is longer, calmer and more diverse. Its southern end is rather urbanised, but the farther north you go, the quieter it becomes. There are even two survivors of a bygone past: wild dunes overgrown with rare sand lilies and naturists.

As a bonus, Begliktash is here. The mysterious Thracian rock shrine, made of huge boulders, lies hidden in the thick oak forest that encircles Primorsko. No one is exactly sure what the Thracians did there, but exotic theories abound, from wandering in stone labyrinths to watching tantric sex being performed on large stone beds, to wine, milk and blood being poured into rock funnels. Begliktash is easy to reach from Primorsko's northern beach either by car or on foot, on a well marked path, if you do not mind the swarms of midgets and the occasional hornet that will cross your path.

August: God's Eyes cave

We associate caves with darkness, but in the case of God's Eyes they become places of... light. Here, two almond-shaped openings high above your head create the uncanny feeling that you are standing under the watchful, benevolent but questioning eyes of a divine entity peering deep into your soul. How do you feel, standing there, head askew? Awed? Excited? Anxious? Ready for a selfie?

God's Eyes cave, also known as Prohodna, is actually a subterranean tunnel and is the most impressive natural formation in the karst-rich environs of Karlukovo.

There is more around. The cave's farthest opening takes you high above the meandering Iskar river. Nearby, half-hanging on the rocks, is the Spelunkers' Home, a place built under Communism for Bulgaria's small but eccentric caving community.

On the opposite side of the Iskar is the Provartenik Rock, a cliff with a hole at its top. According to locals, the Romans made it, for some obscure reason.

September: Rupite

The remains of Bulgaria's only volcano, the Kozhuh mountain, are easily distinguishable from the Struma motorway as you approach Petrich. The outline of the former caldera is clear to see.

The geothermal activity in the area, best known as Rupite, did not stop one million years ago when the volcano went extinct. The warmth of the rock and the mineral rich soils combined to create steaming springs that smell of sulphur. The water still flows freely in ponds, its steam filling the place with misty clouds. People come here year round, to soak away any illness in Rupite's supposedly healing waters.

A kilometre away lie the ruins of Bulgaria's most exciting recent archaeological discovery, Heraclea Sintica. This ancient town was a lively hub of commerce and religion between the mid-4th century BC and 500 AD. It lay forgotten for centuries, but in recent years extensive excavations have brought to life elegant urban structures, streets, temples, baths and marble statues, now exhibited in Petrich's History Museum.

However, the first association that most people in Bulgaria make when Rupite is mentioned is Vanga, the blind 20th century clairvoyant who spent her last years here and who commissioned an unusual church, St Petka, by the sulphur springs.

October: Vidin

Going in October on a Danube trip is wise. The summer mosquitoes are gone and the freezing winter northerlies are yet to arrive. The trees in Vidin's splendid riverside garden turn all hues of red, yellow and orange, creating a picturesque backdrop that invites you to spend as much time as possible in this often overlooked Bulgarian town.

Huddled in Bulgaria's northwestern corner, Vidin is still struggling with its post-1989 economic decline that saw local factories shut down and many residents leaving to work abroad. The new bridge over the Danube to Romania has shaken up things a bit, bringing new visitors, and the ambitious restoration of the former synagogue into an arts and culture centre has shown a desire to stir cultural life.

Yet Vidin remains a place of relative quiet, the ideal setting for you to explore its medieval and Ottoman fort, the elegant late 19th and early 20th century houses in its old core, the low and atmospheric main gate in the Ottoman fortifications and the rundown elegance of old mansions across town.

November: Old Plovdiv

Plovdiv is the perfect escape from the tediousness of Sofia life, especially in late autumn. Warmer, brighter and friendlier, Bulgaria's second largest city shines with its vibrant streets, the colours of the 18th and 19th century mansions in the Old Town, the elegance of ancient Roman ruins, the colourful graffiti in the Kapana quarter and some of the best food in the country.

No visit will be complete without the Old Town. Sitting amid three hills that have been forged into one by millennia of continuous inhabitation and construction, Plovdiv's old core is a splendid splash of elegant houses with lush gardens and curved eaves, glimpses of ancient Roman fortifications used as foundations for newer buildings and opportunities to gain insight into the lives of past generations.

A restored old pharmacy brings you back in time when medicines were prepared in situ, not in factories. The houses of wealthy citizens seduce you with comforts such as en suite baths with rooms specifically for rest, murals of faraway places and elegant furniture. Old churches covered in technicolour murals inspire meditation on the passage of time. Museums of history and galleries dedicated to local art give you a deeper knowledge of this place and its people.

And there is the food. Some of the best eating options in Plovdiv are here, and the fact that you will dine in such beautiful buildings is an added bonus.

December: Christmas in Yambol

Until the mid-20th century, no Christmas was possible in Bulgaria without koleduvane. It was one of the rites that defined this feast, an initiation ritual for young men and a tradition that united the community.

Freshly married and single men would dress in their Sunday best, form small groups and gather at midnight on Christmas Eve. They would go around the village, stopping at each house, singing and dancing, and wishing health and happiness to the household.

Today few places preserve the tradition. One of them is Yambol. Yambol's koledari remain close to their origins, a lively reincarnation of the ancient rite. Their clothes reflect the mixture of traditional and modern typical for Bulgaria a century ago: baggy trousers and fur hats with high boots and neckties. The leader of the band carries a sabre.

And there is the music. The heavy rhythm of the buenek dance, combined with the clink of spurs and deep male voices, still preserves some of the magic of the koledari, those long gone protectors from evil and harbingers of health, wealth and new life.