Bachkovo Monastery

Bachkovo Monastery tickets: which one to buy

Bachkovo Monastery stands in the Rhodope Mountains, about thirty kilometres south of Plovdiv, Bulgaria, beside the Chaya river, and entry to the monastery is free, while the museum and the ossuary charge small fees. It is the second largest monastery in Bulgaria, after the Rila Monastery, and one of the most important. Day trips from Plovdiv combine Bachkovo with the Asen's Fortress, a medieval fortress on a cliff nearby, and sometimes with the Wonderful Bridges rock formations or wine tasting in the region.

Buses run from Plovdiv to the village of Bachkovo, and the monastery is a short walk from the bus stop, past stalls selling honey, herbs and local produce. The monastery is active, and visitors should dress modestly. Photography inside the churches is not allowed. Buses from Plovdiv's Rodopi bus station run regularly to Bachkovo and take about forty minutes.

Visiting Bachkovo Monastery: what to see

The monastery was founded in 1083 by the brothers Grigorii and Abasius Pakourianos, Georgian aristocrats serving the Byzantine Empire, and it was a centre of Georgian culture for centuries. The only building remaining from the eleventh century is the ossuary, a two-storey building outside the walls, whose upper church is decorated with Byzantine frescoes of great importance. The main church, dedicated to the Dormition of the Virgin, was built in 1604 and holds the miraculous icon of the Virgin Eleusa, said to have been brought from Georgia and venerated by pilgrims, covered with silver. The church's walls and porch are painted with frescoes. The refectory, built in the seventeenth century, is decorated with frescoes by the painter Zahari Zograf, including the Last Judgement and scenes of philosophers.

The courtyard, with galleried wooden buildings and an old tree, is peaceful. The church of the Archangels, beside the main church, has frescoes painted in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. The monastery's museum displays icons, manuscripts, church vessels and a collection of old coins. The ossuary's lower floor was used for burials, and its paintings depict the donors of the monastery. The monastery also holds the tomb of Patriarch Euthymius, the last patriarch of the medieval Bulgarian church. A spring outside the monastery walls is considered holy, and pilgrims fill bottles with its water. The courtyard's wooden galleries have carved balustrades. The refectory's frescoes include portraits of ancient Greek philosophers, unusual in a monastery. Pilgrims light candles before the icon of the Virgin. The monastery's bells ring for services in the morning and evening.

Bachkovo Monastery opening hours and the best time to go

The monastery is open daily from morning until evening. Weekends bring many Bulgarian pilgrims and visitors, especially on church holidays, and weekdays are quieter. The feast of the Dormition on 15 August is the monastery's main celebration, with thousands of pilgrims and a procession with the icon. Summer is warm in the valley, and spring and autumn are beautiful in the Rhodopes. Allow about an hour for the monastery, including the refectory and museum, and visit Asen's Fortress, a short drive away. Asen's Fortress, about twenty minutes' drive, has a medieval church perched on a cliff with views over the Rhodope valleys.