Haskovo Voyage Tips and guide

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Haskovo (Хасково) is a city in South-Central Bulgaria, in the Upper Thracian Plain. Nearby, there are mineral springs, ancient Thracian tombs, and the communist-era "planned city" of Dimitrovgrad, built from scratch in the 1950s.

With a population of about 65,000 (2021), Haskovo is the administrative centre of Haskovo Province, which extends in the south-east to the borders with Greece and Turkey, including a chunk of the Eastern Rhodope Mountains. To the north, it borders the province of Stara Zagora; to the east - the province of Yambol; to the south-east: Eastern Thrace in Turkey; to the south - Western Thrace in Greece; to the west - the provinces of Plovdiv and Kardzhali. The only other sizable city in the province is nearby Dimitrovgrad, 14 km (8.7 mi) to the north; between the two cities run the river Maritsa and the A4 motorway. Two other towns in the province have a population above 10 thousand: Harmanli further down the Maritsa and Svilengrad on the national border, a major border crossing to both Greece and Turkey.

The nearest international airport is in Plovdiv (PDV ^IATA), about 70 km (43 mi) away.

Haskovo is on one of the few un-electrified railway lines in Bulgaria, which runs between Dimitrovgrad and Kardzhali; in turn, Dimitrovgrad is a railway junction with connections to Plovdiv and Stara Zagora.

Renovations of the railway network have caused major and inconvenient temporary changes to any train routes connected to Plovdiv. As of late 2024, in practice this means that the only daily direct train from Plovdiv to Haskovo and Kardzhali starts at the Plovdiv East station (about 110 min to Haskovo). The same train is also one of the two daily trains from Dimitrovgrad (less than 30 min), the other one being an early commuter shuttle train. In the opposite direction, there are also two daily trains from Kardzhali (about 100 min) - the Plovdiv train and another shuttle train. Intercity trains that would otherwise pass through Dimtrovgrad have been redirected to avoid Plovdiv and the southern lines; the international train Sofia - Svilengrad - Istanbul has been redirected through Stara Zagora.

• Monument to the Mother of God - a 32.8-metre (108 ft) statue of the Madonna and Child, erected in 2003; there's a chapel in the base of the 17 m (56 ft) pedestal. Officially recognised by the Guinness Book of Records as the tallest such statue at the time. In 2010, they added nearby a 30-metre (98 ft) remotely-operated belfry, which is a popular spot for selfies and offers a good view of Haskovo. Just avoid being up there when the bells start ringing if you value your hearing...
• Regional History Museum
• City Centre - chained pedestrian streets and squares; public art and old buildings
  • Atlantic Square (ploshtad Atlanticheski) - the name is almost certainly a reference to NATO...
    • Old Clock Tower - and the avant-garde new one nearby (the Monument to 1000 years of Haskovo)
    • Statue of a "Haskovo kaun" (хасковски каунь, haskovski kaun) - a comical sculpture of a "kaun" (kah-OON), the informal nickname for an inhabitant of Haskovo (from the Turkish word for "melon", 'kavun'). Erected 2015, sculpted by Gospodin Tenev as a large version of a prize awarded annually since 1999.
  • Liberty Square (ploshtad Svoboda) - Haskovo's main square, with many notable buildings and public art
    • Monument to the Unknown Warror (to the Fallen in the Unification Wars) - a 1927 war memorial dedicated to the Bulgarian soldiers who fell in the Liberation War, the Serbo-Bulgarian War, the two Balkan Wars, and World War I. Topped with a large sculpture of a soldier, with four smaller at the corners representing different branches - infantry, cavalry, artillery, officer corps.
    • Monument to Envy - bronze sculpture of a winged man (Icarus?), with a pair of huge hands clasping down onto his wings. The pedestal says "envy is a constant companion of glory/fame". Also created by Gospodin Tenev (and yes, his first name does mean "Mister").
  • House-museum Kirkov's School (Kirkovoto uchilishte)
  • House-museum Paskalev's House (Paskalevata kashta)
• Park Kenana - on the north-western outskirts of town; a narrow strip wedges in closer to the city centre, but the rest is a large, wood-covered area. In the closer part, there's a network of alleys, a skate park, a pond, etc. Dogs forbidden.
  • Zoo
• Park Yamacha - south of the city centre, where the Monument of the Mother of God is. Also home to the city stadium, etc.
  • Monument to the Fighters Against Fascism - Communist-era monument and ossuary, an obelisk with bas-reliefs at its base. Like elsewhere, it conflates the failed September Uprising of 1923 and the guerilla movement during World War II (which was involved in the successful coup d'etat that overthrew the monarchy when Soviet troops entered the country).
• Medieval fortress ruins - fragments of walls scattered on a clearing on the southern edge of town, south-east of the Yamacha Park. Curiously juxtaposed with the nearby ruins of a modern concrete water tower that was shaped like a flying saucer.

An instructive story about historic preservation in Bulgaria is the fate of the historic Old Haskovo Prison, built in the late 19th century and the subject of a well-known (and quite vulgar) "new folklore" song. The the municipality had the prison demolished in 2015 and the land was auctioned off. The then-mayor's explanation? He didn't know it had been listed as a heritage building of national importance! Years of litigation later, he received a suspended sentence of one year...

• Open air stage / ice skating rink - amphitheatre-like, next to the Communist-era Sport Hall Spartak (Spartacus).

• Hotel Africa - small 3-star, family-run hotel in an awkward-looking modern building on the riverside boulevard. Notable mostly for its interior decoration: African-themed kitsch that's both amusing and surprisingly pleasant, with every room having a different "patron animal" and colour scheme.

The whole region is rich in ancient remains, though not all of them are visually spectacular or easily accessible to visitors. It has also played a role in the more recent history of Bulgaria.

Alexnandrovo (Александрово) is a village 15 km (9.3 mi) to the north-east of Haskovo, roughly in the middle of the triangle Haskovo-Dimitrovgrad-Harmanli. The A4 motorway passes nearby, but you can't use it to reach the village. Alexandrovo and § Uzundzhovo are on the same rural Road 8007 (in good condition). Approaching from the east (Harmanli), on leaving Harmanli get off the motorway onto Road 554 to Simeonovgrad (to the north); in the suburbs of Simeonovgrad but before crossing the Maritsa keep west (left) to get onto Road 8007 to Konstantinovo (Константиново) and Alexandrovo. From Dimitrovgrad, exit the city to the south-east (eastern exit of the large clover-leaf exchange in the city itself), then follow the road south through a couple of villages until you reach a T-intersection with Road 8007 heading east (left). From Haskovo, follow Saedinenie Blvd east to exit the city, then head north and at the large interchange with E85/Road 8 continue north to get onto Road 8007 to Uzundzhovo; after that turn east at the T-intersection.

• Alexandrovo Tomb / Museum of Thracian Art in the Eastern Rhodopes - the tumulus tomb of an ancient Thracian ruler, discovered by archaeologists in 2000. One of the largest such tombs discovered in Bulgaria, and one of the handful with intact frescoes (two of the other ones are UNESCO World Heritage Sites). To preserve the frescoes, the tomb is closed to visitors; there's an exact copy in the museum right next to it, which opened in 2009.

Mineralni bani (Минерални бани, lit. "mineral baths") is a village 18 km (11 mi) west of Haskovo along Road 508, under the slopes of the Rhodope Mountain. As the name suggests, it's a minor spa resort, and there's also the ruins of a medieval fortress.

• Toplitsa Fortress - also known as the Holy Spirit fortress, after the hill it's on, which in turn is named after a chapel.

Uzundzhovo (Узунджово, oo-zoon-JAW-vo) is a village less than 10 km (6.2 mi) to the north-east of Haskovo. It used to host the famous Uzundzhovo Fair, which in the 18th and 19th centuries grew to be one of the largest annual trade fairs in the Ottoman Empire. At its peak, more than fifty thousand people from all over Bulgaria and the rest of the Empire gathered here to trade livestock, crafts, and products imported from abroad. A dedicated fairground was built, which included a fortified caravanserai and a mosque. The fair gradually declined in the second half of the 19th century, due to the introduction of railways and other economic advances. The final nail in its coffin was the Liberation War (1877-1878), which disrupted trade and separated Bulgaria from the rest of the Empire. The Plovdiv Fair was established in 1893 as a modern alternative.

• Church of the Dormition of the Mother of God - Formerly a mosque, the last remnant of the Uzundzhovo fair. Stone building erected in 1593; converted to a church in 1903; last renovations in 2007. Certain elements of its previous function remain, such as an Arabic inscription above the main door. Functioning Eastern Orthodox Church and a small museum of the Uzundzhovo Fair.
• Uzundzhovo Airfield Memorial Complex - a number of monuments commemorating the nearby 18th Base of the Bulgarian Air Force, which existed between 1951 and 1998. There's a Soviet-made MiG-21 jet fighter on a pylon, a radar antenna, a memorial list of dead pilots, and monuments to various 19th century Bulgarian revolutionaries.

• To the north: Dimitrovgrad, and further away Stara Zagora, Kazanlak and the Shipka Pass through the Balkan Mountains.
• If you like small towns and ancient sites, to the east is Harmanli, and then to the north-east Topolovgrad under the low mountain Sakar and Elhovo on the river Tundzha; you can then swing north towards Yambol and Karnobat, or proceed directly to Burgas on the Black Sea coast.
• To the south-east: Svilengrad on the border, then Greece and Turkey.
• To the south-west is Kardzhali in the Eastern Rhodope Mountains; on the way you can swing by the famous ruins of ancient Perperikon.
• To the west is colourful and ancient Plovdiv, a gateway to a number of other destinations both further west and in the Rhodope Mountains