"Veliko Tarnovo" Veliko Turnovo by JohnniOmani

Veliko Turnovo is a small medieval town in in the heart of Bulgaria and I only travelled down to Veliko because the Bucharest Sofia train was booked solid and my god how I am happy how things work out for the better because this town has been one of my favorite towns in all of Europe. This place has absolutely everything from an amazing fortress that is great condition to amazing architecture to gorges to monuments to fantastic restaurants. The river Yantra snakes its way through the town making the town one of the most photogenic small towns in Eastern Europe. Veliko Turnovos areas of interest can be seen in a day but I fell in love with the old town, fortress and awesome views and I ended up staying four days. Veliko Turnovo surpasses most small towns in Europe and I highly recommend travellers get there before the places explodes on the backpacker scene.

Tsarevets Citadel

The Tsarevets citadel was built to defend the town and it was sacked by the Turks at least twice in its history. It dominates the edge of the old town and it hovers above a gorge making for some spectacular photos. The citadel stands strong and I personally had loads of fun just wondering around and going up to each tower and taking in the views. There are not busloads of tourists in Veliko yet so you can wander around the area without any trouble making this citadel a memorable one in Eastern Europe. Veliko Turnovo is a fantastic place to break up a long trip in Eastern Europe and its sights will charm any jaded traveller.

• Pros:Excellent food, hostels, drinks and sights
• Cons:absolutely nothing
• In a nutshell:One of my favorite towns in Europe