Kazanlak the Valley of Roses

There is something in Kazanlak, which is not only the beautiful nature and the fascinating women. There is something which is in the air, something which is soaked in the soil… Something that explains the specific atmosphere and flavour Kazanlak has. Atmosphere of a place where time stands still but life doesn’t; where one can feel peaceful, calm and safe. And the flavour of the rose, the unique rose.

The Valley of Roses and the Valley of the Thracian Kings both symbolize Kazanlak, which is located at the foot of Stara Planina Mountain (Old Mountain), in central Bulgaria. A small, picturesque town of around 70 000 people. It is 194 km away from Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. A place, good enough to be the start of your holidays to Bulgaria.

Visit Bulgaria and the Valley of Roses

Visit Bulgaria and Kazanlak. Learn about the most beautiful among women, the rose and how it found its place here in that valley.

visit kazanlak rose garden, holidays to bulgaria, to bulgaria holidays, bulgaria holidays to, kazanlak valley of roses, thracian kings, kazanlakThe Valley of Roses – because of the Rosa Damascena which finds the conditions in Kazanlak (like high humidity, suitable temperature and sandy soil) to be more favourable for the cultivation of the rose than the ones in its own country of origin, Tunisia. The legend has it that the rose was brought to Thrace from the region of the town Kashan in Persia through Syria and Damascus. Bulgarian scientists presume that the cultivation of the roses was introduced to the region round Kazanlak by a Turkish judge, who had beautiful vast gardens planted with fragrant roses. Whatever the truth is, the fact is that the Bulgarian rose oil soon made a name for its superior quality. The greatest treasure of the region of Kazanlak – the rose became one of the nation’s symbols. That is why at the beginning of the 19th century this rose was named the Kazanlak Damask rose and the valley to the south of the Central Balkans came to be known as the Valley of the Roses. Along with the production of rose oil, a leading role in the economic development of the region was commerce related to the roses. In 1740 Bulgaria for the first time exports rose oil for France. The first official records of rose oil exports refer to trade with Germany and Austro-Hungary beginning in 1771.

Be a Bulgaria tourist and enjoy the Festival of the Rose

Since 1903, here in this Valley, we have been celebrating the flowers and especially the main and most beautiful flower – the rose. First, the Festival of the Rose was celebrated as the Festival of the Flowers but until the present day it has been celebrated by all Kazanlak people and its thousands of guests, as the Festival of the Unique Rose. Among Bulgaria tourist attractions, Kazanlak is a unique place because there is beauty and life there.

What are the things to do in Bulgaria, in Kazanlak? Visitors of the town can see exhibits of original photographs and documents related to the cultivation of roses during the Bulgarian Age of Awakening (18th -19th centuries) and in the 20th century, in the local Museum of the Rose, which was founded in 1984. There is a display of tools used to cultivate the rose gardens, along with vessels used to store and transport rose oil and rosewater. More can be learned about the region’s rose cultivation at the Kulata Ethnographic Complex.

Reference: http://www.enmarbg.com

A Joyful Day in Bulgaria

Twelve happy and lovely Dutch people (six couples and twelve friends) left The Netherlands to visit my beautiful and friendly country, Bulgaria.

We met on Friday, 20.05, the day of their private tour Bulgaria, Kazanlak. They travelled from Plovdiv and I was waiting for them in the village of Tarnichane, at the rose distillery. Some rose picking (well, it wasn’t as early as 5 am – the usual time to start the picking up), good and detailed information about the different oleaginous roses, the process of distilling and making rose oil and rose water, etc. Everything was fine but we missed the usual 10:30 coffee break. Back to our vehicle and off to Kazanlak. We had our coffee in the centre of the town of Kazanlak, in the Valley of Roses and the Valley of Thracian Kings, under the shining sun which was so generous that day (unlike the previous and following days).

Refreshed and inspired by the roses we had in our bags, pockets and hands we carried on with our private tour Bulgaria in Kazanlak and we visited one of the symbols of the town – the Lion or the Tzar’s Fountain. I think you, my guests, want to come back to Kazanlak, to Bulgaria and you drank water from the fountain. The guide told you the story of the fountain and the legend that goes with it – ‘if you like to come back to this lovely place on Earth, Kazanlak, you have to drink water from the fountain’.

Time for lunch. Lunch in a nice, peaceful garden in a very good restaurant.

We already knew pretty a lot about Rosa Damascena but still needed to get more into the world of the most beautiful among women in Kazanlak, Her Majesty the Rose. We visited the Rose Museum, the only museum in the world dedicated to the oil-yielding plant.

A little escape from the motto of the tour – the Rose. Kazanlak is also known as the Valley of the Thracian Kings. We visited a unique monument of the Thracian culture included in UNESCO’s List of World Heritage, the Thracian Tomb in Kazanlak.

With the visit to the Memorial Temple of the Birth of Christ (better known as the Shipka Memorial Church or Shipka Monastery), our happy and lovely tour was getting closer to its end. And the end of the tour was marked with a nice and relaxing stop at another distillery, a modern one with amazing park with different roses. Such a peaceful place.

That was only one of our tours and there are many more. Bulgaria is an endless source for great places and time spent in the best way. For more of our offers, please click on private tour Bulgaria.

Reference: http://www.enmarbg.com/private-tour-bulgaria-a-joyful-day/