Log In

Share This Page

Geolocating...

Tsarevo

Tsarevo

Tsarevo is located in the country’s south-east region, on the South Black Sea coast, about 66 kilometers from Burgas. The border with Turkey is just approximately 40 kilometers south of Tsarevo. Strandzha Mountain is mostly covered by the municipality’s borders. The town has a population of around 5,000 people.

Previously, the town was known as Vasiliku (12th century). There is evidence that it was known as Vasilikos in 1351 and Vasiliko in 1934. Michurin was the town’s name from 1950 until 1991. Since 1991, the town has been known as Tsarevo.

The town has an established harbor with a long history of shipbuilding and fishing. The closeness to Strandzha, a source of timber for ship building, was one of Tsarevo’s primary assets. Historically, tiny to medium-sized ships were manufactured at the Tsarevo shipyard, but its distinguishing characteristic was their pointed ship bow. This section of the ship was dubbed Karina in Greek. That is why the indigenous people were dubbed kakarini. During the first part of the nineteenth century, the coastal town was home to a fleet of 42 ships. The area grew grain and grapes. They were the fundamental commodities traded by the indigenous people. Tsarevo had cordial trading links with the Ottoman Empire’s capital, Constantinople, as well as with ports on the Aegean and Marmara Seas.

Following Bulgaria’s liberation from Ottoman domination in 1878, the town remained within the Ottoman Empire’s boundaries. Following the Balkan War (1912–1913), the town was reincorporated into Bulgarian territory.

Tsarevo is now separated between an old and a modern section. During the 1880s, a massive fire destroyed a big portion of the town, and now, just a few structures survive. The church of „The Assumption of St. Mary“ is located on Tsarevo’s southern peninsula. Another temple stood on the site of the current church. The church was constructed in 1831 and has retained its modern look since 1895. Several of the temple’s icons come from the late 18th century.

Lozenets is a resort community located 7 kilometers from the town. Near Tsarevo are the beaches of the old camping sites of Coral, South, and Oasis. Additionally, surrounding minor resort towns like as Ahtopol, Sinemorets, and Kiten are located.

Strandzha’s closeness to the area contributes to the region’s well-developed ecological and mountainous tourism. There are established trails throughout the Strandzha natural park. While travelers stroll along them, they may learn about the region’s history and animal and plant species. The waterways around Tsarevo are teeming with fish. Fishermen standing on bridges and along the coastlines are often seen here.

Tsarevo has an extensive cultural calendar. August traditionally hosts the following events: Sea Week, International Honey Dew Festival, and international and national folklore events. Tsarevo’s region is densely packed with hotels, guest rooms, and camping areas. They provide lodging according to the travelers’ budgets and preferences. Additionally, the food and beverage enterprises are diversified and include delectable seafood.

Tourism in Tsarevo

Tsarevo Travel Guide - Travel S Helper

Today, Tsarevo is one of the most popular resorts in the Strandzha Mountain region.

The resort has excellent hospitality, a variety of hotel types and pricing, a variety of activities, and a thriving market filled with fresh, locally produced veggies. Although the town’s center beach is tiny, it is flanked by gorgeous trees from the town park.

Not far from Tsarevo are two of the most popular camping grounds – Nestinarka and Arapia – as well as the beaches of the old Coral, South, and Oasis camping areas. Tsarevo’s center beach is modest, but is bordered by park trees.

Near Tsarevo are the popular campgrounds Arapia and Nestinarka, as well as the beaches of the former camping areas South, Coral, and Oasis.Tsarevo is also close to the beaches of tiny resort towns such as Sinemorets, Ahtopol, and Kiten.

Tsarevo is separated between an old and a modern section, both of which provide hotels of various grades and rates, as well as rooms in private homes, villas, and camping grounds.

Numerous restaurants providing Bulgarian and foreign cuisine are located around the city. The resort has a pleasant seaside park. Guests may take a stroll along the port, across the pier, or along the bay, which is home to the Uspenie Bogorodichno church.

Tsarevo has a variety of entertainment options geared at families with children.

Close to town lies the forested Papia mountain (502 m), which has remnants of an old castle.

Due to its closeness to Strandzha mountain, Tsarevo has created a developed port and traditions in fishing and shipbuilding, as well as developed mountain and ecological tourism in the area. Strandzha nature park is home to various defined paths.

August has traditionally seen the following cultural events: the International Festival of Honey Dew, Sea Week, and national and international folklore festivals.

History of Tsarevo

Underwater archaeological studies have uncovered Late Antiquity (4th–6th centuries) amphoras and imported red-polished pottery from Constantinople, Syria, and North Africa, indicating a thriving commerce in the region at the period. The southern peninsula of the city has remnants of a medieval castle.

The town was initially recorded as Vasiliko by the Arab geographer Muhammad al-Idrisi in the 12th century. It is unknown whether it existed during the First Bulgarian Empire. Vasilikoz was an Ottoman harbor in the 15th and 16th centuries. According to 17th-century explorer Evliya elebi, Vasilikoz Burgas in 1662 consisted of a square fortification perched atop a ridge overlooking the Black Sea and surrounded by vineyards. Although its cove was large enough to accommodate even the largest ships, seamen generally avoided it due to the lack of protection from the strong eastern winds.

Vasilikoz was included in Ottoman tax records in the late 17th and 18th centuries as part of the Anchialos kaza (Pomorie). It was a village of 200 buildings and a bustling harbor in 1787, according to the Austrian embassy in Constantinople. In 1829, another western tourist described Vasiliko as a village with 220 buildings whose population were mostly engaged in shipbuilding and fishing. Another source indicates that it had a population of 1,800 in 1831. (with 434 houses).

The original town was situated in the southern half of the cove, near what is now known as Vasiliko, Tsarevo’s contemporary section. Vasiliko had a navy of 42 ships in the first part of the nineteenth century. Ten windmills and a watermill were located nearby, and the vines produced up to 6,000 pails of wine every year. There was a Greek school that many Bulgarians frequented, leading to their partial Hellenization.

In 1882, a fire burned almost the whole town, forcing the residents to relocate to the peninsula of the northern cove known as Limnos. In 1903, the new Vasiliko had 150 dwellings, although other figures indicate that there were 460 dwellings in 1898 (160 Bulgarian and 300 Greek), and 240 Greek-only dwellings in 1900.

Following Bulgaria’s annexation of the hamlet in 1913 as a result of the Balkan Wars, the settlement’s Greek inhabitants relocated to Greece and was replaced by Bulgarians from Eastern Thrace. Vasiliko had 409 households in 1926. Following the construction of a new dock between 1927 and 1937 with the financial assistance of Bulgarian Tsar Boris III, the town was renamed Tsarevo (a direct Bulgarian translation of Vasiliko, “royal settlement”) in his honor.

Go Next...

Plovdiv
25 Jul

Plovdiv is Bulgaria’s second biggest city, with a population of 341,567 in 2015 and a

Nessebar
25 Jul

Nesebar (often spelled Nessebar and sometimes Nesebur) is a historic city and one of

Sozopol
25 Jul

Sozopol is situated on a picturesque bay on the southern Bulgarian coast, about 35 kilometers

Golden Sands
25 Jul

Golden Sands (Bulgarian: Zlatni pyasatsi) is a significant coastal resort town on Bulgaria’s northern Black

Borovets
24 Jul

Borovets ski resort is 12 kilometers from Samokov and 72 kilometers from Sofia, Bulgaria’s capital.

Burgas
24 Jul

Burgas, sometimes spelled Bourgas, is the second biggest city on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast

Sunny Beach
25 Jul

Sunny Beach is Bulgaria’s biggest resort. It is located between the town of Nesebar and

Bansko
24 Jul

Bansko is Bulgaria’s flagship ski resort, with the biggest ski area, significant historical value,

Varna
25 Jul

Varna is the largest city and beach resort on Bulgaria’s Black Sea Coast, as well

Sofia
25 Jul

Sofia is Bulgaria’s capital and biggest city. Sofia, with a population of over 1.2