Featured Destination
Greece
Five Places in Greece That Are Not To Be Missed in June
June is the “last train” to Greece, before the summer season is in full swing and its coasts cave into the sea, made heavy by the crowds. The summer is already breathing hot air into our necks and the cooling blue of the Mediterranean starts to become irresistible. On the hills of ancient and medieval ruins the wind that blows is still fresh, and, around noon, the octopuses start to wave around their tentacles invitingly, served with a half a litre of chilled Retsina wine. Free hotel rooms are easily found and start from 25 euro per night, and the spaces in front of the tavernas and the ouzerias are still crowd-free. Now is the time to grab the pleasures Greece offers by the handful. Full Story
Epicure
Balkans
Five Delicious Aubergine Recipes
The coming of fall in the Balkans brings with it more than a drop in temperatures and a change of scenery. This time of the year also means good news in the culinary department. Full Story
Routes Less Travelled
Greece
The Dönmeh: the Judeo-Islamic Mystery of Thessaloniki
Neither Muslims nor Jews, but rather a bit of both, Thessaloniki’s Dönmeh were the most influential group in the city over a period of almost 400 years. The rumours that the founder of modern Turkey, Kemal Atatürk, was one of them remain unconfirmed. But spending a few days in present-day Thessaloniki makes one wonder whether the city has really managed to rid itself of the influence of the eclectic, and often purely extravagant, tastes of the now extinct sect. Full Story
Urban Browser
Greece
November Weekend in Thessaloniki
If, on a Saturday morning, you wake up surprisingly early in your Sofia flat and decide that you have nothing to wear; if the thought of greasy meat stew makes you feel sick; and if you have respiratory problems that make you feel like you played alongside Dizzy Gillespie all night long, don’t call your shrink! Full Story
Curiosity Chest
Greece
Greece to Officially Honour Lord Byron
16 October 2008 | Greece decided on an official day on which it will honour Lord Byron and other foreigners who participated in the war for Greek independence from the Ottoman Empire at the beginning of the nineteenth century.
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Bulgaria 3/7/14
Bulgaria
Treasure-Hunting in Bulgaria’s Eastern Rodopi Mountains: Ancient Sites and Whimsical Rocks
While Bulgaria’s seaside and mountain resorts continue to attract the bulk of both domestic and international tourists, more unconventional destinations around the country are also starting to become popular with travellers. Among their advantages are the smaller or nonexistent tourist crowds, as well as the alternative tourism opportunities they provide.
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Bulgaria in 5 days: Shumen, South of Nowhere
Bulgaria
Bulgaria in 3 Days: Sofia and Mount Vitosha
Hidden Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Along Suleiman the Magnificent's Bridge in Svilengrad, South-Eastern Bulgaria
The Ottoman bridge over the Maritsa River is not only a predecessor (and maybe even a prototype) of the famous bridge on the Drina, but it is also superior to it in terms of scale and splendour. The legend about its origins is as dramatic as that of the Drina Bridge, although it did not win the Nobel Prize like Ivo Andrić’s novel that recounted it Full Story
Bulgaria
Genghis Khan’s Descendents Swap Central Asia’s Altay for Bulgaria’s Balkan Mountain
Bulgaria
Kabiyuk, The Horse "Factory" Bulgaria Inherited from the Ottoman Empire
Balkan Coasts
Samothrace: Nike Doesn't Live Here Anymore
Greece
If she were still standing in her spot with a head on her shoulders, the winged Nike would see a surrealistic landscape: trees, twisted in unnatural forms; pieces of shiny marble columns, scattered about like an enormous luxurious Lego set; a dark green mountain, drowning in a gray, still sea. Full Story
Balkan Mountains
Meteora, the Second Sky Over Greece
Greece
The unearthly view of the 700-metre high stone pillars, crowned by monasteries, is a James Bond film décor and an inspiration to the musicians of the neo-metal band Linkin Park who named one of their albums after this place. Full Story
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Photogalleries
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A Perfect Shot
BULGARIA D'OR: The Bulgarian countryside, patinated with the noble golden dust of the autumn. Photographs by Lode Desmet
360 degrees Bulgaria, an exhibition by photographer Alexandar Ivanov, is on display at the Sea Garden in Varna until August 28. It will be shown at Plovdiv’s Central Square from Sept 5.
The exhibition Photographs of a Trip Through Bulgaria by Hungarian photographer András Balla can be seen in Sofia's Hungarian Cultural Institute, at Aksakov 16 Street, until August 22
Instant Spring in Sofia | Photographs by Lode Desmet
Off-the-season Beauty of Bulgaria's Black Sea Coast | Photographs by Adelina Iliev
Bulgaria's Northern Black Sea Coast
Photographs by Albena Shkodrova
excellent smugs
Annoyances in the Balkans
Balkans
Relentless Homophobia Rages in the Balkans
Be IN-tolerant! Be normal!, appeals a poster (pictured above) that recently flooded the streets of the Bulgarian capital, Sofia.
As the first gay pride parade in Bulgaria is about to take place, amid strong opposition by nationalistic organisations and a large part of society, the high levels of persistent homophobia in the country and the Full Story
Insiders' Advice
If the relentless homophobia is already that bad, what's the attitude in general towards HIV/AIDS, given the rather worrying HIV-prevalence in Eastern Europe and Russia?
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Is it easy to drive in the Balkans? Depends. If you are looking for adrenalin, this is a cheap way to get it. Expats say the best tactics is not to get annoyed.
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How to pick the right time to go? Winter is beautiful in the high mountains, the problem is, it can be so cold! Then again, who cares how cold it is - the locals have a cheap cure: heavy red wine. Sometimes warmed up.
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You can't trust local maps. Nor some international travel guides. One of them, for instance, says, that Neretva River in Bosnia and Herzegovina flows FROM the Adriatic towards the inland of the Balkans, never reaching the sea. OK, how about the Neretva delta and channel in Croatia?
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The Big Book of Travelling
United States
The Rise of Burlesque in New York: Tassels and the City
Burlesque – the more audacious relative of commedia dell'arte, is in revival. A reality in “upside down style”, this creative, witty and softer version of striptease is back on stage, following an absence of nearly 80 years. In New York, Anjeza Bojku scoped out several burlesqee venues for BalkanTravellers.com. Full Story
Thailand
A Short Guide to the Peculiarities of Thai Food
Travel News
14 November 2008 | The 49th edition of the Thessaloniki Film Festival, which will take place in Greece’s second largest city between today and November 23, will show more than 200 films as part of its programme.
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Blog
Adrien and Martin Joly : From Gravina to Atella Adrien and Martin Joly : Goodbye Montenegro Adrien and Martin Joly : From Bari to Gravina
