Boyana Church & Rila Monastery Day Tour from Sofia

Excellent & confortable transfer + very competent snd polite guide Mr Hristo

Roberto

Visit two of the most important monuments in Sofia – Boyana Church and Rila Monastery. Essential for any trip to the Bulgarian capital!

Details

Duration

8 hours 30 minutes.

Language

The activity takes place with a guide in English or another language depending on the option selected.

Included

Transport by bus
Admission to Rila Monastery
English–speaking guide (depending on selection)
Audio guide in English (depending on selection)

Not included

Food and drinks
Hotel pickup
Admission to Boyana Church: 7EUR per person

Supporting documents

Electronic voucher. Have it on your phone.

Accessibility

Not wheelchair accessible.

Minimum age

Not permitted for anyone under 5 years

Sustainability

All services meet our

Pets

Not allowed.

Frequently asked questions

If you have other questions, contact us

Free cancellation

Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the activity starts. Any cancellations after this or no-shows on the day will not be refunded.

Belogradchik Rocks Trip

Free cancellation

Rila Monastery & Sapareva Banya Hot Springs Day Trip

Free cancellation

Free Tour of Sofia

9.5

(7,566)

Gratis

Meeting point

Sofia Center, Yanko Sakuzov Blvd 9

Reviews of our customers

9.0

Exceptional 5,524 Travelers·670 reviews

July 1, 2026
Roberto
Milano, Italy
Excellent & confortable transfer + very competent snd polite guide Mr Hristo
Traveling solo
Is this useful?
June 11, 2026
Chiavelli Falavigno
Brazil
The trip war really nice and the guide was super friendly
As a couple
Is this useful?
June 6, 2026
Anonymous
London, United Kingdom
The tour were very organised everything on time
Traveling solo
Is this useful?
April 10, 2026
Ornella Pompili
Roma, Italy
Fantastic day! An excellent guide who was able to illustrate the beautiful sites we visited, but also shared the country's culture and gave us tourist...
With friends
Is this useful?
December 17, 2025
José Luis
Israel
It was a wonderful tour! Our guide and driver took care of us with a perfect balance of professionalism and warmth. The guide’s explanations were exce...
Is this useful?
September 12, 2025
Brian Simpson
Cookstown, United Kingdom
It’s a beautiful monastery and it’s definitely worth having a guide to give background on the monastery. If you go to the museums 2 hours of free time...
Traveling solo
Is this useful?
May 11, 2025
Ana María
Málaga, Spain
I highly recommend this tour. Our guide Antonio is very knowledgeable and Well informed about Bulgarian History. His explanations were superb and made...
With friends
Is this useful?
May 4, 2023
Anonymous
Germany
Overall the trip was very good. Martin the guide was knowledgeable and provided a humorous commentary that made the trip enjoyable. We called at Rila ...
With friends
Is this useful?
September 16, 2019
Anonymous
California, U.S. Outlying Islands
Guide was very nice and very informative. had a good time. Only issue is we stayed at the Rila Monastery for 3 hours, which is a long time for 1 churc...
Traveling solo
Is this useful?
July 8, 2019
Laura
Barcelona, Spain
La excursión estuvo bien y nuestro guía nos dio muchas información de Bulgaria, de Boyana y del monasterio, si que es cierto que a mi personalmente me...
Traveling solo
Is this useful?

Show all reviews

Visit two of the most important monuments in Sofia – Boyana Church and Rila Monastery. Essential for any trip to the Bulgarian capital!

Tour Details

At the designated time, we'll meet at Vasil Levski Square, in front of the embassy of Slovakia, where we'll catch a bus and head to Boyana, a neighbourhood located to the city's south.

After a 25-minute journey in which you see the city's surroundings, we'll arrive in Boyana. Our first stop will be the Boyana Church, a small Orthodox sanctuary with frescoes from three different periods: the 11th century, 13th century, and 19th century. You'll be amazed by the Italian Renaissance paintings that are a perfect example of the medieval art of Eastern Europe.

We continue our journey, arriving at the monastery of Rila. This is an iconic monument in Sofia that demonstrates Slavic cultural identity following the Ottoman occupation. We'll tour the grounds of this impressive medieval monument with colourful arches and domes that will leave you stunned.

Then we enter the interior to see the golden iconostasis carved into wood, one of the largest in the Balkans, and the tomb of the last monarch of Bulgaria, Boris III. Then you'll have around two hours of free time in order to complete your experience and explore the area on your own.

Once we've explored the area, we'll return to Sofia after about 8.5 hours, but please note the drop-off time will vary depending on the time slot when we enter Boyana Church.

Transfer to Rila Monastery

If you prefer to explore on your own, you can also book the option that includes only the transfer directly to Rila Monastery. Please note that this option is not guided and does not stop at the Boyana Church.

Important Info

The Boyana Church is closed during Orthodox Easter and on January 1.

9.0

Exceptional 5,524 Travelers·670 reviews

July 1, 2026
Roberto
Milano, Italy
Excellent & confortable transfer + very competent snd polite guide Mr Hristo
Traveling solo
Is this useful?
June 11, 2026
Chiavelli Falavigno
Brazil
The trip war really nice and the guide was super friendly
As a couple
Is this useful?
June 6, 2026
Anonymous
London, United Kingdom
The tour were very organised everything on time
Traveling solo
Is this useful?
April 10, 2026
Ornella Pompili
Roma, Italy
Fantastic day! An excellent guide who was able to illustrate the beautiful sites we visited, but also shared the country's culture and gave us tourist...
With friends
Is this useful?
December 17, 2025
José Luis
Israel
It was a wonderful tour! Our guide and driver took care of us with a perfect balance of professionalism and warmth. The guide’s explanations were exce...
Is this useful?
September 12, 2025
Brian Simpson
Cookstown, United Kingdom
It’s a beautiful monastery and it’s definitely worth having a guide to give background on the monastery. If you go to the museums 2 hours of free time...
Traveling solo
Is this useful?
May 11, 2025
Ana María
Málaga, Spain
I highly recommend this tour. Our guide Antonio is very knowledgeable and Well informed about Bulgarian History. His explanations were superb and made...
With friends
Is this useful?
May 4, 2023
Anonymous
Germany
Overall the trip was very good. Martin the guide was knowledgeable and provided a humorous commentary that made the trip enjoyable. We called at Rila ...
With friends
Is this useful?
September 16, 2019
Anonymous
California, U.S. Outlying Islands
Guide was very nice and very informative. had a good time. Only issue is we stayed at the Rila Monastery for 3 hours, which is a long time for 1 churc...
Traveling solo
Is this useful?
July 8, 2019
Laura
Barcelona, Spain
La excursión estuvo bien y nuestro guía nos dio muchas información de Bulgaria, de Boyana y del monasterio, si que es cierto que a mi personalmente me...
Traveling solo
Is this useful?

Show all reviews

Points of interest in Sofia

Rila Monastery

Types of activities in Sofia

Guided tours and free tours Day trips

Other activities in Sofia

Free Tour of Sofia Sofia Pub Crawl

Visit two of the most important monuments in Sofia – Boyana Church and Rila Monastery. Essential for any trip to the Bulgarian capital!

Tour Details

At the designated time, we'll meet at Vasil Levski Square, in front of the embassy of Slovakia, where we'll catch a bus and head to Boyana, a neighbourhood located to the city's south.

Once we've explored the area, we'll return to Sofia after about 8.5 hours, but please note the drop-off time will vary depending on the time slot when we enter Boyana Church.

Transfer to Rila Monastery

Important Info

The Boyana Church is closed during Orthodox Easter and on January 1.

Boyana Church and Rila Monastery Day Tour