There is a small entrance fee to visit the Belogradchik Fortress, with audio guides available on site for an additional charge. Photographers may want to climb the steep and unprotected ladders that lead to the top of the rock pinnacles for views over the town and the surrounding countryside.
Belogradchik lies about a 3-hour drive from Sofia: most day trippers from Sofia opt to visit the town, the rocks, and the fortress on a tour with round-trip transport. It’s also possible to see the rocks and the fortress from the air on a hot-air balloon ride.
The Belogradchik Fortress lies about half a mile (1 kilometer) from the center of Belogradchik, a northwestern Bulgarian town about a 3-hour drive or a slightly longer bus ride from Sofia. Independent travelers will signposts to the fortress from the city center. Time-poor travelers coming from Sofia will likely want to book an organized tour to see the key Belogradchik sights in a day.
The Belogradchik Fortress is open morning until afternoon from November through March, with extended hours in spring and early fall. It opens into the evening during the summer peak. If you’re looking to pair a trip to the fortress with a hike in the Belogradchik Rocks, the weather is usually most pleasant between May and September.
The small town of Belogradchik, with a population of just 5,000, is home to two popular attractions, the Belogradchik Fortress and the Belogradchik Rocks, as well as an art gallery and a museum of local history. About a 30-minute drive away from town, the Magura Cave houses paleolithic cave paintings, while an hour’s drive to the north the Baba Vida Fortress, Bulgaria’s best-preserved medieval fortress, overlooks the Danube.
