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Rila Monastery Afternoon Half Day tour

Badge of Excellence
Sofia, Bulgaria
Great choice
10+ bookings last month.
  • 4 to 5 hours (approx.)
  • Mobile ticket
  • Offered in: English

Overview

Combine two UNESCO World Heritage Sites into a spectacular day of exploring on a full-day tour from Sofia to Rila Monastery and Boyana Church. Round-trip transport by climate-controlled vehicle ensures a comfortable day on the road, as onboard Wi-Fi keeps you connected. Free time to check out Rila Monastery and Boyana Church give you the flexibility to explore on your own pace, without the fixed itinerary of a guided tour.
  • Visit two top UNESCO sites to make the most of travel time
  • Convenient pickup and drop-off at a central location in Sofia
  • Hotel pickup included for groups of three or more
  • Group size is limited to 15 travelers for personal service

What's Included

  • Air-conditioned vehicle
  • WiFi on board
  • Driver
  • Food and drinks
  • Gratuities

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

  • Sofia Center, ul. "Iskar" 31, 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria

    Iskar 31 street - Big Yellow House

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

Operating hours
.2:00 pm

Itinerary

1

Rila Monastery

2 hours • Admission Ticket Free

Additional Info

  • Confirmation will be received at time of booking
  • Wheelchair accessible
  • Stroller accessible
  • Near public transportation
  • Infant seats available
  • Transportation is wheelchair accessible
  • Most travelers can participate
  • Rila Monastery is about 1.5 - 2.5 hours driving from Sofia depending on traffic
  • This tour/activity will have a maximum of 99 travelers
Supplied by

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Gallery picture 1 (from a traveler's review)
Gallery picture 2 (from a traveler's review)
Gallery picture 3 (from a traveler's review)
Gallery picture 4 (from a traveler's review)
Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

Reviews

4.3
based on 27 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
We perform checks on reviews

It was a very good...

hornbond, May 2025
It was a very good experience with the local Viator representative this time. He was the best one who I had with the Viator for the past many years.

Afternoon trip to Rila Monastery

Asier_E, Aug 2024
The driver took us to the Rila Monastery mountains with nice driving, however we would have expected better guide type explanations at the site. It was a very short reading of the monastery architecture and religion.

Great trip

MyBackpackandMe, Sep 2019
The monastery is stunning so well worth the 90 min drive from Sofia and the Boyana church is a fantastic example of medieval art. Our guide Dennis was great, very knowledgeable and friendly.

Experience with a trip...

Alex_M, Oct 2025
Experience with a long journey, and on arrival at the monastery it was all closed except the church. He deserves a picture but I had longer expectations. Better go in the morning.
Auto-translated

Tour a Rila, en coche.

Pau_A, Nov 2024
Nos vino a recoger Apostolos, el guía, a nuestro airbnb en un monovolumen y nos llevó al monasterio. En todo momento encantador, conduciendo correctamente, y explicándonos de tanto en tanto la historia del monasterio. Una vez allí, nos dejó a nuestro aire, pero siempre al lado por si queríamos preguntar algo o que nos hiciera fotos. Lo recomiendo un 10. Después de un par de horas, volvimos, ya que nevaba. Bajamos con el mismo guía y el mismo coche, y nos devolvió a la puerta del Airbnb otra vez. Todo salió según nos prometieron.

Bella esperienza

Pierangelagina_M, Aug 2024
Aver conosciuto i volontari , ragazzi simpatici e molto preparati ed educati.Ve lo consiglio. Macchina comoda e confortevole

Noi abbiamo fatto solo il...

Agnese_V, Aug 2024
Noi abbiamo fatto solo il tour del Monastero, ma l'agenzia organizza anche tour di una giornata intera che prevede anche i 7 laghi. Se si sceglie di fare solo il monastero si passa molto tempo in auto (circa 5 ore tra andata e ritorno). La vista al monastero dura un'ora ,ma è davvero molto bello! La guida è stata cordiale e molto disponibile.

Belle visite des merveilles bulgares

maximep853, Jan 2020
Super visite, notre guide était très discret et sympathique, plein de bons conseils, dans un parfait anglais. Nous recommandons.

Dommage boyana était fermée!!

Linda_K, Jan 2020
Dommage que la visite à été réduite de moitié mais viator nous a remboursé 30% du montant de la visite car nous étions decus.

Très belle Balade mais rapide

veglioalexandra, Nov 2019
Visite rapide du monastère (40 minutes sur place) et de l'église ( 10 min sur place dehors sans rentrer dans l'église ) pour pas mal de route. Mais cela reste néanmoins à faire car magnifique

From $58.35

per person

up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)

Book ahead!
On average, this is booked 19 days in advance.

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