KOPRIVSHTITSA FOLK FESTIVAL
AUGUST 04 – 17, 2020 – CANCELED
The festival in Koprivshtitsa 2020 was canceled due to the complicated situation with Covid-19.
Expect updated information about the festival!
The hospitality of the Balkans
Bulgaria & Greece
Discover Bulgaria – feel the tradition,
enjoy the adventure and meet the
unknown
Discover Greece – feel the scent of the
sea and antiquity
Key accents in the itinerary
◆ Take a place in the world famous festival ” KOPRIVSHTITSA 2020” August 7-10, 2020
◆ Hear the unique local folk music, which is a musical message from Earth to outer space;
◆ Discover again Bulgaria – positioned on the crossroad Europe-Asia, is the treasure that combines Thracian, Byzantine and Roman culture;
◆ Feel an extraordinary natural experience, crystal fresh air and endless panorama;
◆ Touching the spiritual centers of Christianity – the monasteries Rila and Bachkovo;
◆ Visit authentic rose–oil distillery, wine cellar, taste authentic Bulgarian meal, high-quality wines with exquisite taste, discover the Bulgarian old tradition in a different crafts ;
◆ Visit authentic rose–oil distillery, wine cellar, taste authentic Bulgarian meal, high-quality wines with exquisite taste, discover the Bulgarian old tradition in a different crafts ;
◆ Enjoy unique Greek coffee and seafood, and views of the Aegean Sea;
◆ Touch to the land of the ancient Greek gods and feel the hospitality of the neighboring Balkan peoples;
◆ Enjoy the brilliant sun and the azure coast of the Aegean;
Download the brochure in PDF
Register for Koprivshtitsa 2020 tour
BULGARIA
Day 1 | Tuesday, August 04, Sofia
Arrival at Sofia Airport and you will be warmly welcomed by Petya Todorova /daughter of Tatiana Sarbinska/, with the symbol of Bulgaria “The Bulgarian Rose” and a small bottle of “Todoroff Rakia”. Transfer from Sofia Airport to Rosslyn Central Park Hotel Sofia – 4 star, located on the most popular street in Sofia, Vitosha Blvd., and opposite the National Palace of Culture, the largest cultural center in Bulgaria.
Accommodation at the hotel.
Dinner at the hotel;
Day 2 | Wednesday, August 05, Sofia
After breakfast at the hotel you will have half day city tour with our professional tour guide Rumi Sokacheva and will visit some of the most famous places us: The new antique complex Serdica; Alexander Nevski cathedral; National Parliament; Sveta Sofia church from 6- th century; The oldest Rotunda Saint George from 4-th century; Boyana church – included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites., etc.……
Afternoon you will enjoy your free time strolling along the pedestrian street Vitosha where artists show their art, enjoy the pleasant atmosphere in one of the dozens of small cafes, listen to music performances by street musicians. The day will end with dinner at a traditional Bulgarian restaurant with Bulgarian folk music and dance, where you will enjoy delicious Bulgarian dishes.
After a fun day, you will relax at the wonderful hotel Rosslyn Central Park Hotel Sofia, and from the window to observe the illuminated National Palace of Culture.
Day 3 | Thursday, August 06, Koprivshtitsa
Koprivshtitsa is located in the Sredna Gora Mountain and is located 110 km from Sofia. Koprivshtitsa is proclaimed the only city museum in the country, an architectural and historical reserve, it has 388 architectural, historical, artistic and ethnographic monuments. In 1978 it was recognized as a national architectural reserve of international importance and a settlement for international tourism.
After breakfast at the hotel, we planned to have some free time for shopping or to visit additional attractions in Sofia.
We will have lunch at a romantic restaurant in Sofia and leave for Koprivshtitsa. Accordionist Ivan Katsarski will join us for the whole tour.
In Koprivshtitsa our hosts are waiting for us at Todorini kashti – http://www.todorinikashti.com/ Djogolanovata kashta – https://www.gogolanovahouse.com/
Welcome ceremony with a folklore group of participants in the Festival.
Dinner at the restaurants in Todorini kashti/ Djogolanovata kashta;
Overnight at Todorini kashti/ Djogolanovata kashta;
Day 4 | Friday, August 07,
Koprivshtitsa Folklore Festival 2020
The Koprivshtitsa Festival is organized once every 5 years. In 2020, it has been 55 years since it was first held. The festival features singers, dancers, instrumentalists, singing and dance groups from all over Bulgaria performing authentic Bulgarian folklore. The participants are about 15,000 from all over Bulgaria and is one of the largest festivals in Europe. Foreign guests performing on Bulgarian authentic folklore also have a special stage. The festival is listed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Breakfast at the hotels is made up of traditional Bulgarian dishes. The whole day is scheduled to visit the National Festival of Bulgarian Folklore. The venue is away from the city and usually visitors and participants spend the whole day in the meadows of the festival.Before leaving for the festival, everyone will receive a lunch package.
The festival has a large number of stages where the participants perform their folklore performances. You will listen to folklore performances from all regions of Bulgaria. You will feel how the mountain singing and dancing. A large number of masters of folk instruments, folk costumes and souvenirs showcase their custom products.
Dinner at the restaurants in Todorini kashti/ Djogolanovata kashta;
Overnight at Todorini kashti/ Djogolanovata kashta;
Day 5 | Saturday, August 08, Koprivshtitsa Folklore Festival 2020
Breakfast at the hotels. The whole day is scheduled to visit the Koprivshtitsa Folklore Festival. Before leaving for the festival, everyone will receive a lunch package.
An individual visit to the Koprivshtitsa Folk Festival, according to personal interests.
Participation in the concert for foreign guests.
Dinner at the restaurants in Todorini kashti/ Djogolanovata kashta;
Overnight at Todorini kashti/ Djogolanovata kashta;
Day 6 | Sunday, August 09,
Koprivshtitsa Folklore Festival 2020
Breakfast at the hotels. The whole day is scheduled to visit the Koprivshtitsa Folklore Festival.
Before leaving for the festival, everyone will receive a lunch package.
An individual visit to the Koprivshtitsa Folk Festival, according to personal interests.
Work shop – Bulgarian folk dances
Dinner at the restaurants in Todorini kashti/ Djogolanovata kashta;
Overnight at Todorini kashti/ Djogolanovata kashta;
Day 7 | Monday, August 10
Koprivshtitsa – Rose distillery “Damascena complex” – Plovdiv- Todoroff Wine Residence – Plovdiv
Breakfast at Todorini kashti / Djogolanovata kashta. Before leaving, everyone will receive a lunch package.
Departure for visit – Ethnographic complex “Damascena” – rose distillery tour. Watch a demonstration of the rose oil production throughout the season and feel the spirit of the old tradition. Tasting different products made from Bulgarian rose.
Lunch at the distillery;
Travel to Plovdiv – 2019 European capital of culture. Accommodation in Trimontium Ramada Hotel Plovdiv – 4 star
Departure to Todoroff Wine Cellar – wine tasting and dinner with folklore program – the first boutique wine cellar in Bulgaria, the inheritor of rich culture, traditions and inspiration, coming back from the centuries. Transfer back to Plovdiv.
Overnight at Plovdiv – Trimontium Ramada Hotel – 4 star
Distance: Koprivshtitsa city – Damascena complex-Plovdiv – 190 km.
Day 8 | Tuesday, August 11, Plovdiv
After breakfast at the hotel will be visit of Bachkovo monastery – the second biggest monastery in Bulgaria. The monastery is important monument of Christian architecture and one of the largest and oldest Eastern Orthodox monasteries in Europe.
Lunch in Plovdiv.
Half day city tour in Plovdiv – one of the oldest cities in Europe /6 000 years/, if not the oldest one, situated on top of three hills. It was originally a Thracian city before later becoming a Greek and a major Roman one. In the called Old city part of town there can be seen beautiful old houses, built during the Bulgarian Renaissance period. In 1979, the city was awarded a gold medal for preserving its cultural heritage. Visit the Old city with Ancient theatre, Ethnographic Museum, Djumaya Mosque, Lamartin’s House Museum of Bulgarian Revival, Roman Stadium, the monument of Philip of Macedonia etc.
Dinner in authentic restaurant in Old Town Plovdiv.
Overnight at Plovdiv – Trimontium Ramada Hotel – 4 star
Day 9 | Wednesday, August 12, Blagoevgrad
Breakfast at the hotel, check out and departure to Blagoevgrad through Sofia. On the way lunch at Lake Pancharevo, restaurant Swan in the vicinity of Sofia. On the way to Blagoevgrad, we will visit the Medi Valley Wine Cellar, where we will taste wines from the valley of the Struma River. At the late afternoon arriving in Blagoevgrad city. Hotel accommodation in the city center, free time.
Blagoevgrad city is a major economic, cultural and educational center in Southwest Bulgaria, between two large mountains Rila and Pirin. Here is the American College in Bulgaria, which is one of the most prestigious universities in Bulgaria. The glory of the city and Bulgaria is spread around the world by the Pirin Folk Song and Dance Ensemble, which has won several national and international awards. Our leader Ms. Tatyana Sarbinska – was a Prime soloist of the Pirin folklore ensemble.
Dinner with local folklore program
Overnight in hotel – 4 star in Blagoevgrad
Day 10 | Thursday, August 13, Blagoevgrad – Rila Monastery – Blagoevgrad
After breakfast at the hotel, we start to visit Rila monastery. The largest monastery complex in the Balkans (outside Mount Athos), It is important Christian, cultural and educational center. It is majestic monument of Bulgarian medieval and renaissance architecture and painting. It was founded by Bulgarian Saint Ivan Rilski and his followers in the 10th century. Its walls are richly decorated with frescoes, characterized by a high artistic value and original iconographic quality. Visit the monastery complex and its museum display.
Lunch at a fish restaurant near the river. Travel back to Blagoevgrad
In Blagoevgrad will have a meeting with local folklore group
Dinner at the local traditional restaurant
Overnight in hotel – 4 star in Blagoevgrad
Distance: Blagoevgrad – Rila monastery-Blagoevgrad 90 km.
THESSALONIKI – Greece
Day 11 | Friday, August 14
Blagoevgrad – Thessaloniki / Greece
Some of our friends from the group who are finishing their trip, after breakfast will leave for Sofia with our guide Rumi Sokacheva, who will accompany them to Sofia Airport.
Thessaloniki is the second largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia. It is also a city with a continuous 3,000 year old history; preserving relics of its Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman past and of its formerly dominant Jewish population. Located on the Thermaic Gulf, from all sides with a wonderful view of the Aegean, beautiful buildings in neoclassical style, aroma of citrus and Greek coffee- all this you can enjoy with your stay in the city. Thessaloniki has given Greece some of its greatest musicians, artists, poets and thinkers.
After breakfast at the hotel, will departure to Thessaloniki – Greece/across the border/. Our group will be joined by Milena Kostova, our guide to Thessaloniki. She will tell you and answer your questions about Thessaloniki. In a short time on the road, we will stop in the town of Sandanski, which is one of the cities in Bulgaria with unique mineral water. The climate there is unique in that it helps to cure diseases related to the human respiratory system. You will have lunch in restaurant on the city and continue to Thessaloniki. After accommodation at the hotel, you will have time to explore the ancient Greek city on your own.
For dinner, our guide Milena Kostova will take you to a local Greek restaurant with traditional Greek specialties.
Overnight in hotel – 4 star central location in Thessaloniki
Distance: Blagoevgrad-Thessaloniki – 195 km.
Day 12 | Saturday, August 15, Thessaloniki
After breakfast at the hotel you will enjoy the walk on the Seafront Promenade (optional program by boat). This is also a time for shopping. Thessaloniki stores do not open on Saturday after 2p.m. and all Sunday.
Afternoon will have sightseeing tour with еnglish speaking guide passing through the main sights: the White Tower one of the 16th Century; the picturesque Old town, the interesting Archeological museum. Visit the upper town for its traditional old houses, small cobbled streets, Byzantine citadel, and the Eptapyrgion fort. Later we continue with the Byzantine church of Agios Dimitrios, the Arch of Galerius, the Rotonda and the lively city center.
Dinner at local tavern whit Greek music;
Overnight in hotel – 4 star central location in Thessaloniki
Day 13 | Sunday, August 16, Thessaloniki – One day at Aegean Sea
After breakfast at the hotel will Departure NEA Kallikratia Sea Resort /Aegean Sea/. One day at Aegean Sea;
Nea Kallikratia is a small resort town on the west coast of Halkidiki Peninsula. It is located about 40km from Thessaloniki with a population of about 6,000 people. A great place for a family vacation with a long beach with fine sand and crystalline seawater. After enjoying the beautiful sun all day long, we will return to Thessaloniki in the late afternoon.
Dinner in a restaurant with Greek folklore program ;
Overnight in hotel – 4 star central location in Thessaloniki
Distance: Thessaloniki NEA Kallikratia Sea Resort – 40 km
Day 14 | Monday, August 17, Thessaloniki – Melnik – Sofia
After breakfast at the hotel will departure to Sofia. When across the border on Bulgaria we will briefly visit the town of Melnik – the smallest town in Bulgaria, the center of wine and Bulgarian tradition. We will stroll through the old streets of Melnik and will have lunch at a traditional restaurant.
Melnik is located on the southern slopes of Pirin Mountain, among sandy pyramids of whimsical shapes. The first information about Melnik comes from the beginning of the XI century. The first settlers of the area were the Thracians of the Thracian tribe Medi, from which the legendary Spartacus also originated. A few centuries later the Romans lived here. In 1215 Melnik was the capital of an independent feudal principality ruled by Alexius Slav. The ruins of his fortress are still preserved near the city to this day. Near the town are the Melnik sand pyramids. The height of the pyramids reaches 100 m. In addition to the pyramidal shape, the sand formations are shaped like mushrooms, cones, needles and more. The center of spiritual life in the region is the Rozhen Monastery, located 5 km east of Melnik. It is the largest Orthodox monastery in the Pirin
Late afternoon will arive at Sofia and stay at Rosslyn Central Park Hotel Sofia – 4 stars.
Last night will have a Gala dinner at restaurant with folklore music.
Overnight at hotel Rosslyn Central Park Hotel Sofia – 4 star
Distance: Thessaloniki -Sofia -294 km.
Day 15 | Tuesday, August 18, Sofia -departure
Breakfast at the hotel and transfer to Sofia airport for fly to USA
This thematic tour to get to know Bulgarian folklore and tradition is supported by Ms. Tatiana Sarbinska, who will travel with the group all the time and will devote her professionalism to the benefit of the participants in the tour, in order for them all to further develop their skills and a desire to get to know Bulgarian folklore.
Tatiana Sarbinska is known as the Voice of Pirin in her native country, Bulgaria. Ms. Sarbinska has taught traditional Balkan musical curriculum for schools, universities, and musical ensembles in Bulgaria and the United States for almost thirty years. In Bulgaria, she was Assistant Professor of Music at the Conservatory for the Academy of Music, Dance and Fine Arts in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. She conducted classes in traditional music, culture and voice as Professor of Music for Western University in Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria.
In the United States, she was an instructor for the Boston Public Schools as Artist in Residence for Mayor’s Office of Arts and Humanities, Boston, Massachusetts. She has taught classes and master classes at, among others, the Boston Conservatory, Boston University, Northeastern University-Boston, the New England Conservatory of Music, the Mendecino Balkan Music and Dance Camp, and the Augusta Heritage Center, and she has been a consultant for Revels, the renowned international music company.
She performed in the American Conservatory Theatre(San Francisco) production of Hecuba with Olympia Dukakis. In 2004, Ms. Sarbinska was the music director for the University of Maryland production of Euripides’ The Trojan Women. In 2004, she received a Wammy (Washington Area Music Award) for best world vocalist. In addition to the recognition she has received from, among others, the President of Bulgaria and the Minister of Culture of Bulgaria, Ms. Sarbinska was awarded the Ivan Vasov Medal in 2006 by the government of Bulgaria for her contributions to Bulgarian culture.
For many years, Ms Sarbinska has organized and conducted individual and group lessons and workshops in Eastern European vocal technique, classical and traditional vocal technique, and vocal jazz improvisation using Balkan musical themes.
The tour includes:
14 days tour:
• Transfers from and to airport
• Transport with luxury air-conditional bus
• English speaking guide
• Representative from Demi travel agency
• 14 overnights:
– 3 overnights in Sofia
– 4 overnights in Koprivshtitsa Todorini kashti / Djogolanovata kashta
– 2 overnights in Plovdiv
– 2 overnights in Blagoevgrad
– 3 overnights in Thessaloniki (Greece)
• Meals covered according to the program
• Take a place in the Folklore Festival in Koprivshtitsa 2020
• Attractive program and activities in Sofia, Plovdiv, Blagoevgrad, Sandanski, Thessaloniki, Melnik cities.
• Visit /Rose distillery, Bachkovo monastery, Wine cellars, Rila monastery/
• Medical insurance for the whole tour
• Mineral water per person/per day in the bus
Price – $ 3070.00 per person in double room
Single accommodation supplement – $ 535.00
10 Days tour:
• Transfers from and to airport
• Transport with luxury air-conditional bus
• English speaking guide
• Representative from Demi travel agency
• 10 overnights:
– 2 overnights in Sofia
– 4 overnights in Koprivshtitsa Todorini kashti / Djogolanovata kashta
– 2 overnights in Plovdiv
– 2 overnights in Blagoevgrad
• Meals covered according to the program
• Take a place in the Folklore Festival in Koprivshtitsa 2020
• Attractive program and activities in Sofia, Plovdiv, Blagoevgrad;
• Visit /Rose distillery, Bachkovo monastery, Wine cellars, Rila monastery/
• Medical insurance for the whole tour
• Mineral water per person/per day in the bus
Price – $ 2520.00 per person in double room
Single accommodation supplement – $ 415.00
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
• Air Transport: Air tickets from the US to Bulgaria are not included
• Prices: The price of the tour is per person in a double room. In the event of currency fluctuations of more than 5%, a possible correction in prices may be allowed. Prices are fixed at 1.00 USD = 1.76lv.
• Reservations: A deposit of $ 200 per person is payable on reservation.
• Payments:
– First payment – $ 800 February
– Second payment – $ 800 by March 31
– Third payment – $ 650 by April 30
– The final payment is due by May 29
– Changes: A change is possible in the program.
• Baggage: One suitcase per person is allowed. If more suitcases are needed, prior agreement is required and additional payment is possible.
• Cancellations: If canceled 60 days before departure, 50% of the total price will be refunded. If canceled less than 45 days, the fee will not be refunded unless another person is enrolled at this location.
• Tips: Not included. Acknowledgments to the drivers, transfer staff and hotel staff are left to the discretion of the participants.
• Insurance: Tour participants have travel health insurance during the trip, which takes effect from the day of arrival in Bulgaria to the day of departure from Bulgaria.
Registration form
For Reservations:
Make checks payable to: Tatiana Sarbinska
Phone (301) 728-5773
Email: tatianasarbinska@gmail.com
Organizer in Bulgaria:
Demi Travel Ltd.
Petya Todorova | Phone +359 897 800 737
Email: office@demi-travel.bg
