Plovdiv, Bulgaria

Day 1

• Roman theatre of Philippopolis

  The city's jewel: a 1st-century theatre overlooking the hills, masterfully restored and still used for shows. Sitting on the marble tiers at sunset is Plovdiv's signature experience.

• Old Town (Stari Grad)

  A maze of cobbled alleys and brightly coloured Bulgarian Revival house-museums, including the Balabanov House and the Hindliyan House. A whole quarter that is itself an open-air museum.

• Roman stadium

  Beneath the main pedestrian street a part of the ancient Roman stadium seating thousands surfaces: you view it from above in the very centre, among shops and cafés, with a small exhibition space.

Day 2

• Dzhumaya Mosque

  One of the oldest Ottoman mosques in the Balkans, right in the centre beside the Roman stadium: the current building dates from the 15th century. Below, the Turkish café serves baklava and boza overlooking the pedestrian street.

• Pedestrian street and café life

  The long pedestrian street (Knyaz Aleksandar I) is the heart of the city's social life: cafés, ice cream and people strolling. The best way to feel Plovdiv's relaxed rhythm.

• Bulgarian cuisine and rakija

  Shopska salad, banitsa (cheese pastry), grilled meats and the local rakija (brandy): a tasty and still very cheap Balkan cuisine, to try in the traditional mehanas.

Day 1

• Kapana district✦ hidden gem

  The former artisans' area, today a 'creative district': pedestrian streets full of murals, cafés, galleries and venues. The city's young, lively face, perfect for the evening.

• Nebet Tepe✦ hidden gem

  The hill where the city was born over 6,000 years ago, with the remains of the ancient fortifications and a 360° view over Plovdiv and its hills: free and magnificent at sunset.

• Ethnographic Museum and Hisar Kapiya✦ hidden gem

  The medieval gate Hisar Kapiya is the scenic entrance to the Old Town; next to it, the Regional Ethnographic Museum occupies one of Plovdiv's most beautiful Bulgarian Revival houses, with a garden and collections on the crafts and costumes of Thrace.

Day 2

• Asen's Fortress (day trip)✦ hidden gem

  The medieval stronghold clinging to a Rhodope spur above Asenovgrad, half an hour from Plovdiv: what remains is the two-storey church with 14th-century frescoes, in a position worth the trip on its own.

• Bachkovo Monastery (day trip)✦ hidden gem

  Founded in 1083, it's Bulgaria's second-largest monastery and one of the country's most important pilgrimage sites: frescoed courtyards with the Rhodope valley all around. Combine it with Asen's Fortress in the same half day.

Day 1

• Bulgarian cuisine and rakija

  Shopska salad, banitsa (cheese pastry), grilled meats and the local rakija (brandy): a tasty and still very cheap Balkan cuisine, to try in the traditional mehanas.

• Mavrud wine✦ hidden gem

  The native red grape of the Plovdiv region, full-bodied and spicy: taste it in Kapana's wine bars and in the wineries of Thrace. With the euro newly adopted, prices remain among Europe's lowest for the quality.

• Kavarma and katak in the mehana✦ hidden gem

  Kavarma is the stew slow-cooked in a clay pot, katak a spread of yoghurt and cheese: dishes of the traditional mehanas that in Plovdiv you eat with live music in the Old Town's taverns.