Plovdiv is one of Europe’s oldest continuously inhabited cities, its hills layered with Thracian, Roman and Ottoman remains beneath a National Revival old town. A 2nd-century Roman theatre still hosts concerts, and the 2019 European Capital of Culture title has left the Kapana quarter thick with galleries and studios.
At a glance
Plovdiv has been settled since roughly 8,000 BCE and stands among the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Europe. Built across a series of hills above the Maritsa river plain, three of which survive within today’s Old Town, the city has carried several names through its history: Eumolpias under the Thracians, Philippopolis after Philip II of Macedon, Trimontium under Rome, and Puldin in the Bulgarian Middle Ages before becoming Plovdiv.
Key facts
- Roman Theatre: built in the 2nd century CE under Trajan, seating around 7,000 and still used for performances today.
- National Revival architecture: 19th-century houses with overhanging timber-framed upper floors, some cantilevering over the cobbled streets of the Old Town.
- European Capital of Culture: Plovdiv held the title in 2019, the first Bulgarian city to do so.
- Kapana district: the former craftsmen’s quarter, revitalised as a hub of galleries, studios and cafes around the 2019 celebrations.
- Coordinates: 42.1354° N, 24.7453° E.
History
The Thracian settlement was conquered in 341 BCE by Philip II of Macedon, who renamed it Philippopolis; it became the most important city in ancient Thrace, and Alexander the Great is said to have visited. Under Rome the city, then known as Trimontium, was supplied by an aqueduct bringing water from the Rhodope Mountains, remains of which survive in the eastern suburbs.
Five centuries of Ottoman rule ended with liberation by Russian forces in 1878. The Bulgarian National Revival movement reached its fullest expression in Plovdiv in the decades before liberation, and the houses of that period still define the Old Town.
Plovdiv has been put forward as a candidate for UNESCO World Heritage status, with the nomination process still under way; it is not currently an inscribed World Heritage Site.
What you see
The Old Town occupies three of the city’s original hills and is a compact, walkable district of cobbled streets, National Revival mansions and churches. The Dzhumaya Mosque, dating from 1364, is one of the oldest and largest Ottoman mosques surviving in Bulgaria and stands over a Thracian burial mound. Immediately beside it lies the Roman Stadium, partially excavated beneath the modern central square.
Practical information
- Season: spring and early autumn are generally the most comfortable times to visit; summers are hot.
- Old Town: free to walk at any time.
- Museum houses and the Roman Theatre: charge a small entry fee; check current rates through the relevant site or municipal tourism office.
- Kapana district: at its liveliest in the evenings, when galleries and bars open.
Getting there
Plovdiv can be reached via Sofia Airport, with onward bus or train connections to the city, or directly through Plovdiv Airport, which has seasonal flights from parts of the UK and Germany.
Nearby
- Bachkovo Monastery — around 30 km south; Bulgaria’s second-largest monastery, founded in 1083 by Georgian-Byzantine brothers, with frescoes by Zahari Zograf and the Miraculous Icon of the Virgin.
- Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak — around 90 km east; a 4th-century BCE tomb inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979, holding the finest surviving Hellenistic-era fresco in Bulgaria, seen today via an exact replica.
- Rila Monastery — around 140 km northwest; the largest and most sacred Eastern Orthodox monastery in Bulgaria, founded in 927 CE, inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983, with a 14th-century fortified tower and frescoes by Zahari Zograf.
Sources
- Wikipedia, Plovdiv
- Ancient theatre of Plovdiv
- Kapana
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