|
Smolyan is located in the narrow gorge of the River Cherna which is in the most beautiful part of the Rhodopes Mountains. It is 260 km from Sofia, 103 km from Plovdiv, 46 km from Devin and 16 km south of the Pamporovo resort.
Smolyan was created in 1960 when the three neighbouring villages of Smolyan, Raikovo and Ustovo merged into one town. It is a historic area with many attractions including the restored houses of Meramovi and Sarievi in the old part of the town, the eighteenth centure overarched bridge across Cherna River, the largest planetarium in Bulgaria, history museum, city art gallery and old coppersmith marketplace.
The seven Smolyan Lakes which are known as the "Emerald Eyes of the Rhodope Mountains" are 10 km west of the centre of the town. The largest one of them is called "clear lake" and is very deep and the most beautiful. The twenty metre high Smolyan waterfall is in the immediate surroundings southwest of the town.
There are regular hourly bus services to Sofia, Plovdiv, Kardjali, Devin, Assenovgrad, Chepelare and Pamporovo.
|
