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Rhodope — self-drive - 7 Days (Plovdiv, Bachkovo, Smolyan, Shiroka Laka & Trigrad)

4.8(4 reviews)7 daysStart and end in the trailhead
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Seven days of gorges, caves and kaba gaida. The same route with a hire car and route notes, booking the cave slots yourself.

Old Mule Routes
Runs this trip
Trekking
Seven days of gorges, caves and kaba gaida
Group Tour
Join a fixed-date departure with other travellers

Top Highlights

  • Roman theatreSeven days into the Rhodope — a gorge two metres wide in places, caves with Neolithic floors, and villages that still play bagpipes.
  • Bachkovo monasteryBachkovo is the second-largest monastery in Bulgaria and its ossuary holds eleventh-century frescoes that survived because the building…
  • Smolyan lakesShiroka Lâka has a school of folk music where children learn the kaba gaida — the low-pitched Rhodope bagpipe — and you can usually hear…
  • Trigrad gorgeThe river drops into the Devil's Throat and comes out downstream, and nothing thrown in has ever been recovered — divers have died…

Itinerary

What's included

Included in the price

Accommodation
  • 6 nights accommodation as listed: hostel, homestay or tent, shared
  • Village guesthouses in Shiroka Lâka, Trigrad and Yagodina
Transport
  • Shared airport transfer both ways
  • All internal transport as listed: coach, train or shared jeep
  • All transport from and back to Plovdiv
Meals
  • Meals listed on each day
Guide
  • Trip leader throughout, 1 guide per 15
Permits & fees
  • Both cave entries with guides: neither can be visited alone
  • Roman theatre and Bachkovo entries
  • All entry tickets and permits listed in the day-by-day

Not included

Insurance
  • Travel insurance
Optional
  • International or domestic flights to the start point
  • Personal expenses and tips
  • Rail or flights to Sofia
Additional Services
  • 5% GST and any applicable TCS
  • Most meals
  • Upgrades from shared transport to private
  • Winter, when the gorge roads ice and the caves shorten hours
  • Rila and Veliko Tarnovo, which are the other Bulgaria trip here
  • Most lunches

Most of these can be added to your booking later — the operator confirms within a day.

Where you'll stay

All accommodations are subject to change

Plovdiv Camp

Camping

Days 1, 2, 6

Shiroka Laka Camp

Camping

Day 3

Trigrad Camp

Camping

Day 4

Yagodina Camp

Camping

Day 5

What you'll eat

6 breakfasts and 4 dinners across 7 days, at camp. It opens with dinner on day 1 and closes with breakfast on day 7.

  • DinnerServed on days 1, 3, 4, 5
  • BreakfastServed on days 2–7

10 meal services named in the itinerary. Vegetarian and vegan covered; Jain, gluten-free and allergies on notice at booking

Operator

Old Mule Routes
4.8 (4)

Based in Porto

Profile
One other operator runs this trailThe same trail, at their own price, group size and refund window.Cypress & Stone₹1,23,999See all 2Compare

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Customer reviews

Overall rating
4.8/5
Based on 4 reviews
Review summary
Food
4.3/5
Guide
4.3/5
Itinerary
4.5/5
Transport
5.0/5
Accommodation
4.3/5
Tour operator
4.8/5
Sort by:Recommended
5
E
Elena Petrova – Stockholm2025-11-13 · Verified booking

Second trek with this operator and they've kept the standard up. No hesitation recommending them.

Reply from Old Mule Routes

Glad you enjoyed it. Hope to see you on another trip.

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5
C
Carla Mendes – Berlin2025-11-13 · Verified booking

Well organised from the pickup onwards. The daily distances were honest about what they'd be. Tents were warmer than expected and the camp was set up before we arrived. Guides answered every question, including the daft ones. Good value for what's included.

Reply from Old Mule Routes

Thank you. We've taken the point about the transfer and are reviewing it.

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5
A
Arjun Pillai – Chandigarh2025-11-13 · Verified booking

Southern Bulgaria in the right season is something else, and the team knew exactly where to camp. Camp was pitched and the kitchen going by the time we walked in each evening. Good value for what's included.

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4
M
Manav Sethi – Delhi2025-11-13 · Verified booking

Well organised from the pickup onwards. The daily distances were honest about what they'd be. Good value for what's included.

Reply from Old Mule Routes

Appreciate the honest feedback; we're looking at the pacing on that section.

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Questions people ask

One other operator runs this trail. See all 2 side by side →

₹84,299per personNext 6 NovEMI from ₹7,025/mo