The 15 Best Rila Monastery Day Trips from Sofia

Rila Monastery and Boyana Church Full-Day Tour - Boyana Church and its ten-minute viewing window

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 918 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $24Our pick

Visit Bulgaria’s Rila Monastery and Boyana Church from Sofia on an affordable full-day tour with transport, history, and mountain views.

“Very poorly organized. For some reason, a few of us got put in an Italian tour and the guide Karolina, although knowing perfectly how to speak English, didn't explain to us about basic logistics of ticket purchasing and later told us: "you are not in a guided tour so I shouldn't be even talking to you in English at all". Incredible. The monastery was beautiful but the stop was too long and we were all freezing.”

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Boyana Church Visits, Rila Monastery Day Trips, Sofia Tours, Tour Reviews, Tours

From Sofia: Rila Monastery & Boyana Church Day Tour

2.From Sofia: Rila Monastery & Boyana Church Day Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 866 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $24

Review of Sofia’s Rila Monastery and Boyana Church tour, with practical advice on timing, guides, extra costs, transport, and value.

“We enjoyed our trip to Rila Monastery and Boyana Church. Our guide Lubo was very nice and friendly. He was super enthusiastic and eager to teach us about Bulgaria. Both Rila Monastery and Boyana Church were really beautiful. The visit to Boyana Church was a bit short and rushed- we were split into 3 groups and each group had only 10 minutes inside to look around. We were at the Rila Monastery for 3 hours and 2.5 hours of that was free time, which felt like a bit too much time there in the pouring rain. We ended up booking the combination ticket at the museum, which was a good…”

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Guided, Rila Monastery Day Trips, Self-Guided Tours, Seven Rila Lakes Hikes, Sofia Tours, Tour Reviews

Rila Monastery and 7 Rila Lakes Self-Guided Shared Trip from Sofia

3.Rila Monastery and 7 Rila Lakes Self-Guided Shared Trip from Sofia

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 280 reviews · 13 hours (approx.) · from $54Top rated

Hike Bulgaria’s Seven Rila Lakes and visit Rila Monastery on a 13-hour self-guided day trip from Sofia with shared transport.

“The tour was perfect we had enough time to do the both activity I did the big tour which normally took a lot of time”

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Rila Monastery Day Trips, Seven Rila Lakes Hikes, Sofia Tours, Tour Reviews, Tours

7 Rila Lakes and Rila Monastery Tour

4.7 Rila Lakes and Rila Monastery Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 165 reviews · 10 to 11 hours (approx.) · from $71

Review of Sofia’s Rila Lakes and Rila Monastery tour, with hiking advice, weather warnings, lift costs, timing, guides, and value.

“"Everything has been wonderful, and the scenery is truly spectacular. However, the tour guide provided inaccurate information — he mentioned that the 7 Lakes hike would take about 2.5 hours, but in reality, it takes at least 4 hours for the average person to complete. Additionally, the lift was under maintenance. Although a jeep was available, it did not take us all the way to the top, requiring an extra 20–25 minutes of hiking. We had to skip breaks in an effort to meet the deadline, but even then, we were unable to make it on time. Overall, the guide’s misleading information caused significant inconvenience. We were exhausted!”

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Rila Monastery Day Trips, Seven Rila Lakes Hikes, Sofia Tours, Tour Reviews

The Seven Rila Lakes & Rila Monastery

5.The Seven Rila Lakes & Rila Monastery

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 109 reviews · 12 hours (approx.) · from $54

Hike Bulgaria’s Seven Rila Lakes, ride the chairlift, and visit UNESCO-listed Rila Monastery on a demanding day trip from Sofia.

“We were a bit early in the season so there was still some snow on the mountain which I liked. We had to skip the two upper lakes because they were still too hard to reach due to the steep incline and snow. But loved every minute on the mountain and in the ski-lift. Our group was a bit big though. 30-ish people divided in 3 vans and 3 guides. Our guides spoke perfect English and knew a lot about both the mountain and the monastery. They really care you have a good experience while also respecting the mountain. One of our guides even reprimanded a couple that were not…”

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Private Day Trip to Boyana Church and Rila Monastery

6.Private Day Trip to Boyana Church and Rila Monastery

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 108 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $193

Visit Boyana Church and Rila Monastery from Sofia with a private guide, mountain scenery, medieval frescoes, and door-to-door transport.

“The monastery is spectacular and the Boyana church was an interesting short stop. Our guide was knowledgeable and very friendly, and our driver was professional and friendly too.”

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Plovdiv and Rila Monastery tour in one day

7.Plovdiv and Rila Monastery tour in one day

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 87 reviews · 10 to 11 hours (approx.) · from $119

Review of the Sofia day trip to Plovdiv and Rila Monastery, with honest advice on timing, transport, guides, costs, and what to expect.

“This was a long day, but it was worth the time and money. Our driver/host Apostolos inew a lot about the country and kept us on track while ensuring we had opportunity to stop for food and bathroom. We very much enjoyed the 2hr walking free tour (tip based) that Apostolos arranged for us( we learned a lot about Plovdiv from our very knowledgeable local tour guide. We had enough time at the Rila Monastery to walked around and admire the architecture and religious wealth. We wished that we had received the audio tour hyperlink from the company that runs the tour one day in advance, as we had planned…”

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Rila Monastery and Boyana Church Shuttle Tour

8.Rila Monastery and Boyana Church Shuttle Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 69 reviews · 8 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $42

Review of Sofia’s Rila Monastery and Boyana Church shuttle, with guide tips, timing, costs, dress rules, and honest advice on value.

“It was a great trip with a friendly and knowledgeable tour guide. We had enough time to walk around and visit the museum at Rila. Boyana church was nice as will although I like more those in Arbanassi.”

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1-Day Tours, Rila Monastery Day Trips, Sofia Tours, Tour Reviews

From Sofia: Rila Monastery and Plovdiv Day Trip

9.From Sofia: Rila Monastery and Plovdiv Day Trip

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 52 reviews · 12 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $71

See Rila Monastery and Plovdiv in one long Sofia day, with an English-speaking host, comfortable minibus, free time, and useful local tips.

“Excellent day to see Rila Monastery and Bulgaria’s second largest city - Plovdiv. Phillip, our host was clear with his communication and the two locations we visited were really interesting. I would highly recommend.”

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1-Day Tours, Boyana Church Visits, Guided, Rila Monastery Day Trips, Self-Guided Tours, Sofia Tours, Tour Reviews

Rila Monastery and Boyana Church Self-Guided Day Trip from Sofia

10.Rila Monastery and Boyana Church Self-Guided Day Trip from Sofia

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 41 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $36

Visit Boyana Church and Rila Monastery from Sofia on an affordable self-guided day trip with transport, parking, and an online audioguide.

“Worth to do a guided daytrip to Rila Monastery and Boyana church by an enthusiastic guide. It's a lovely place to visit.”

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Full-Day, Rila Monastery Day Trips, Sofia Tours, Tour Reviews, Tours

Rila Monastery & Thermae Full-Day Tour from Sofia

11.Rila Monastery & Thermae Full-Day Tour from Sofia

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 34 reviews · 9 hours (approx.) · from $43

Visit Bulgaria’s UNESCO-listed Rila Monastery, then unwind in mineral pools at Kotvata Thermal Spa on a full-day trip from Sofia.

“All very interesting, competent and kind guide. The fascinating monastery. Relaxing and quiet spa. .Auto-translated”

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Historical Tours, Rila Monastery Day Trips, Sofia Tours, Tour Reviews

Rila Monastery and St. Ivan Cave History & Nature Trip from Sofia

12.Rila Monastery and St. Ivan Cave History & Nature Trip from Sofia

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 25 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $24

Visit Bulgaria’s Rila Monastery and St. Ivan Cave from Sofia, with an English guide, forest walk, audio guide, and free cancellation.

“Wonderful tour from the organization to the tour guide, would recommend and hope to have the opportunity to book another trip again. Anthony was a great guide, friendly, kind, gave a very good description of the important points to see, good sense of humor. The driver was amazing driving very safely too.”

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Rila Monastery Afternoon Half Day tour

13.Rila Monastery Afternoon Half Day tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 24 reviews · 4 to 5 hours (approx.) · from $59

Visit Rila Monastery from Sofia on a small-group afternoon tour with comfortable transport, free cancellation, and time to explore.

“Noi abbiamo fatto solo il tour del Monastero, ma l'agenzia organizza anche tour di una giornata intera che prevede anche i 7 laghi. Se si sceglie di fare solo il monastero si passa molto tempo in auto (circa 5 ore tra andata e ritorno). La vista al monastero dura un'ora ,ma è davvero molto bello! La guida è stata cordiale e molto disponibile.”

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Private, Rila Monastery Day Trips, Sofia Tours, Tour Reviews, Tours

Rila Monastery and Boiana church private tour

14.Rila Monastery and Boiana church private tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 23 reviews · 6 to 9 hours (approx.) · from $120

Visit Bulgaria’s Rila Monastery and Boyana Church from Sofia in a private, flexible day tour with transport, history, and mountain scenery.

“This tour was very interesting and enjoyable. It was a full day from Sofia, but very well organized and efficient. I got to see a lot of the countryside and learn a great deal about Bulgarian history and culture. The two sites (Boyana Church and Rila Monastery) were interesting to visit and we had a nice Bulgarian lunch on the way back to Sofia. Vlady did a wonderful job explaining everything to me and was very friendly and professional. A terrific experience.”

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