New Year's Sofia Plovdiv Tour 1 Night 3 Days 26253

30 December 2026 – 31 December 2026 | 1 Nights, 3 Days
Tour details
NEW YEAR'S SOFIA-PLOVDIV TOUR 1 NIGHT 3 DAYS
1 Night 3 Days
 
Tour Departure Date: December 30  
                
Day 1 Istanbul – Edirne – Sofia
Departure at 21:00 from Kadıköy Civil Registry Office, 21:30 from Mecediyeköy Car Inspection Office Front, and 22:00 from Ömür Shopping Center in Bakırköy. With onboard refreshments, we arrive at Kapıkule Border Gate via the Çorlu – Edirne route. After passport and customs procedures, we follow the Haskovo – Plovdiv – Sofia highway to travel to Sofia.
 
Day 2 Sofia
We arrive in the capital city of Sofia in the morning. After having our breakfast (subject to an additional payment) at our hotel, we begin our panoramic city tour. St. Nedelya, Rotunda, Russian and Hagia Sophia Churches, Alexander Nevski Cathedral, the Prime Minister's Office, the Parliament Building, Sofia University are among the places to be seen on our panoramic tour. Additionally, we visit the House of the Army where the famous Ball attended by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in his Janissary uniform was held. After the city tour, there is free time. Following the meeting, we transfer to the hotel. Overnight at our hotel in Sofia. Guests who wish may join a tour to Rila Monastery, Bulgaria's largest monastery, organized additionally by our guide (45 EUR). On this tour that combines history and nature, after a short journey we arrive at Rila Monastery, visit the monastery, and enjoy the beauty of nature. Afterwards, we transfer back to our hotel. We participate in the New Year celebrations held in Sofia City Square. (Return transfers are at the guests' own expense.) Overnight at our hotel.
 
Day 3 Sofia – Plovdiv (Philippopolis) – Edirne – Istanbul
After breakfast at the hotel, we meet with the vehicle and begin the return journey. After a two-hour drive, we arrive in Plovdiv. Plovdiv, the second-largest city in Bulgaria, has made great contributions to Islamic-Turkish culture throughout its long history. It is a city where life has continued for over 4000 years. A place that perfectly combines modern and ancient architecture. The most interesting part is the Old Plovdiv, the oldest section of the city, located on NOBET TEPE. We will have the opportunity to see the traces left by the Byzantine, Greek, and Ottoman states, the shopping centers of the city, and the protected old town. Batenberg Street, the city's most active shopping and entertainment center, will be visited. Argır Jeweler's House (converted into an ethnography museum), the most perfect symmetrical house example unique to Plovdiv, Balabanov House (with its original house arrangement, currently hosting all kinds of cultural activities), and Georgi Mavridi's House. Among the places worth seeing are the Aya Konstantin, Elena, and Aya Nedelya churches, one of the oldest churches in Plovdiv, the Ancient Amphitheater dating back to the Roman era, and the Djumaya Mosque, which attracts great interest with its Turkish architecture. Free time for shopping and exploring the city as you wish. After the free time, we depart for Turkey. In the evening hours, after passport and customs procedures at Kapıkule Border Gate and a free shop shopping break, we enter Turkey. Proceeding via the Çorlu road, we reach our starting points in Istanbul, concluding the program.
 
What's included
* Transport with luxury Viya Travel buses
* Local professional Turkish-speaking guide services
* Accommodation in 4-star hotels with room and breakfast (Grand Astoria 4* etc.)
* Panoramic city tours as specified in the program.
* Customs duties
* Complimentary water inside the vehicle
* All highway, parking, and check-point fees
Not included
* Museum and archaeological site entrance fees. 
* Extras charged at the hotel and all personal expenses 
* City Taxes (5 EUR per person)
* Breakfast on the first morning
* Lunch and dinner meals. 
* Schengen Visa (Exempt for Green Passport Holders). 
* Foreign departure fee
* International travel health insurance
Need to Know
- All participating guests must hold a valid Bulgarian Visa or Schengen Visa for the entire duration of the tour. (Green passport holders are exempt from visa requirements.)
- For our New Year tours, guests who wish to add the Gala Dinner must pay the Gala Dinner fee at the time of tour registration.
- To enable shopping and spending in all countries included in the tour program, it is sufficient to carry Euros. In regions where local currency is used, the guide will assist with currency exchange.
- Comfortable walking shoes or sneakers should be worn during the trip. It is also advisable to bring a sweater or similar clothing for the evenings.
- When entering Turkey from abroad, a minimum stay of 3 days is required to bring goods (alcohol, tobacco, etc.).
- Duty-free shopping limits when entering Turkey from abroad: Cigarettes: 3 cartons; Alcoholic Beverages: 1 liter of spirits (excluding spirits with more than 22% alcohol, wine, and champagne); Alcoholic Beverages: 2 liters of spirits (including spirits with less than 22% alcohol, wine, and champagne); Perfume: 600 ml; Makeup or Skin Care Products: 5 items; Chocolate and Confectionery: 2 kg; Coffee: 1 kg; Tea: 1 kg
- During the tour, guides may make changes to the itinerary while ensuring all destinations listed in the program are visited, depending on weather and road conditions.
- Guests who register for the tour have the right to cancel free of charge up to 30 days before the departure date. If cancellation occurs less than 30 days before the tour date, a 30% penalty applies; if 20 days or less remain, a 100% penalty applies. Documents such as hospital reports or work permission letters obtained from Turkish authorities submitted with a guest's cancellation request are unfortunately not accepted for cancellations of hotels and services booked outside Turkey.
- Our tour programs are organized subject to a minimum participation of 25 people. If sufficient participation is not achieved, the final cancellation notification date is 20 days before the tour departure. Tours cancelled due to insufficient participation will be notified by Viyatravel.
- In cases where the tour program specifies only category information without naming specific hotels and/or offers options for the same destination, the hotel(s) will be communicated by Viyatravel 2 days prior to the tour departure.
- During periods such as fairs, congresses, concerts, events, sports tournaments, etc., hotels may be located further than the specified kilometers. In such cases, information will be provided by Viyatravel at least 15 days before the tour departure date.
- Triple rooms are subject to hotel availability. In these rooms, the third bed is smaller than standard beds. Triple rooms consist of 1 large bed plus 1 additional bed. Since additional beds are foldable or coach-style beds, participants booking triple rooms for a 3rd person and/or children are deemed to have accepted potential crowding and the type of bed in the room. Child discounts apply only to one child per group of two adults within the eligible age range.
- Breakfasts included in the tour program are served according to the local breakfast culture of the country visited, typically as a limited continental menu consisting of butter, jam, bread, tea, or coffee. These may be served in a separate hall allocated specifically for the group.
- Panoramic city tours included in the tour package are short tours (maximum 2–3 hours) designed for general city introduction, conducted from the vehicle with guide commentary, and do not include entry to museums or historical sites. Viyatravel is not responsible for any inability to conduct these panoramic tours if they coincide with days/hours when local authorities prohibit access to certain sites, if roads are closed due to events, or if weather conditions make the tour impossible. Some tours may be conducted via public transport or on foot where vehicle access is restricted, to the extent possible.
- Waiting times at border crossings reached by road during travel may exceed standard durations. Viyatravel cannot be held liable for any negative consequences arising from such waiting times.
- Extra tours are organized by our local partner Viyatravel subject to a minimum participation of 20 people. If this number is not met, the excursions may not take place, or extra tour prices, content, and vehicles may vary based on the number of participants. Additionally, the days and times of tours may be changed by the guide depending on the opening/closing status of museums and historical sites at the destinations and weather conditions.
- Extra tours are optional and not mandatory. Passengers who choose not to participate in extra tours organized during the trip are deemed to have agreed to wait at a suitable rest facility along the route. These passengers will be dropped off at the roadside rest facility before the extra tour begins and picked up again from that location after the main tour is completed.
- Check-in and boarding procedures for flights are personal responsibilities. Guests must complete these procedures either at airline counters at the airport before the flight or online via the airline's website.
- Viyatravel is not responsible for any failure to board flights due to guests not arriving at the designated airport at the specified time, failing to complete check-in and boarding procedures on time, or completing them on time but failing to board the aircraft. All costs for new round-trip flight tickets and transfers in the destination area incurred by passengers who miss their flights are their own responsibility.
- Viyatravel acts as an intermediary between the passenger and the airline and is subject to the Hague Protocol of September 28, 1955. There may be risks of delays in scheduled and special flights, or flight times may change prior to the existing tour and flight. Viyatravel is obligated to notify passengers of such changes as soon as possible. By purchasing the tour, the passenger accepts the risk of schedule changes. Children aged 0–2 years are exempt from airport taxes and airport service fees.
- Vehicle types used in our tours are classified according to the number of passengers as follows. The appropriate vehicle type will be assigned based on the number of participants in each tour:
Buses: (Used for groups of 25–46 people) *Mercedes Travego/Tourismo *NEOPLAN Cityliner/Tourliner *Temsa Safir/Maraton *Man Fortuna
Midibuses: (Used for groups of 17–24 people) *Isuzu Turkuaz, *Otokar Mega
Minibuses: (Used for groups up to 16 people) *VW Volt, *Mercedes Sprinter
- All guests are deemed to have accepted the above terms upon completing the tour purchase.