One Day Tour to the Rila Monastery

The Rila Monastery is located at 1147 meters altitude in the middle of the fragrant coniferous forests of Rila Mountain. The monastery is a complex of cultural, dwelling and farming buildings which take about 8800 square meters. The church of the Nativity of the Virgin is the monastery's main church and the core of the architectural ensemble. The compositional scheme includes medieval elements and baroque spatial principles. Outside, the monastery looks like a fortress. It has 24-meter stone walls which forms irregular pentagon. That's why when the tourist enters the monastery's yard, he is surprised by its architecture: arches and colonnades, covered wooden stairs, carved verandas and the 300-400 monastic cells.