Veliko Turnovo - car rental

Veliko Tarnovo was the capital of the Second Bulgarian Empire for over two centuries, and the fortress that once ruled the country still dominates the skyline above the Yantra river. The view from below is one of the most recognisable in the whole country.

The city itself is compact, but the surrounding countryside holds enough history and scenery to fill several extra days, which is where a rental car earns its place. Reaching those places on your own schedule is far easier with a car close by than without one.

Why rent a car in Veliko Tarnovo

Most of central Veliko Tarnovo is genuinely walkable, and the Old Town in particular is better explored on foot than from behind a wheel.

The picture changes as soon as you look beyond the city itself. Arbanasi, Nicopolis ad Istrum and the smaller villages scattered across the surrounding hills are reachable by bus only with patience, if at all.

A car turns a single half remembered day trip idea into something you can actually fit into a weekend, without building the whole visit around one bus timetable.

It also means you can time a visit to Tsarevets Fortress for the quiet early morning light, then head out to the countryside once the tour groups arrive.

Evenings bring their own reason to have a car close by, since the Sound and Light show at the fortress finishes late, well after most local buses have stopped running for the night. Walking back to accommodation on the edge of town is far more comfortable with a car waiting nearby than on foot in the dark.

What to see in Veliko Tarnovo with a rental car

The three areas below move outward from the fortress itself toward the wider countryside, roughly in the order most visitors cover them across a typical two or three day stay.

Tsarevets Fortress and the Old Town

Tsarevets, the hilltop fortress that once housed the royal palace and patriarchal cathedral of medieval Bulgaria, is the obvious starting point for any visit.

Parking directly beside the fortress is limited, so it is worth leaving the car near the Old Town and walking the short distance up rather than trying to drive close to the entrance itself.

The Old Town streets below the fortress, including the Asenov Quarter and the ruins of Trapezitsa on the opposite hill, reward a slow walk rather than a quick drive-through.

An evening Sound and Light show lights up the fortress walls after dark, and having a car nearby makes the walk back to your accommodation considerably easier once it finishes.

Trapezitsa, the second of the three hills that make up the old city, sits close enough to reach easily on foot from Tsarevets, and rewards visitors with far fewer crowds than its more famous neighbour.

Arbanasi village

Arbanasi sits only a few kilometres from the centre, perched on a plateau with views back toward Tsarevets and Trapezitsa.

Its fortified houses and richly painted churches date back several centuries, and the short drive up from the city makes it an easy addition to a single day rather than a trip of its own.

A car is genuinely the easiest way to reach it, since bus connections from the centre are limited and infrequent compared with the short drive.

Many visitors combine Arbanasi with lunch at one of its traditional restaurants before heading back down into the city for the afternoon.

Nicopolis ad Istrum and the surrounding countryside

Nicopolis ad Istrum, the ruins of an ancient Roman city founded under Emperor Trajan, sits a short drive from Veliko Tarnovo and rarely sees the crowds that gather up at Tsarevets.

The site rewards a slower visit, walking between the excavated streets and foundations rather than rushing through everything in a single quick pass.

Smaller villages and vineyards around the wider region also open up once you have a car, at a pace that a fixed bus route simply cannot match. A morning at the ruins pairs well with a quiet lunch stop in one of the surrounding villages on the way back, well away from the busier restaurants near Tsarevets.

Practical information for driving in Veliko Tarnovo

Veliko Tarnovo sits roughly halfway between Sofia and the Black Sea coast, around 220 km from the capital and a similar distance from Varna.

Ruse and Pleven both lie around 110 km away, making either an easy addition if your route continues north or west after Veliko Tarnovo on the same trip.

Streets in the Old Town are narrow, steep in places, and not always well suited to a larger car, so a compact class vehicle is usually the more comfortable choice in the centre, particularly around the older residential lanes near the fortress.

For the unpaved sections around Arbanasi and some of the smaller villages further out, a 4x4 or SUV handles the terrain with less concern about ground clearance.

Fuel stations are easy to find along the main roads into the city, and a Bulgarian vignette is required for any motorway sections along the route.

How to rent a car for Veliko Tarnovo with SpeedyCars

Most guests collect their car at Sofia Airport and drive the roughly three hour route to Veliko Tarnovo, which keeps the whole trip on a single booking.

The drive itself is straightforward, mostly following the Hemus motorway before joining local roads for the final stretch into the city.

If this is your first time renting in the country, our ten tips for renting a car guide covers documents, deposits and what to check before you drive away.

Travellers combining Veliko Tarnovo with the rest of the country may also find our guides to Pleven, Ruse and Varna useful for planning the rest of the route, since all three sit within a comfortable single day of driving.

Current rates for every class are listed on our prices page, and you can reserve a car for central Bulgaria online with SpeedyCars once your dates are confirmed.