Railway network
Eurail pass validity
A Eurail pass valid in Bulgaria can be used on all trains of the Bulgarian State Railways (BDZ).
There are three types of trains in Bulgaria, of which the Expresse (ekspresen) trains are the fastest and most comfortable. The main train station is Tsentralna Gara in Sofia.
The metro connects Sofia's train station with the airport and the city center.
International connections
Bulgaria various connections with other European countries:
Sofia – Bucharest - 1 day train and 1 night train
The Black Sea Train circulates during certain periods of the year from Moscow and Minsk to Varna and vice versa.
The Bucharest / Istanbul Express - circulating on the route Bucharest / Stara Zagora / Istanbul.
The Nusic night train from Sofia to Belgrade<
The Balkan Express from Sofia to Istanbul
The Bosphorus Express from Bucharest to Istanbul via Dimitrovgrad
Due to the building of a new high-speed line there are no trains between Istanbul and the Bulgarian border. There's a replacement bus connecting Kapikule (bordering station) with Istanbul. Eurail passes are valid for this journey. Read more about this bus connection.
Reservations
The majority of trains within Bulgaria do not require advance seat reservations.
An exception are the Express (Ekspresen) trains. They run mainly on the routes Sofia - Plovdiv, Sofia - Varna and Sofia - Burgas. Reservation is inexpensive, around € 0,25. You may have to pay additional commission though.
Reservations can be made at the Rila travel agencies, which you can find for example at Sofia train station. Good to know: a reservation is called 'zapazeno myasto' in Bulgarian.
Read more about train seat reservations.
Itineraries
Scenic route
Extra info
Airport - station link
From Sofia airport there are buses (lines 84 and 284) to the main railway station. Eurail passes are not valid on the bus.
Eurail aid office in Bulgaria
For questions about Eurail, visit the international ticket office at Sofia railway station. See the page Eurail aid offices for more aid offices in Europe.
Spelling of cities in Bulgaria
On Bulgarian train timetables and at train stations in Bulgaria, you'll usually find the local spelling of Bulgarian cities and stations.
Here is the local spelling of some popular Bulgarian cities: