​Bulgaria Tours - NESEBAR OLD TOWN at Glance

Discover the beautiful Nesebar and its Old Town. The old town of Nesebar is a small piece of land embraced by the sea, tied with a narrow rope-like neck to the quay of the continent. The time and waves were merciful and have left this marvelous creation of the nature, together with the ruins of the architectural inheritance under UNESCO protection.

Founded by Thracian Greeks and named Messambria about 9000 years ago, Nesebar is one of the oldest towns in Europe. Greeks, Romans, Slavs, Byzantines and medieval Bulgarians all left their marks, most often in the form of churches. Visit several area landmarks, including St. Stefan, St. Ioan Aliturgetos, Christ Pantocrator and the famous triple nave, un-vaulted basilica of St. Sophia.

​Beautiful facades lead to equally impressive interiors, often painted with striking murals. The town offers a maze of narrow and winding cobblestone streets, and graceful, two-story timbered houses that are brightly-adorned with flowers. Colorful cafes, restaurants, and charming art and crafts shops dot the downtown and waterfront areas.

​Nesebar is sometimes said to be the town with the highest number of churches per capita. Today, a total of forty churches survive, wholly or partly, in the vicinity of the town. Some of the most famous include:

• the Church of St Sophia or the Old Bishopric (Stara Mitropoliya) (5th–6th century)
• the Basilica of the Holy Mother of God Eleusa (6th century)
• the Church of John the Baptist (11th century)
• the Church of St Stephen or the New Bishopric (Nova Mitropoliya) (11th century; reconstructed in the 16th–18th century)
• the Church of St Theodore (13th century)
• the Church of St Paraskevi (13th–14th century)
• the Church of the Holy Archangels Michael and Gabriel (13th–14th century)
• the Church of Christ Pantocrator (13th–14th century)
• the Church of St John Aliturgetos (14th century)
• the Church of St Spas (17th century)
• the Church of St Clement (17th century)
• the Church Assumption of the Holy Virgin (19th century)

Whether built during the Byzantine, Bulgarian or Ottoman rule of the city, the churches of Nesebar represent the rich architectural heritage of the Eastern Orthodox world and illustrate the gradual development from Early Christian basilicas to medieval cross-domed churches.