Ruse

Rousse is the fifth largest city in Bulgaria and is located in the northeastern part of the country, on the right bank of the Danube river. It is the most significant Bulgarian river port, serving an important part of the international trade of the country. Rousse is known for its 19th- and 20th-century Neo-Baroque and Neo-Rococo architecture, which attracts many tourists. It is often called the Little Vienna.

The city emerged as a Neolithic settlement from the 3rd to 2nd millennium BCE, when pottery, fishing, agriculture, and hunting developed. The later Thracian settlement developed into a Roman military and naval center during the reign of Vespasian (69-70 CE) as part of the fortification system along the northern boundary of Moesia. Its name, Sexaginta Prista, suggests a meaning of “a city of 60 ships”. Rousse is one of the 100 Tourist Sites of Bulgaria. The city is famous for its preserved buildings from the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century. There are more than 260 monuments. Most of the sights of the city are located at the center of Rousse (museums, architectural landmarks, the theater, the opera, hotels, restaurants, cafes and souvenir shops). Guests of the city can enjoy walks in the center, the Danube coast or the natural reserve Rusenski Lom.

They can visit The National Transport Museum is situated on the bank of the Danube, in the country’s first railway station, built in 1866. Another interesting place to check out is the Museum of Natural History. The museum’s collection includes species from the Danube valley. Visitors can see a rich exposition of fossils, prehistoric mammals and dioramas, three-dimensional replicas of nature landscapes. Exhibited in the museum are the biggest freshwater aquarium in Bulgaria and a scale model of Woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius).