Motorcycle day tour to Rila monastery

I was picked up at my hotel in the morning and taken to where the bikes and gear are kept. Adrian greeted me with a warm welcome and I was quickly outfitted with very nice riding gear. Adrian completed an overview of the trip, a safety brief, and we were on our way. After a short ride through town, we were soon on the highway heading south from Sofia for about an hour. The traffic was light and this was a nice ride. We stopped at a rest stop and Adrian made sure that I was comfortable and that everything was well. After a quick snack and rest, we were back on the highway. After a short ride, we quickly exited the highway and the real fun began! The ride up the mountain was spectacular! Adrian kept a nice pace and checked on me often (as I had not ridden in a few years). After a 45-minute winding ride up the gorgeous hillside, we arrived at the Rila Monastery. What a beautiful place with a rich history set with high mountain tops in the background. Adrian, who had a tourism degree, provided a detailed account of the amazing story of the monastery from it's beginnings to modern-day. After a few hours strolling around the grounds, we got back on the bikes and went a short way back down the mountain and enjoyed an incredible lunch at a very nice restaurant and sat right next to a beautiful river. The fresh trout was delicious! The tour then took a detour to a very nice winery and I purchased four bottles of wine to enjoy with my wife back in the States. This was a beautiful place, set in the vineyards, surrounded by flowers, with the majestic mountains off in the distance. The last leg was very nice back roads returning to Sofia. Adrian stopped a number of times to point out very interesting aspects from the Soviet era, including an enormous metals factory (miles long), and a portion of the road we were on that, was actually part of an old military runway. The tour ended nearly 10 hours after it began, back at my hotel. I left the bike and front and Adrian returned later to retrieve it. This was a very professional operation and Adrian could not have been a better guide and riding partner. What an amazing day we had! I can not wait to return to beautiful Sofia and it's amazing people and take another tour with this tremendous outfit! Adrian, as promised, provided a really cool video of our day from his 360 degree HD camera so I may revisit the wonderful experience. Well done!

Daniel ( my guide) and I started in town, but, quickly were able to open the bikes up as we cruised the highway heading south out of town. The fun started as we started traveling on secondary roads and enjoying the rolling hills and green countryside. The best part was the ride on the winding mountain roads up to the Rila Monastery. The Rila Monastery is a sight to be seen, words cannot describe it. Due to my time constraints, I opted to forego the included lunch and ride. Daniel picked and enjoyable and fun route back to Sofia, which included winding country roads and a quick visit to a deserted military airfield and it’s decaying revetments. Wish I had more time available for the full day ride with lunch, but, we departed at 9 am and returned to the hotel at 3 pm and that was a great day!