Sapareva Banya, The 12th-13th-century St Nicholas' Church, the 18th-century St George's Church from the Bulgarian National Revival and the St Forty Martyrs Church from 1859 are located in Sapareva Banya.

Saparevo, visit the Church of the Devine Mother near the town centre 

Recilovo,  one of the very few functioning convents in Bulgaria. Known as the Devine Mother Monastery, it is nestled in the forest just above the village. The monastery is opened daily and services are held each Sunday morning. In the fall, at the first of October is celibrated as the festival of the monastery. Traditional music can be heard, dance groups perform and excellent food and drink are available.

Ovchartsi, visit the Church in main square

The Rila Monastery, the most famous Monastery in Bulgaria, is 25 mins away from Sapareva Banya and is a must see during your stary.

Monastery of Saint John of Rila, better known as the Rila Monastery (Bulgarian: Рилски манастир, Rilski Manastir) is the largest and most famous Eastern Orthodox monastery in Bulgaria. It is situated in the northwestern Rila Mountains, 117 km south of the capital Sofia in the deep valley of the Rilska River at an elevation of 1,147 m above sea level.


Founded in the 10th century, the Rila Monastery is regarded as one of Bulgaria's most important cultural, historical and architectural monuments. It is on account of this also a key tourist attraction in Bulgaria and Southeastern Europe as a whole.

It is traditionally thought that the monastery was founded by the hermit St. John of Rila (Ivan Rilski), whose name it bears, during the rule of Tsar Peter I (927-968). The hermit actually lived in a cave not far from the monastery's location, while the complex was built by his students, who came to the mountains to receive their education.

An introduction to the Rila Monastery could well start with the words of the first Bulgarian historian, Paissii of Hilendar, recorded in 1762 in his Slav-Bulgarian History:
"Of all the Bulgarian glory when there were so many large monasteries and churches in Bulgaria earlier the Lord has left only the Rila Monastery to exist in our times... It is of great use to all Bulgarians. Therefore, it is the duty of all Bulgarians to guard it, and to give alms to the sacred Rila Monastery. . . "

Ever since its creation, the Rila Monastery has been supported and respected by the Bulgarian rulers. Large donations were made by almost every Tsar of the Second Bulgarian Empire up until the Ottoman Conquest, making the monastery a cultural and spiritual centre of Bulgarian national consciousness that reached its apogee from the 12th to the 14th century.


The Rila Monastery was reserected at its present place by a local feudal lord named Hrelyu Dragovola during the 14th century. The oldest buildings in the complex date from this period—the Tower of Hrelyu (1334–1335) and a small church just next to it (1343). The bishop's throne and the rich-engraved gates of the monastery also belong to the time. However, the arrival of the Ottomans in the end of the 14th century was followed by numerous raids and a destruction due to fire of the monastery in the middle of the 15th century.

Thanks to donations by the Russian Orthodox Church and more precisely the Rossikon monastery of Mount Athos, the Rila Monastery was rebuilt in the end of the 15th century by three brothers from the region of Kyustendil, who moved John of Rila's relics into the complex.
The complex acted as a depositary of Bulgarian language and culture in the ages of foreign rule. During the time of the Bulgarian National Revival (18th-19th century), it was destroyed by fire in 1833 and then reconstructed between 1834 and 1862 with the help of wealthy Bulgarians from the whole country, under the famous architect Alexi Rilets. The erection of the residential buildings began in 1816, while a belfry was added to the Tower of Hrelyu in 1844. Neofit Rilski founded a school in the monastery during the period.


The monastery complex, regarded as one of the foremost masterpieces of Bulgarian National Revival architecture, was declared a national historical monument in 1976 and became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983. Since 1991 it has been entirely subordinate to the Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.

The church interior is magnificent. The murals were painted between 1840 and 1848 by some of the finest artists of the time: Ivan Nikolov The Iconpainter, Kosta Valyov, Zahari Zograph, Dimiter Zograph and his sons - all from Samokov, Dimiter Mollerov from Bansko and his son Simeon. The icons of the main altar were painted by Ivan Obrazopis- sov from Samokov. The twenty donor's potraits in the church mark the beginning of Bulgarian secular painting, of realistic portraits. This gallery of art was enriched by the murals in the churches and chapels outside the monastery. Thirty six figural scenes, the figures of the Old Testament Kings, apostles martyrs, an exceptionally rich ornamentation of flowers, birds and stylized figures this, in short, is the subject-matter of the main carved altar of the Holy Virgin Church fashioned by four masters over a period of five years.


The museum contains a multitude of gold and silver church plates, collections of coins, weapons, jewelry goldweave materials and embroidery. A unique masterpiece is the carved cross of the Monk Raphael worked over a period of 12 years. The library contains 16,000 volumes including 134 manuscripts from l5th to 19th century, numerous incunabula and documents. Donations received from all parts of the country have assisted the compilation of a very rich ethnographic collection - a national collection of works of arts and crafts. Retaining the names of the donors and the exact date of donation, they represent an original chronicle of the national consciousness, of those pure patriotic feelings and hopes which were inspired throughout centuries in every Bulgarian by the Rila Monastery - the country`s largest spiritual and cultural temple.

On 25 May 2002, Pope John Paul II, the Slavic Pope visited Rila monastery during his pilgrimage to Bulgaria. He was greeted by the Monastery's igumen, Bishop Ioan, who had been an observer at the Second Vatican Council.