The most popular hiking trail to Mount Rozhen offers a gentle ascent through beautiful pine forests and wide meadows. It starts in the town of Chepelare, passes by the National Astronomical Observatory, and is about 12 km long one way. The hike takes about 3 to 4 hours.
The Rozhen saddle connects the Perelik and Prespa ridges of the Eastern Rhodopes. It marks the climatic boundary of the Mediterranean influence. The saddle in this area is covered by vast meadows and pastures, surrounded by flat ridges overgrown with coniferous vegetation.
Hiking trails pass through the beautiful Rozhen meadows, leading to Pamporovo, Mount Perelik, Orpheus’s Rocks, the Smolyan Lakes, and other destinations. Since ancient times, it has been an important pass between the Upper Thracian Plain, the Arda River Valley, and the Aegean Sea.
Some of Bulgaria’s largest folk festivals are held on the meadows of the saddle. The National Festival of Folk Art and Livestock Breeding in Rozen is a major Bulgarian folk event. It attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors, combining authentic folk songs, bagpipe performances, kukeri rituals, and folk customs with exhibitions of traditional crafts and livestock farming.
