Shkorpilovtsi – An Adventure in Discovering New Places

We had marked several beaches we wanted to visit, locations for photography and interesting places we hoped to discover. But, as often happens on our trips, the plan soon became little more than a guideline. Most decisions were spontaneous – where to go next, where to stay a little longer and what to explore along the way. That was exactly how we found some of our favourite places. Let us take you through them.

We stayed in a small family-run hotel in the village and found it very pleasant. We rarely spend much time at the hotel when travelling, but we still want the place where we stay to feel comfortable. The hotel also had its own restaurant, which turned out to be especially convenient – we could grab a quick meal before heading out for another sunset or an evening of photographing the stars.

Shkorpilovtsi itself is a small village with a relaxed atmosphere. Most of the tourist activity is concentrated around the beach, where you will find restaurants, bars, shops and various attractions. The beach is wide and spacious and offers everything you might need – sunbeds, umbrellas, places to eat and a large free section with plenty of room to find your own spot.

We actually spent very little time in the tourist area. Apart from a few days on the beach and one dinner out, we were constantly exploring the surroundings. For us, Shkorpilovtsi became more of a base for discovering the places around it than somewhere to spend the entire day.

North of Shkorpilovtsi begins one of the longest uninterrupted stretches of beach on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast. Nearly twelve kilometres of fine golden sand extend between the Kamchia resort and Shkorpilovtsi. Even in the middle of the summer season, the beach is so vast that it is easy to find a quiet spot away from everyone else.

At the northern end lies the mouth of the Kamchia River, where the river reaches the Black Sea. Here the river, the sea, the sand dunes and the famous floodplain forests of the Kamchia Nature Reserve come together. It is one of the most valuable protected areas along the Bulgarian coast and combines several completely different natural landscapes within a remarkably small area.

The beach is so long that you can set off on foot from Kamchia and continue all the way to Shkorpilovtsi. It is one of those places where you simply want to keep walking beside the sea without thinking about how many kilometres you have covered. The river mouth adds something very distinctive to the entire landscape.

Karadere was one of the beaches we were most eager to visit. The road leading there was quite rough and felt almost like an off-road route, but our enthusiasm was high. We expected to find one of the wildest beaches on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast.

When we arrived, however, we were a little disappointed. Karadere was filled with caravans, tents, shelters and barbecues. The atmosphere felt more like an enormous campsite than an empty wild beach. We still found a place for ourselves, spent some time by the sea and enjoyed the water, but this was not quite our idea of a wild place and we probably would not return.

Our next stop was Byala, a small seaside town between Shkorpilovtsi and Obzor. The area is known for its pale limestone cliffs, which in many places descend almost directly to the sea and open up beautiful views along the coast. Besides the central beach, several smaller coves and beaches around the town are also worth exploring.

We spent one afternoon on the central beach before heading towards our next sunset location. The beach is not particularly large and was quite busy, but the high cliffs behind it have one major advantage. By the afternoon they cast enough shade that we did not even need to put up an umbrella.

During our holiday we had dinner in Byala twice. Most of the popular restaurants were almost always full, so making a reservation in advance is a good idea. The town becomes much livelier in the evening, when the streets fill with people and the main street is lined with restaurants, shops and small places to stop for a drink or something to eat.

Near Obzor we discovered a beach that quickly became one of our favourite places – Chaika Beach.

The road ends at an informal parking area, followed by a short walk down towards the sea. The path passes through a pleasant patch of woodland where campers, caravans and tents were scattered among the trees. Even before reaching the beach, the place already feels peaceful and close to nature.

The beach itself was not completely deserted, but it was quiet enough for us to properly relax. Beautiful cliffs rise at one end and make the landscape even more distinctive. From there it is possible to continue through the water towards the almost empty Smrikite South Beach. We never made the crossing ourselves, although we watched other people heading that way. Anyone attempting it should be careful, as the conditions depend entirely on the state of the sea.

Irakli was another wild beach we had been looking forward to visiting. In our minds it was almost completely cut off from civilisation, but on arrival we found a large car park, plenty of vehicles, restaurants and a tourist complex. This is Vaya Beach – the organised part of the coastline, with umbrellas, sunbeds and all the usual facilities.

The small Vaya River reaches the Black Sea here and forms a natural boundary between Vaya Beach and the well-known wild beach of Irakli. Only a few minutes on foot are enough to enter a completely different atmosphere – a broad open stretch of sand with no umbrellas, no restaurants and a much stronger sense that nature has been left to itself. Tents can be seen towards the southern end, where some people stay for several days.

We stayed at Irakli for the entire day. We relaxed on the free section of the beach, walked towards the camping area and, as the sun began to set, returned to Vaya Beach. There we had a cocktail while waiting for another beautiful sunset.

Our original plan had been far more ambitious. We had a long list of other places we wanted to visit, but in the end we chose something more valuable – not to rush from one beach to the next, but to enjoy each day as it unfolded.

We did not manage to cross everything off our list, but we do not see that as something we missed. Quite the opposite – we left ourselves plenty of reasons to return to this beautiful part of Bulgaria, discover more places and create new memories that we may one day have another story to tell about.