Rousse is a city on the south bank of the Danube river, in the north-eastern Bulgarian county of Ruse. Rousse is situated in the northeastern part of the country, on the right bank of the Danube, opposite the Romanian city of Giurgiu, 300 km from the capital Sofia and 200 km from the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast. 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. The Rousse-Giurgiu Friendship Bridge, the only one in the shared Bulgarian-Romanian section of the Danube, crosses the river here.
Rousse is located on the right bank of the Danube, which is the high bank, having two underwater terraces and three land terraces at 15–22 m, 30–66 m, and 54–65 m. The average altitude is 45.5 m AMSL. The urban area is an approximately 11-km ellipse running along the river.
PLACE TO VISIT
The National Transport Museum - in Rousse, Bulgaria, is situated on the bank of the Danube, in the country's first railway station, built in 1866.
The Rousse Regional Historical Museum is one of the 11 regional museums of Bulgaria. It acts within the Rousse, Razgrad, and Silistra regions. The museum occuipies the building of the former Battenberg Palace, previously a local court, built 1879–1882 by Friedrich Grünanger. The Rousse Regional Historical Museum was established in 1904. Its basis are the archeological collections of Karel and Hermenguild Shkorpil, as well as of the naturalist Vasil Kovachev, which were gathered in the "Knyaz Boris" men's high school of Rousse.
The Pantheon of National Revival Heroes - is a Bulgarian national monument and an ossuary, located in the city of Rousse. 39 famous Bulgarians are buried in it, including Lyuben Karavelov, Zahari Stoyanov, Stefan Karadzha, Panayot Hitov, Tonka Obretenova, Nikola Obretenov, Panayot Volov, Angel Kanchev, etc.; 453 more people—participants in Botev's detachment, the Chervena Voda detachment, in the April uprising, and other revolutionaries have been honoured by writing their names in the interior. An eternal fire burns in the middle under the gold-plated dome. The Pantheon is one of the 100 Tourist Sites of Bulgaria.
The Kaliopa House - a popular name for the Bulgarian "Urban lifestyle of Rousse" museum was built in 1864. According to a legend, the house was bestowed upon the beautiful Kaliopa (born Maria Kalish), the wife of the Prussian consul Kalish, by the governor of the Danubian Vilayet, Midhat Pasha, who was in love with her.
The St Paul of the Cross Cathedral - is a Roman Catholic cathedral in the city of Rousse in northeastern Bulgaria. It is the cathedral church of the Nikopol diocese and is dedicated to St Paul of the Cross, patron of the Passionists. Built in 1890 to the designs of the Italian architect Valentino, the cathedral is a rare example of Gothic Revival architecture (and Brick Gothic in particular) in the country. The interior is decorated with sculptures and stained glass windows.
The Rock-hewn Churches of Ivanovo - are a group of monolithic churches, chapels and monasteries hewn out of solid rock and completely different from other monastery complexes in Bulgaria, located near the village of Ivanovo, 20 km south of Rousse, on the high rocky banks of the Rusenski Lom, 32 m above the river. The complex is noted for its beautiful and well-preserved medieval frescoes. The caves in the region had been inhabited by monks from the 1220s, when it was founded by the future Patriarch of Bulgaria Joachim, to the 17th century, where they hewed cells, churches and chapels out of solid rock. At the peak of the monastery complex, the number of churches was about 40, while the other premises were around 300, most of which are not preserved today.
Dohodno Zdanie - is an imposing Neoclassical edifice on Freedom Square in the city centre of Rousse, Bulgaria, built in 1898–1902 to accommodate the local theatre performances. The name originates from the construction's purpose: to provide the school board of trustees with funds by means of the theatre hall, library, casino and shop rents. Today, Dohodno Zdanie is a cultural monument and one of the symbols of Rousse.
The Monument of Liberty - in Rousse, Bulgaria, was built at the beginning of the 20th century by the Italian sculptor Arnoldo Zocchi. As time went by, it gained significance as one of the city's symbols, and now forms a part of her coat of arms.
Rousse TV Tower is a 204-meter high TV tower built of reinforced concrete at Rousse, Bulgaria. Originally, the structure was constructed as a 206-meter-high TV tower with a cafe/restaurant on top and was the tallest one on the Balkan peninsula until 2001. In the 1990s an additional antenna was added bringing the height to 210 meters. And, in March 2007, the antenna was reconstructed bringing its height to 204 meters.
HOW TO REACH
Rousse is located on the South bank of the Danube, across from the Romanian city of Giurgiu. By road, the city is about 200 km from Varna and 300 km from Sofia. From Romania, a bridge connects Ruse to Giurgiu, serving as the westernmost land connection between the two countries (although ferries operate between other cities, and a new bridge is under construction at Vidin). If you intend to cross the border from Giurgiu, an 8 € (~15.5 Bulgarian Leva, ~28 Romanian Lei) crossing tax applies each way.
The closest international airport is 75 km north, in Bucharest, in neighboring Romania - a shuttle bus connects the airport to the city once a day. Alternative airports are Sofia and Varna.
The city is well served by railroads, with multiple connections to Sofia and Varna, but also to Bucharest (2x daily, but note that the train is rather expensive - 25 €, and very slow, taking about 3 hours for the journey), Budapest, Kyiv, Moscow, Athens and Istanbul. The train station is at the southern end of Borisova Avenue, near the Rousse TV tower.
Buses also link Rousse to the rest of Bulgaria (different frequencies daily), places in Greece (daily) and to Giurgiu (hourly) and Bucharest (twice daily). The bus depot is located next to the train station.
