Burgas from Varna: things to do and how to get there by bus or train

The best things to do in Burgas are by the water: the Sea Garden and its pier, the Bridge; St Anastasia Island out in the bay; and the lakes around the city, where the Poda centre counts 321 bird species on about 1 km² (BSPB). Burgas is about 130 km south of Varna, and as of November 2026 the Varna bus station board lists 13 direct buses a day that take 2½ hours or a little more (Varna bus station).

Burgas is Bulgaria’s second city on the Black Sea and its fourth largest overall. It sits at the westernmost point of the Black Sea, wrapped by three lakes, and on 11–15 May 2027 it hosts the Eurovision Song Contest at Arena Burgas (BNT). If you plan to be there then, book a bed early.

Sea Garden and the Bridge

The Sea Garden stretches for about 5 km along the city’s shore. Gardener Georgi Duhtev began it in 1910 on marshland between the town and the sea, and its old part is a listed monument of garden design. Walk past the Summer Theatre, the Pantheon and the sculptures to the Sea Casino (1938). From the Sailor’s Monument beside it, a staircase shaped like an anchor leads down to the Bridge, the pier that is the emblem of Burgas. The first one opened in 1936; today’s concrete pier dates from 1975 (Wikipedia, bg). In summer the park hosts the Sand Sculpture Festival and open-air concerts.

St Anastasia Island

This 1-hectare rock of volcanic stone lies 1.5 km offshore and is the only inhabited island on the Bulgarian coast. It is named after a medieval convent, abandoned in 1923 when the island became a prison; in 1925, 43 political prisoners escaped from it, and the communists later renamed it Bolshevik Island. Today there are the church, a lighthouse, a museum, a restaurant and a few guest rooms (Wikipedia). In summer, boats run from Burgas several times a day. We have no confirmed 2027 timetable, so check locally before you plan around it.

The museums in the centre

The Regional Historical Museum, founded in 1912 and the largest in south-east Bulgaria, has four sites within a few minutes’ walk (museum):

Museum	Address
Archaeological Museum	21 Aleko Bogoridi Blvd
Ethnographic Museum	69 Slavyanska St
Historical Museum	31 Lermontov St
Natural History Museum	30 Konstantin Fotinov St

As of November 2026 the official page gives Mon–Sat 09:00–17:00, closed on Sunday. An adult ticket costs €3; two museums cost €4.60, three €6 and all four €9, and a family ticket for all museums €10. Entry is free on 6 December (St Nicholas, the Day of Burgas), on 3 March and on the Night of Museums in May (prices).

On the edge of the city lies Aquae Calidae, the ancient hot-spring spa at today’s Burgas Mineral Baths. Thracians worshipped the Three Nymphs at the spring, and Romans, Byzantines and Ottomans built baths there; excavation and reconstruction have been going on since 2008 (Wikipedia).

Burgas lakes: Poda and Atanasovsko for birdwatching

The Burgas Lakes are the largest group of lakes in Bulgaria, and they lie on the Via Pontica, one of Europe’s main bird migration routes.

• Poda Conservation Centre, run by the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds, sits right on the Burgas–Sozopol road. From its terrace and trail you can see spoonbills, glossy ibises, pygmy cormorants and herons; late summer brings thousands of storks and raptors overhead. Opening hours: April–September daily 09:00–17:00, October–March Wednesday–Sunday 09:30–16:00. Adult ticket €4, students €2.50. Take city bus 17 from Burgas South bus station towards Kraimorie (BSPB).
• Lake Atanasovsko, just north of the city, is a salt lagoon with 314 recorded bird species; 159 flamingos were counted here in 2019. Salt has been made here since 1906. You cross it on the road from Varna, so look out of the bus window (Wikipedia).
• Lake Burgas (Vaya), on the west side, is the largest natural lake in Bulgaria.

How to get from Varna to Burgas

By bus. All direct buses leave from sector 4 of Varna Central Bus Station (bul. Vladislav Varnenchik 158B). The board for 3 November 2026 shows departures every hour from 07:00 to 18:00, plus one at 14:30, by Travel Express, Varna Bus 2000, M-Bus and Deyli. The trip takes 2 h 24 min to 2 h 41 min and ends at Burgas South bus station (Avtogara Yug), right next to Burgas Central railway station. Back to Varna, buses leave Burgas South roughly every hour; the last one leaves at 19:00 and arrives at 21:28 (arrivals). The same line stops at Sunny Beach and Pomorie, so you can combine it with Nessebar and Sunny Beach. The bus station asks passengers to check for changes 24 hours ahead on 0700 200 24.

By train. There is no railway along the coast. BDZ trains between Varna and Burgas go inland through Karnobat, a junction where Burgas–Varna and Burgas–Sofia trains meet, so the trip takes longer than the bus. See current times on razpisanie.bdz.bg.

By car. OpenStreetMap routing gives 132 km between the two bus stations, a little over two hours. Still planning how to reach Bulgaria? See getting to Varna.

Plan the rest of your trip

Burgas makes a long day trip from Varna, or a first stop on a south coast loop. To fit it into a longer route, see our Bulgaria itinerary from Varna. Guided tours from Varna and boat trips are sold on external sites; check what they include and when they run before you book.