Varna Cathedral of the Dormition: history, interior and visiting

Varna Cathedral, the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Dormition of the Mother of God, is the city’s main Orthodox church and one of its symbols. Prince Alexander I Battenberg laid the first stone on 22 August 1880, and the first liturgy was served here on 30 August 1886 (Varna Metropolis). It is a working church in the city centre. The Metropolis does not publish visiting hours, so plan your visit outside services.

Why and when was Varna Cathedral built?

After the Liberation of 1878, in November 1879 Metropolitan Simeon of Varna and Preslav set up a committee to find a site and raise money. The first plan was the square by the city clock. In August 1880 Prince Alexander I approved a design modelled on a church in Peterhof near St Petersburg, but asked for an open plot where the building could be seen from all sides. On 22 August 1880 he dug the first sod and laid the foundation stone himself (Metropolis).

Several master builders worked on it, among them Yanko Kostandi of Varna. In May 1884 the committee gave the finishing work to Gencho Kanev of Tryavna. The church was completed in August 1886. The Metropolis calls it the first cathedral and the first large memorial church built in Bulgaria after the Liberation, raised in gratitude to the Russian people and to everyone who died for Bulgaria’s freedom (Metropolis, 2026). The dedication is to the Dormition of the Mother of God; according to Wikipedia, the name honours the Russian Empress Maria Alexandrovna, who had recently died. For the wider story of the city, see our history of Varna.

What does it look like outside and inside?

The cathedral is a three-nave basilica with three altars: the main one to the Dormition, the north altar to St Alexander Nevsky and the south altar to St Nicholas the Wonderworker. Wikipedia gives its size as about 35 × 35 m. The 38 m bell tower and the domes in their present form were completed in 1941–1943, when the roof was also rebuilt with copper sheets brought from England (Metropolis).

Inside, look for:

• The bishop’s throne, placed in 1897, and the iconostasis, made later. Wikipedia names its carver as Ivan Filipov from Debar.
• Icons given by Tsar Nicholas II: 42 smaller and 3 large icons in 1901, and eight more for the central and north doors in 1904.
• The murals, painted under Professor N. Rostovtsev, and chandeliers by the woodcarver P. Kushlev.
• Stained-glass windows from the mid-1960s: Sts Cyril and Methodius on the large south windows, St Clement and St Angelarius on the north side.
• Venerated icons: a mosaic icon of the Mother of God “Gerontissa” from the Pantokrator Monastery on Mount Athos (brought in 2012) and a copy of the miracle-working icon of St George from the Zograf Monastery.

The floor of coloured ceramic tiles dates from 1911 and the balcony from 1915. The murals were restored in 2003, and a fundraising campaign paid for a new roof, gilded domes, a cleaned façade, new stained glass and new doors, completed in spring 2022. In April 2026 Metropolitan John said repairs to the murals on the south side would start after Easter (BTA), so part of the interior may still be under scaffolding.

Visiting: hours, dress and behaviour

• Hours: no official visiting hours are published. For service times call the cathedral on +359 52 613 005 (number from the Metropolis website).
• Tickets: the Metropolis lists no entrance fee.
• Dress: there is no written dress code from the Metropolis. Follow the usual Orthodox custom: cover shoulders and knees and keep your voice down. Lighting a candle is welcome. More tips are in our guide to Bulgarian customs and etiquette.

Feast days at the cathedral

• 15 August, the Dormition of the Theotokos: the cathedral’s feast day and also the Day of Varna. In 2026 Metropolitan John served a festive liturgy that started at 08:00 (Metropolis).
• 30 August: the anniversary of the first liturgy of 1886 and the feast of the translation of the relics of St Alexander Nevsky, patron of the north altar. In 2026 the 140th anniversary was marked with an exhibition (Metropolis).
• 6 December, Nikulden: the feast of St Nicholas, patron of the south altar and of sailors (Wikipedia).
• Easter and Christmas: at Easter 2026 the Holy Fire was kept in the cathedral for anyone who wanted to light a candle (Metropolis). Christmas customs are explained in our page on Christmas in Bulgaria.

Where is it and what is nearby?

The Metropolis gives the address as 2 Sts Cyril and Methodius Square, in the city centre; OpenStreetMap labels the square around the church Mitropolit Simeon Square. On the map, the Archaeological Museum is about 500 m east in a straight line and the Roman Thermae less than 1 km south-east, so the cathedral is a good start for a walk through the old town. Down in the Greek Quarter is the much older Old Church of the Dormition, which the Metropolis describes as the oldest working church in Varna.

If you want a guide, Varna city tours can be booked on GetYourGuide through the link on this page; we do not sell tickets ourselves. For more ideas, see the top 10 sights in Varna.