Things to do in Varna with kids: 12 ideas for every season
Things to do in Varna with kids, indoors and out: the zoo (€3), aquarium (€2), Saturday planetarium show, Dolphinarium, museums, shallow beaches and Aquamania. Official hours and prices.
There are plenty of things to do in Varna with kids in every season: the Sea Garden alone has a zoo (€3 for adults), an aquarium (€2), a planetarium, the Dolphinarium, a natural history museum and a children’s amusement park, most of them open all year. In summer add shallow city beaches, the Stone Forest and the Aquamania water park in Albena. All hours and prices below come from each place’s official site or from Visit Varna, the municipality’s tourism site, as of 2 November 2026.
Indoor or outdoor: what is open when?
| Place | Type | Winter (now) | Summer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zoo | Outdoor | Daily 09:00–16:30 (Oct–Mar) | Daily 09:00–19:00 (Jun–Aug) |
| Aquarium | Indoor | Daily 09:00–18:00, last entry 17:30 (Oct–May) | Daily 09:00–19:00, last entry 18:30 (Jun–Sep) |
| Detski kat | Outdoor | 09:00–18:00 (Oct–Apr) | 09:00–22:00 (May–Sep) |
| Dolphinarium | Indoor | 12:00 show, Tue–Sun (to 9 Apr) | Up to 4 shows, Tue–Sun |
| Natural History Museum | Indoor | 10:00–17:00, closed Sat–Sun (Oct–May) | 10:00–17:00, closed Mon (Jun–Sep) |
| Planetarium | Indoor | Sat 15:00 (1 Nov–12 Dec) | Jul–Aug Mon–Sat, 2 sessions a day |
| Archaeological Museum | Indoor | 10:00–17:00, closed Sun–Mon | Check museumvarna.com |
| Stone Forest | Outdoor | Nov 10:00–17:00, closed Mon–Tue; Dec only by request | May–Oct 10:00–19:30, closed Mon–Tue |
| Aquamania | Outdoor | Closed | 15 Jun–15 Sep 10:00–18:00 (2026) |
Watch the days off in winter: the Natural History Museum is closed on Saturdays and Sundays until the end of May, and the Archaeological Museum on Sundays and Mondays. The Zoo and the Aquarium have no day off.
Winter and rainy days (November to March)
A good winter day stays inside the Sea Garden: the 12:00 dolphin show, then the Zoo and, at the southern end of the park, the Aquarium. The Aquarium takes cash only, as it has no card terminal. On a Saturday afternoon, the planetarium’s “The Solar System” lecture at 15:00 is aimed at children aged 5–10 and lasts about 50 minutes. Tickets are sold only at the door, from an hour before the start, until the 72 seats are full; latecomers are not let in once the hall goes dark. It is in Bulgarian in the off-season, but the star projections work without words.
On weekdays add the Natural History Museum, and for children over eight the gold of the Archaeological Museum. Children under 7 enter all the city museums free (Varna Regional Museum of History), and tickets are sold only at the box office, not online.
Spring and autumn
Spring and autumn suit outdoor trips. The Stone Forest is 18 km west of the city; it is open in November 10:00–17:00 (closed Monday and Tuesday), only by prior request in December, and 10:00–18:00 from January to April (closed Sunday and Monday). In spring and autumn the planetarium adds weekday lectures at 17:00, and the Zoo stays open until 18:00 in April, May and September. For the best weather for each month, see when to visit Varna.
Summer (June to September)
Summer is beach time. Visit Varna singles out Central Beach, South Beach and Asparuhovo for their shallow, calm water, which is what you want with small children; read the Black Sea swimming safety tips on our sister site before you go. Go to the Zoo and the Dolphinarium early, as the 10:30 show avoids the midday heat. In July and August the planetarium runs sessions in English on Thursdays and in Russian on Tuesdays, at 16:00 (“The Solar System”) and 17:30.
For a full day out, go north to Albena: Aquamania was open 15 June–15 September 2026, 10:00–18:00. Children up to 90 cm go free, and our Albena guide explains why its wide, shallow beach suits toddlers. Prices for 2027 have not been published yet.
What about events for children?
Puppet shows, workshops and seasonal festivals change every week, so we do not list them here. For dated events see What to do today on varnadaily.com.
Tips for families
- Most of the Sea Garden sights are close together: the Aquarium and the planetarium are at the south end by the main entrance, and the Zoo, the Natural History Museum and the Dolphinarium are further north.
- Bring cash: the Aquarium has no card terminal, and city museum tickets are sold only at the box office.
- The planetarium is not suitable for children who are afraid of the dark, and the observatory advises against bringing under-5s or pushchairs into the Star Hall.
- For prices of all city museums, see Varna museums: hours and prices.
Coordinates © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Tours & tickets
Booking happens on the provider’s site.
Sources
- Visit Varna (Varna Municipality) – Varna Zoo, hours and tickets
- Institute of Fish Resources – Varna Aquarium opening hours and tickets (official)
- Visit Varna (Varna Municipality) – Varna Aquarium
- Nicolaus Copernicus Observatory and Planetarium – visits, lecture times and prices (official)
- Visit Varna (Varna Municipality) – Nicolaus Copernicus Observatory
- Visit Varna (Varna Municipality) – Children's amusement park "Detski kat"
- Visit Varna (Varna Municipality) – Varna beaches
- Dolphinarium Varna (official site) – show programme and ticket prices
- Varna Regional Museum of History – Natural History Museum
- Varna Regional Museum of History – ticket prices
- Varna Regional Museum of History – winter opening hours from 1 October 2026
- Varna Regional Museum of History – Pobiti Kamani (Stone Forest)
- Albena – Aquamania water park (official)
- Wikipedia – Sea Garden (Varna)
- Wikipedia – Albena
- OpenStreetMap contributors (coordinates, ODbL)
The list 12
✨ Picked for the current time and weather in Varna
Detski kat amusement park, Sea Garden✨ Good right now
A children's amusement park in the heart of the Sea Garden, running since 2002 with 28 rides and attractions for different ages, according to Visit Varna. Attractions are paid; we found no official price list online.
Best for: Toddlers to about ten, all year
Sea Garden alleys, playgrounds and boat pond✨ Good right now
Varna's seaside park is free to enter. Besides the long shady alleys and the seafront promenade, it has a children's playground with a small entertainment park and a pond with boats, alongside the Summer Theatre and the Alpineum.
Best for: Scooters, bikes, picnics and burning off energy
Varna Zoo✨ Good right now
Opened in 1961 in the northern part of the Sea Garden, the zoo keeps 72 species, including lions, a tiger, camels, llamas, pink pelicans and a pair of kangaroos that arrived at the end of 2007. Water birds live on three cascading ponds, and there is a paid contact area with tame animals.
Best for: A cheap half-day, all year
Varna Aquarium✨ Good right now
The aquarium of the Institute of Fish Resources, at the southern end of the Sea Garden, shows fish from all the main Black Sea groups (the sea has around 140 fish species), plus freshwater and exotic species, and two halls on the World Ocean and the marine food chain. It is small, cheap and good for a short rainy-day visit; it takes cash only.
Best for: A rainy hour with young children
Varna Dolphinarium✨ Good right now
The only dolphinarium in Bulgaria, in the north of the Sea Garden. From 10 October to 9 April there is one show a day at 12:00, Tuesday to Sunday; in summer there are up to four a day. Keeping dolphins for shows is debated; our full guide covers the schedule, tickets and that debate.
Best for: A winter midday outing
Natural History Museum✨ Good right now
Six small halls with 1,036 exhibits on the nature of the Black Sea and the coast: three dioramas (seabed, forest, lake), minerals, mammoth and mastodon teeth, and the jaw of a giant Deinotherium elephant found near Aksakovo. Marta the brown bear and Gero the tiger, once famous at Varna Zoo, are on display too.
Best for: Curious 6–12-year-olds on a weekday
Nicolaus Copernicus Observatory and Planetarium✨ Good right now
Bulgaria's first astronomical complex, opened in 1968 just inside the Sea Garden colonnade. Lectures in the 72-seat Star Hall include a live part with a lecturer, and a Foucault pendulum hangs in the 15 m tower. 'The Solar System' is the one for children aged 5–10; in July and August there are sessions in English on Thursdays and in Russian on Tuesdays.
Best for: Space-mad kids aged 5 and up
Central Beach and South Beach✨ Good right now
The two city beaches on either side of the Sea Garden entrance. Visit Varna describes Central Beach as fine sand with metres of shallow, flat bottom, and South Beach, below the Aquarium and the Observatory, as the widest city beach with a shallow, calm sea. Both have sunbeds and are a short walk from the centre.
Best for: Toddlers and first swims
Asparuhovo Beach✨ Good right now
South of the canal, Asparuhovo has one of the widest beaches in Varna, over a kilometre long and in places more than 100 m wide, with very fine sand, shallow and calm water and a view back to the city across the bay.
Best for: Sandcastles and room to spread out
Pobiti Kamani (Stone Forest)✨ Good right now
About 300 natural stone columns up to 6 m high stand in the sand 18 km west of Varna, and nobody is sure how they formed, which makes them a good mystery for children. It is a protected area in the EU Natura 2000 network.
Best for: A half-day trip by car, spring and autumn
Aquamania water park, Albena✨ Good right now
The water park of Albena resort, about 30 km north of Varna, with ProSlide slides such as the Tornado and a four-lane racer, a Lazy River and a children's area. In 2026 it was open from 15 June to 15 September, 10:00–18:00; children up to 90 cm go free. Albena's wide, shallow beach is next door.
Best for: A summer day out with children of all ages
Frequently asked questions
What can you do with kids in Varna in winter?
Most of the Sea Garden stays open all year. The Zoo is open daily 09:00–16:30 from October to March, the Aquarium daily 09:00–18:00 until the end of May, and the Detski kat amusement park 09:00–18:00. Indoors, the Dolphinarium has one show at 12:00 from Tuesday to Sunday, the Natural History Museum is open on weekdays, and the planetarium runs 'The Solar System' on Saturdays at 15:00 until 12 December.
How much is the Varna Zoo?
Visit Varna, the municipality's tourism site, lists €3 for adults, €2 for children aged 3–7 and €2.50 for pupils aged 7–18 and pensioners. A 10-minute visit to the contact area with tame animals costs €2. It is open every day of the year.
Is the Varna planetarium suitable for small children?
The observatory says its 'Solar System' lecture (about 50 minutes) suits children aged 5–10 and is not suitable for under-5s; the other lectures are for 10 and over. The star show takes place in total darkness, latecomers are not let in, and it advises against bringing toddlers or pushchairs.
Which beach in Varna is best for small children?
Visit Varna describes Central Beach below the Sea Garden entrance as having a shallow, flat sandy bottom, South Beach as shallow and calm, and Asparuhovo Beach as fine sand with shallow, calm water. Outside the city, Albena has a wide, shallow beach (see our Albena guide).
Where can I find children's events in Varna this week?
This guide covers places that are open most of the year. For dated events such as shows, workshops and festivals, see the 'What to do today' section of our sister site varnadaily.com.