Most south - eastern point of European Union in continental Europe

Worth a detour

The Rezovska river is the Bulgarian–Turkish border along its whole length, and the village at its mouth is the last settlement on the coast: fifty-eight people at the last count, fifteen kilometres south of Ahtopol, ninety-three from Burgas. It is claimed as the south-easternmost point of the European Union, which is true only of the mainland. Go for the end-of-the-road feeling; there is nothing else.

Story

Background

Be precise about the claim, because Tsarevo's own website is not. Rezovo is the southernmost point of Bulgaria's Black Sea coast, which is straightforwardly true. It is the south-easternmost point of the EU mainland, which is also true. It is not the south-easternmost point of the European Union — Cyprus lies further east and further south — and it is not the southernmost point of Bulgaria, which is a peak in the eastern Rhodopes three quarters of a degree further down.

There is no border crossing here. The three operating checkpoints on the Turkish frontier are at Kapitan Andreevo, Lesovo and Malko Tarnovo; a pedestrian crossing at Rezovo has been talked about for years and does not exist. What that means in practice is that the road ends, and the other bank of a small river is a country you cannot walk into.

Two beaches, Rezovo and Rezovo-Kastrich, are officially unguarded all season with no concession and no prices. Three kilometres north on Cape Kastrich are the remains of a small rectangular fortress, twenty metres by thirty, probably the medieval Kastrition. The border police check identity documents of everyone entering the village, so carry a passport. And your phone will very likely latch onto a Turkish network and start roaming while you are still standing in Bulgaria — turn data off before you get here.