Ravadinovo Castle

Worth a detour

Georgi Tumpalov started cutting stone for this in 1996 and has not finished. It is a full-scale castle in Strandzha limestone, laid out on the plan of a cross, with a park, lakes, a chapel, a winery, a small zoo and throne rooms, two kilometres inland from Sozopol. Nothing about it is old. It is also, at about €30, the most expensive ticket in the region, and the queue in August says most people think it worth it.

Story

Background

Tumpalov, born in 1956, began work with his family and men from Ravadinovo village and has used something in the order of twenty thousand tonnes of marbleised limestone quarried in Strandzha. The plan is a cross. The detailing — vaulting, tracery, carved capitals — is done by hand and is considerably better than the concept deserves, which is what disarms sceptical visitors about half an hour in.

The grounds carry the rest: ornamental lakes with swans, a chapel, a working winery, a wishing fountain, a kinetic sculpture, horses, a small zoo included in the entry ticket, and two museums of porcelain and old maps charged separately. Wine tasting, horse riding, a treasure game and fishing are all extra. There are restaurants on site.

Be clear about what you are buying. This is not a heritage building and makes no claim to be one; the nearest genuinely old things are the Thracian sites on Medni Rid above the village. Adult entry is about €30 with roughly ten per cent off if you book online, and children's rates step down by age with under-sevens free. Out of the high season the castle shuts at five rather than eight. Free parking, and it is well signposted from the Sozopol road.