Shabla

The city of Shabla is a resort on the Northern Black Sea coast of the country, located 83 km northeast of the city of Varna, 20 km north of the city of Kavarna, 70 km east of the city of Dobrich and 24 km from the Bulgarian-Romanian border.
The resort is a favorite place for lovers of a peaceful vacation, far from the construction invasion that affects most of the Black Sea coast. The sea coast in the area captivates with its clear water and soft sand. The restaurants on the beaches are just the right amount to provide convenience without affecting your comfort. Shabla is truly the perfect place for a relaxing holiday by yourself, with your significant other, or with your family. Hotels, guest houses, lodgings, villas, etc. are available.

The area offers ideal conditions for fans of sea adventures and diving. The seabed around Shabla offers an abundance of sunken naval vessels and submarines from the Second World War. Near Shabla there is also a yacht club, from which the annual yacht regatta on the Black Sea starts. In the past, an ancient Thracian settlement and later a Roman city called Caria existed on the territory of the city of Shabla. Here is the oldest lighthouse on the Balkan Peninsula and, according to some reports, in Europe. Around the Shabla lighthouse there are numerous oil wells from which warm mineral water with a high sulfur content flows.

About 3 km from Shabla is a protected area “Shablensko Ezero”, declared as such in 1979. The total area of ​​the protected area covers 5312.4 acres. Part of the territory are the two coastal harbors – Lake Shablensko and Lake Ezeretsko, connected to each other by an artificial channel. They are separated from the sea by a strip of sand, about 30-50 meters wide. The place is among the most important wetlands in Bulgaria. There are plants that can rarely be seen elsewhere. During the autumn-winter period, globally endangered bird species can be observed. Over 70 species are listed in the Red Book of Bulgaria. That is why Shabla is a favorite place for ornithologists. During bird migration, an average of up to 30,000 white-fronted geese and almost the entire population of the globally endangered red-breasted goose winter in the lake. The area is designated as a refuge for wild geese. The protected area is also of great importance for the protection of the otter. There are 23 more species of fish in Shable Lake, seven of which are included in the Red Book of Bulgaria.
About 2 km southeast of it is Shablenska tuzla – a mud healing area, which is a semi-saline coastal lake separated from the sea by high dunes. The lake is completely separated from the sea by an almost 80 m wide sandbar. It is a lagoon and its average depth is 0.6 m and its average salinity is about 40‰. It almost dries up in the summer. The bottom of the lake is covered with healing mud (hydrogen sulfide mud) with reserves of more than 200,000 t, which is used for mud therapy. The periphery of Shablenska Tuzla is overgrown with reeds, the rest is covered with salt-loving algae. This small lake is a unique coastal ecosystem with an extremely rich flora and fauna. A number of rare and endangered plants are found here, included in the Red Book of Bulgaria.
The Durankulash Lake protected area is located 15 km north of the town of Shabla, covering an area of ​​446.54 hectares. The lake is among the best preserved coastal wetlands in Bulgaria. The protection of more than 260 species of endemic, rare and protected from extinction plants and animals, with which the territory of the locality is available, is of world value. 12 species of mammals, 23 species of fish, 7 species of amphibians and 5 species of reptiles have been reported in Lake Durankulash. The lake is the only proven site in Bulgaria for keeping wild carp. Located on the Via Pontica migration route, the wetland provides favorable feeding and resting conditions for a number of migratory bird species. That is why the area is of the greatest importance for the protection of endangered birds. The protected area Durankulashko Ezero is guarded, but access is free. It is mandatory for visitors to follow established rules. On the large island in the lake is the temple of Cybele – one of the largest prehistoric necropolises in the world, about two thousand five hundred years old. The remains of the oldest and largest Neolithic settlement in continental Europe from 5250 – 3800 BC were found nearby. All archaeological finds are stored in the Historical Museum in the city of Dobrich.

Krapets is a small fishing village on the Black Sea, only 10 km. north of Shabla. Krapets is a secluded paradise known for its sand dunes and the birds that nest and winter around it. The village looks like it is perched on the seashore, surrounded by vast wheat fields, vegetable gardens and lakes – nature reserves. Krapets has a huge, unurbanized, about 7.5 km long dune beach. It starts from Cape Krapets at the old campsite “Karvuna”, not far from the village, continues in front of the lagoon of the Biosphere and Archeological Reserve Durankulashko Lake and ends far north at Cape Kartalburun after “Camping Cosmos”. In addition to marine, hunting, fishing and ecotourism are developed here. Many Thracian mounds have been preserved in the land of the village as well as in the surrounding villages.