Tutrakan

城市概覽

With a population of about 9 thousand (2020), Tutrakan is the administrative centre of the local municipality, which in turn is part of the oblast (Province/District) of Silistra. As a tourist destination, it's mostly visited in passing by Bulgarian and (fewer) Romanian tourists, so adjust your expectations about the available services accordingly.

History Like elsewhere in Bulgaria, the area has been inhabited since prehistoric times. Local finds have been dated to the Neolithic and Aeneolithic periods, 5500-3000 years BCE. The town itself can trace its beginnings to the 1st century CE, when a Roman border fortress (castrum or castellum) was established under the name Transmarisca - "on the other side of the swamps". In the 3rd century, the Roman emperor Diocletian visited the fortress and ordered it enlarged and strengthened. The settlement was destroyed sometime in the 6-7th centuries, but re-emerged in the Early Middle Ages, during the First and later, Second Bulgarian Empires, and then was conquered by the Ottoman Turks in the late 14th century with the rest of the Tarnovo Kingdom. During the gunpowder era, Tutrakan became a point on the northern boundary of the "quadrilateral of fortresses" Ruse–Silistra–Varna–Shumen that protected the Ottoman Empire against invasion attempts across the eastern Danube. The town played a role in the wars between the Ottoman and the Russian empires in the late 18th and early 19th century. It was taken twice by the famous Russian military leader Alexander Suvorov in 1773, and once again by another famous Russian general - Mikhail Kutuzov - in 1810. During the Bulgarian struggles for national liberation, the cheta (rebel band) of Panayot Hitov crossed the Danube into Bulgaria at Tutrakan, with future national hero Vasil Levski as the banner-man. After the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878, Tutrakan became a part of the newly created Principality of Bulgaria. By the 1900s the town was an established minor port for river steamships

如何抵達

As of 2024, the proposed ro-ro ferry to Oltenița in Romania across the river is still not operational (and may never be...).

By car Tutrakan is on National Road 21 which connects the larger Ruse and Silistra, exactly half-way between them: it's 61 km (38 mi) east of Ruse and 60 km (37 mi) west of Silistra. The road itself closely bypasses the town from the south, with three entry options: both east and west of town, a road splits off Road 21 to the north to become a town street that passes by the museums and riverside park. The third option is between those two points, a crossroads where Road 21 meets the tertiary Road 205 that connects Tutrakan to Isperih, 49 km (30 mi) to the south, passing on the way by the Military Cemetery at the village of Shumentsi (Шуменци).

By bus Tutrakan is a stop on the routes that connect Silistra with Sofia, Veliko Tarnovo and Ruse, which ensures daily buses from those directions. There's also an once daily direct bus from Varna that passes through Silistra and Dobrich. A number of small companies run buses to Ruse and Silistra that follow meandering routes through the local villages.

1 Bus Station (Автогара, Avtogara), ul. "Silistra" 54 (in the eastern outskirts, on the same Silistra Str that passes north of Hristo Botev Park). Angular, utilitarian Communist-era building (1980s?). (updated Apr 2024) Among the local lines, of interest to travellers is Line 22 that passes by the military cemetery by the village of Shumentsi (Шуменци). According to a probably outdated timetable on the Municipality's website, the line runs to the village of Preslavtsi (Преславци), stopping at Shumentsi on the way - the bus leaves in the morning and returns from Preslavtsi in the mid-afternoon. (The names of the villages mean respectively "people from Shumen/Preslav", and might have been inspired by the participation of the Shumen and Preslav infantry regiments in the battle.)

當地交通

Tutrakan is a small town, so you can easily get anywhere on foot, with the exception of the military cemetery (see below).

必看景點

Most points of interest are concentrated in the area by the river in the north of town, next to the riverside park.

1 History Museum (Исторически музей), pl. "Suvorov" 1. M-F 08:00-12:00, 13:00-17:00; Apr-Sep: Sa-Su 09:00-12:00, 13:00-16:00; Oct: same Sa, closed Su; Nov-Mar: closed Sa-Su. Pretty European-style house from the late 19th century. Exhibits include Stone Age tools, finds from the Roman fortress, early 20th century life in the town, and the Battle of Tutrakan. Adults: 5 лв, pensioners/students/disabled: 3 лв, children below 7: free; lecture/tour: 10 лв. (updated Apr 2024) 2 Museum of Danube Fishing and Boatbuilding (Етнографски музей „Дунавски риболов и лодкостроене“), ul. "Transmariska" 5, ☏ +359 86 660 352. The same hours and prices as the history museum. An ethnographic museum about fishing and boat-building in the area through the ages, as well as the everyday life of people by and on the river in the past. Tools, explanations of fishing methods, and even the kinds of fish. (updated Apr 2024) 3 Art Gallery (Художествена галерия), ul. "Dimitar Blagoev" 5. M-F 08:00-12:00, 13:00-17:00. Another pretty old European-style building. Unsurprisingly, most of the paintings are river landscapes. It's also used as a ceremonial hall for officiating weddings and other secular ceremonies. Adults: 5 лв; lecture/tour: 10 лв. (updated Apr 2024) 4 Ruins of Transmarisca. Parts of the northern wall and a square tower of the Roman fortress, with some conservation/restoration work done. Integrated in the riverside park as a viewing platform. (updated Apr 2024) 5 Torpedo Boat Monument (right in the middle of the riverside park). An actual 19-metre (62 ft) craft on a concrete plinth. Erected by the Communist regime in 1984, for the 40th anniversary of the visit of Soviet armoured river gunboat No. 214, commanded by Hero of the Soviet Union, Captain Pavel Derzhavin. Its mission was to get food for the Soviet troops massed across the river for the invasion of Bulgaria, making

購物

At least one local company still makes boats - out of fibreglass. If you need a kayak, a small speedboat, or a swan-shaped single-seater, you can find them near the harbour.

美食

See also the hotel section for combined establishments.

1 Taverna Botevi (Таверна "Ботеви") (west of the church, (under)ground floor of a residential house along the same narrow "fishermen's street" that runs parallel to the river). M-F 11:00-24:00, Sa-Su 16:00-24:00. Small, family-run restaurant/pub in the Fishermen's Quarter. (updated Apr 2024) 2 Mehana Dalboka (Механа "Дълбока"), ul. "Borovets" 1. 16:00-23:00. Small, family-run traditional-style restaurant in a residential area of small houses with yards. (updated Apr 2024) 3 Restaurant Fischer, ul. "Ribarska" 8 (west of the church, along the same "fishermen's street" that runs parallel to the river). Family-run restaurant in one of the old houses in the Fishermen's Quarter. Both indoor and outdoor seating, tanks f