Bojentsi Village
About 45 km from the city of Veliko Tarnovo and only 9 km East of the town of Gabrovo is the picturesque village of Bozhentsi, also known as “Bozhentsi huts”. The village has an extremely small local population, but it is an interesting tourist destination with its well-known Architectural and Historical Reserve “Bozhentsite”, the Museum “New School” and the Church “Saint Prophet Ilia”.
Legend has it that the locality was founded by Bojana, a peasant woman, in 1393, who fled with her children from Tarnovo, like many other families, from the invasion of the Ottoman conquerors. Many residents of Tarnovo find a new shelter in the wilds of the Balkans and the more difficult to reach places in the mountains.
Over time, during the years of the 18th and 19th centuries, Bozhentsi became an important economic and commercial crossroads, connecting merchants from Bessarabia, Bucharest, Vienna, Edirne, Alexandria, Constantinople and many other places. Besides trade, the main livelihood of the local population was beekeeping, horticulture, sheep breeding and various crafts. The inhabitants of the village take an active part in the struggle for Liberation, led by Hristo Stoyanov, Hristo Patrev, the mayor of the village Stanyo Lazarov and Ivan Karadimitrov.
In the post-liberation period, Bulgarian merchants were directly affected by the closed Turkish markets and gradually the population of Bozhentsi was forced to seek livelihood in other cities, such as Gabrovo, Burgas, Varna, Dobrich and the countries of Romania and Russia.
Today, the village has been turned into an Architectural-Historical Reserve with its amazing shops, cobbled streets, its old cafe-tavern, its numerous workshops and forges. Bozhentsi will transport you to the magic of the past and tell you historical legends about great times. It is definitely worth visiting and enjoying its beauty.
The pride of Bozhentsi is the school building, built in 1872 and known today as the “New School” Museum. It has a large library, a lithographic exhibition and a small art gallery.
The village of Bozhentsi is part of the Hundred National Tourist Sites of Bulgaria, and every year various re-enactments of traditional Bulgarian customs and rites are organized.
Dear guests, we recommend that you combine your walk to the unique village of Bojentsi with a warm and delicious lunch in one of the taverns with a mandatory reservation in advance:
The Inn Restaurant
The Old Tavern
Retro Tavern & Restaurant
Download directions to the village of Bojentsi from Chamurkov guest house in Veliko Tarnovo here
We wish you a pleasant stay!
