This beautiful church with glittering mosaic exterior and golden domes was completed in 1914 for Sofia’s Russian community, and named in honour of St Nikolai, the ‘miracle worker’. Students believe that the saint brings them luck, so they go there to pray prior to important exams. The cramped interior features icons painted between the 11th and 14th centuries.
Sveti Nikolai Russian Church
Sofia
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
0.2 MILES
One of the symbols not just of Sofia but of Bulgaria itself, this massive, awe-inspiring church was built between 1882 and 1912 in memory of the 200,000…
0.15 MILES
Sveta Sofia is one of the capital's oldest churches, and gave the city its name. A subterranean museum houses an ancient necropolis, with 56 tombs and the…
4.16 MILES
Tiny 13th-century Boyana Church is included on Unesco’s World Heritage list and its 90 murals are among the very finest examples of Bulgarian medieval…
0.23 MILES
Housed in a former mosque built in 1496, this museum displays a wealth of Thracian, Roman and medieval artefacts. Highlights include a mosaic floor from…
0.32 MILES
Built in the 4th century AD, this tiny red-brick church is Sofia's oldest preserved building. The murals inside were painted between the 10th and 14th…
2.52 MILES
If you wondered where all those unwanted statues of Lenin ended up, you'll find some here, along with the red star from atop Sofia's Party House. There's…
0.38 MILES
The history of Sofia is presented on two floors of the magnificent former Turkish Mineral Baths, just behind the mosque. Exhibitions are divided…
0.35 MILES
This remarkable, partly covered excavation site, situated just above the Serdika metro station, displays the remains of the Roman city, Serdica, that once…
Nearby Sofia attractions
1. National Museum of Natural History
0.02 MILES
You can almost sense the ghosts of generations of school parties dutifully trooping through the musty halls of Bulgaria's oldest museum, founded in 1889…
0.11 MILES
Originally built as the headquarters of the Ottoman police force, this is where Bulgaria’s national hero Vasil Levski was tried and tortured before his…
0.11 MILES
Displays on regional costumes, crafts and folklore are spread over two floors of the former royal palace, and many of the rooms are worth a pause…
4. Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
0.14 MILES
This monument is located on the southern side of Sveta Sofia Church, facing the Aleksander Nevski Church. It's marked by an eternal flame meant to…
0.15 MILES
Sveta Sofia is one of the capital's oldest churches, and gave the city its name. A subterranean museum houses an ancient necropolis, with 56 tombs and the…
0.18 MILES
This small, central park, bounded on its northern end by ul Tsar Osvoboditel, is favoured by Sofia's chess-playing pensioners. It's home to the National…
0.19 MILES
Bulgaria’s best-loved author, Ivan Vazov (1850–1921) lived at this house from 1895 until his death. Vazov wrote Under the Yoke, a classic of Bulgarian…
0.2 MILES
Originally built as a final resting place for Bulgarian kings, this crypt now houses Bulgaria's biggest and best collection of icons, stretching back to…