The civic heart of ancient Philippopolis, this Roman forum once spread across twenty hectares of markets, council halls and treasury buildings. Its excavated columns and stone paving now sit within Plovdiv's modern Central Square, where the ancient city surfaces beneath everyday life.

One of Plovdiv's most photographed characters, this bronze figure honours Milyo the Crazy, a beloved local eccentric famous for eavesdropping on passers-by. His cupped ear and outstretched shoe have been polished bright by visitors leaning in to whisper and pose.

Hidden beneath Plovdiv's busy pedestrian street lies one end of a vast Roman stadium that once seated thousands for athletic games. The excavated marble seating and starting line are visible at Dzhumaya Square, hinting at the racetrack still buried under the modern city.

Standing at the city's crossroads for six centuries, this Ottoman-era mosque is one of the oldest in the Balkans, with a striped minaret and a painted prayer hall beneath its lead-domed roof. It marks the layered meeting of empires that shaped Plovdiv.

One of the best-preserved Roman theatres in the world, this 2nd-century amphitheatre still crowns a hill of the Old Town, its marble tiers framing sweeping views of the Rhodope Mountains. Built to seat around 6,000 spectators, it hosts performances to this day.

Plovdiv's oldest church, founded in the fourth century and rebuilt in 1832, glows with a golden iconostasis and vivid frescoes behind its colourful bell tower. It sits among the painted merchant houses of the Old Town.

Set in a striking blue National Revival mansion from 1847, the grandest house in the Old Town, this museum showcases Bulgarian folk costumes, crafts and instruments. Its ornate facade and courtyard garden are a highlight in themselves.

The birthplace of Plovdiv, this rocky hilltop citadel was first fortified by the Thracians over three thousand years ago. Its massive syenite walls and ruins crown the Old Town, offering the finest panorama over the city's rooftops and hills.