Rila Monastery Nature Park, Nature park in Rila Municipality, Bulgaria

Rila Monastery Nature Park spans 252 square kilometers across the western mountain range with forests, meadows, and 28 glacial lakes scattered between 750 and 2,713 meters in elevation. The terrain offers diverse landscapes with changing vegetation zones that shift with altitude and reveal alpine conditions at the highest points.

Established in 1992 within the newly founded Rila National Park, the area became a nature park in 2000 so that Rila Monastery could recover former possessions, since national park land is exclusively state-owned. The monastery had held these forests since the 10th century; emperors Ivan Asen II and Kaliman I donated lands in the Rilska valley, and Ivan Shishman confirmed them with the Rila Charter. After nationalization in 1947, restitution legislation in 1997 led to the 2000 restoration.

The land belongs primarily to Rila Monastery, a spiritual center of Bulgaria now recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The monks have shaped this mountain forest over centuries, and the landscape reflects the deep connection between the monastery and nature.

Visitors can explore numerous hiking trails leading to mountain lakes, with popular routes connecting to Ribni Lakes and Smradlivo Lake. The trails vary in difficulty and length, so it helps to plan which route matches your fitness level before setting out.

The Rila oak (Quercus protoroburoides) grows only in the Rilska River valley inside the park, nowhere else on Earth. The park also holds Smradlivo Lake, the largest glacial lake in the Balkans, and 28 glacial lakes in all. Its highest point is Rilets peak at 2,713 m.