2022
The town of Devin is located in Southern Bulgaria, Smolyan Region. Nearby are Chepelare and Pamporovo.
Devin is situated on the two banks of the Devin river, in a small hilly valley in the heart of the Western Rhodopes. It is 196 km southeast of Sofia.
Already in Thracian times, there was a settlement and a sanctuary. It was in today's village Selishte on the left bank of the river Vucha and was called Diove. When the Slavs are here, they give it the name of Dyovlen, which most probably means a valley, a fall. The settlement was abandoned during the conversion of the Rhodope Bulgarians in 1666-1671. Some of its inhabitants moved to the huts where they started today. A medieval necropolis from the XIII-XIV century was discovered in the center of the city. The names of the surrounding areas and peaks prove that the Bulgarian population has lived here for a long time. The oldest written document, which mentions the name Devin, is a list of dagelkishans (cattle breeders) dating from 1576. Other documents about the distant past are missing - probably burned in the two devastating fires in 1904 and 1912. The town remained under Turkish rule until 1912, after which many migrants from the surrounding villages were directed to Devin and contributed to its economic lifting. Until 1934, it was named Dyovlen.
There is no town in Bulgaria and the Balkan Peninsula with so many healing mineral springs. At the same time, its microclimate is one of the healthiest - the rocky and green heights protect the city from cold and strong northwest winds, a large number of sunny days, extremely mild winters, cool summers and no industrial pollutants. The proximity of beautiful coniferous forests, rich Balkan trout rivers, the presence of wild goats (rare for the Rhodope Mountains) and last but not least the hospitality of the local mountains make the whole idea of Devin. This determines the development of the town as an extremely promising balneological and mountain resort of national and international significance. He is extremely popular in Scandinavia. There are a spa and an outdoor mineral beach.
Devin Municipality is extremely rich in natural sites and attractions - gorges, caves, rock formations, protected areas and nature reserves. Interesting landmarks in the area are Trigrad Gorge, Devil's Throat and Yagodinska Cave; the sites: Lesichevo, Amzovo, Izvor, Struilitsa, Roman Kemerov bridge, the rock phenomenon Elephant.
Distance: Sofia - Devin - 188 km. Plovdiv - Devin - 75 km. Varna - Devin - 473 km. Chepelare - Devin - 41 km. Smolyan - Devin - 39 km. Pamporovo - Devin - 31 km.
