If you cannot decide what to celebrate Saint Valentine’s Day or the Bulgarian holiday of wine, Saint Trifonos’ Day, you should come to the village of Delchevo. The people there combine the both. Dressed in their best attires and carrying dishes, wine and brandy, the vine-growers get together and go to the vineyards. You will join the celebration on the square of the village and taste the home-made wines, and decide which wine is the best. The winner is honored as the “Tzar of the Wine” with a crown of entwined vine twigs, ceremoniously cut off the vine earlier. There is also a reenactment of a traditional wedding on the square, as per the old saying: “Love and wine, wine and love.”

Hardly is there someone who is not familiar with the magic of the summer solstice. This wizardly time gives every herb magic healing powers, makes every magic successful, and every fortune-telling true. If you a fairy-tale lover it is your time. You can join the colorful festival of the folk dance groups in Gotse Delchev and sing, dance, and enjoy the festivity all night long in Delchevo. You can also participate in traditional rites such as setting a scarecrow on fire to burn away evil.  On the eve of Midsummer Day healers will take you along in the lush fields and show you the most healing herbs in the freshness of the magic dew. You will walk the fields and vineyards with the Midsummer Bride in a rite for fertility and good harvest, and she will make a spell on you for health and luck in the village of Banichan.

Come to the Strumitsa Carnival!  As you stroll along the streets teeming with exhilarating joy you can encounter fairies and clowns, gods, kings and queens, favorite characters from children’s tales and many more. To join in, you only have to pick a mask! This is a week-long entertainment for people of all ages.