For those in search of restful relaxation with few distractions, Ahtopol may be the answer. This small town is situated 87 km south-east of Bourgas, near the border with Turkey, at the foot of the Strandja mountains. The Ahtopol sea coast has the highest number of sunny and hot days during the summer. The town has a 2 km long beach covered with fine sand and the water tends to be warmer and more placid here.

The name of the town has been preserved since ancient times. It was built on the place of a Thracian settlement. The Romans called it Peronticus. The town was colonized in teh 6th century before Christ. The Byzantine leader Agaton restored the town after the barbarian invasions and gave it its own name Agatopolis - City of Happiness, which the Bulgarians took in turn. At the end of 14th century the Turks conquered it and called it Ahtenbolu. It was burnt down and devastated by sea pirates many times. In 1912 it was burnt down again. The present day town was built anew. There are remains of a fortress wall and a large wall mural featuring the founding of the First Bulgarian State in 681. The Assumption church, built in 1776 has interesting frescoes. There are the St. Yani Monastery and a fountain, where a Thracian horseman is painted.

Seven kilometers south of Ahtopol is Sinemorets, the last populated area before the border with Turkey. Five kilometers south of Ahtopol is the mouth of the river Veleka, the most beautiful and ecologically clean river along the Black Sea coast. The village of Kosti, famous for fire-dances, is situated close to the river mouth. The village of Varvara is 3 km to the north – a favourite place for divers, for it is full of stone cavities in the river banks and reefs of shells underwater.