National Palace of Culture: Congress Centre Sofia

National Palace of Culture, where is also known as Congress Center Sofia (NDK) is the largest multifunctional complexes in entire Southeastern Europe. National Palace of Culture opened in 1981 at 1300 years of the foundation of the Bulgarian state. This centre used for various activities and events held in Sofia where is the capital of Bulgaria. During the year, conventions, conferences, panels, exhibitions, concerts, festivals and more organizes. National Palace of Culture is located in the downtown of Sofia and surrounded by beautiful parks. Also, Temple of Bulgarian Martyrs is very close to the National Palace of Culture.

National Palace of Culture History

The idea of the construction of the National Palace of Culture came into the mind around 1975. The leadership of the Bulgarian Communist Party decided to construct a symbol for Sofia. During the 70s, the downtown area of Sofia was not developed as much as today. Especially after World War II, Sofia started to construct city almost from scratch and National Palace of Culture was part of that plan. That was the reason the Bulgarian Communist Party and the Sofia Municipal Council chose to improve this metropolitan territory and transform it into a cutting edge modern district that was essential for the fundamental downtown area and that offers a stupendous view to the Vitosha Mountain.

National Palace of Culture Construction

Construction of the National Palace of Culture started on 25th May 1978. There was a minimal ceremony, including only the people who were directly related to the project. In total, there were only about ten people without any media and public. Around only after 3 years, construction of National Palace of Culture opened in 1981. The Palace was named after the late Minister of Culture Lyudmila Zhivkova. More than 330.000 cubic meters of concrete used during the construction. Also, the number of metals used to construct the National Palace of Culture was equal to the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Many people acknowledge that the National Palace of Culture is one of the symbol of Sofia with Alexander Nevsky Cathedral within the heart of the Bulgarian people. There is another interesting fact about the construction. There wasn’t enough work in Bulgaria during that time. To close the gap, thousand of workers brought from Cyprus, Yugoslavia and couple of other countries.

Grand Opening and 80s

During the 80s the National Palace of Culture complex transformed into the centre of culture in Sofia. Also, in time it became home of the major events both national and international. Starting from the opening of the building, World-renowned artist and superstars started being featured at the Palace. Also, there are state-of-the-art facilities and equipment for concerts, exhibitions, conventions, seminars, theatre, dance and cinema.

National Palace of Culture Facts

• The total area of the venus is 123 000 sq. m.
• There are eight-storey building, with four panoramic terraces and three underground levels
• Every year more than 300 event holds and over a million people came.
• It houses 80 monumental works of art located in the halls and the foyers
• Home of the National Book Centre, The Feather (Peroto) Literary Club, Azaryan Theater and DNK Contemporary Dance and Performance Space
• Bulgaria’s most renowned concert venue for international artists.

Visiting National Palace of Culture

As a tourist, you may be wondering that do you really need to visit this place. My answer is yes. Because the National Palace of Culture is one of the symbols of the not only Sofia also Bulgaria with Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, you can visit the building by yourself and don’t need to join any tour. But you can find a couple of tours below in case you think to join.

Where is National Palace of Culture

National Palace of Culture located in the southern part of the Sofia city centre. Among with the NKD, you can visit a couple of other building located around it like Temple of Bulgarian Martyrs, Municipality of Sofia, Sofia Live Club and Earth and People National Museum. In addition to all these historical landmarks, there are numerous restaurants, cafes, bars and more around the district. In case you may need, the official address of the National Palace of Culture is National Culture Palace, Bulevard “Bulgaria”, 1463 Ndk, Sofia.

How to Go to National Culture of Palace

My suggestion is to take a walk through the Sofia city centre. In my opinion, the best way to discover a city is to walk through its avenues and streets. National Culture of Palace is around 2.5 km away from the Lions Bridge. You can enjoy this walking route through the avenues of the city centre. If you don’t have your own car, there are several public transport options you may use. On the left side of the building, there is a National Palace of Culture tram station. Tramlines 1,6 and 7 stops at this station. Also, there are several NDK bus stops around where you can get off.

Sofia Tours You Can Join

There are dozens of tours you can join to get around in Sofia. You may find three of them below. But don’t forget to read the comment of everyone them. Also, please share your own experience with the tours and share them in the comments to improve the information I gave to the people.

National Culture of Palace FAQs