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Where to go in August / Bulgaria in August / Sofia & the southwest / August

Bulgaria · Mountains

Sofia & the southwest
in August.

Illustration of Rila Monastery courtyard toward the Church of the Nativity and Hrelyo Tower
Rila Monastery’s courtyardDestination view, not month-specific.

Is August a good time?

Temperature unit

Hot days.
A steady visitor season.

August averages 84°F afternoons, with about 4 rain days. Later August is typically cooler.

Afternoons
84°F
Rain days
4
Visitor demand
86%of February peak

Historical Yugozapaden regional averages, not a forecast or a measure of queues. Overnight demand compares average stays per day. Covers Sofia, Bansko and Rila Monastery; conditions vary within the region.

Overall match

8.8/10 · scores & priorities

This weather score measures sightseeing comfort. Snow and ski conditions need a separate check.

What matters most?

Weather 50% · Crowds 30% · Cost 20%

#2 of 12 months here · Balanced mix

Weather9.3/10Excellent
CrowdsSteady all yearsimilar all year; overnight stays do not measure queuesFor its size, quieter than most of Europe this month
CostCheapfor Europe; Bulgaria-wide price level

Overall combines weather, overnight demand and cost. It does not include sea temperature.

Plan your August

What to expect.

What should I pack?

Afternoons around 84°F (29°C): summer clothes; nights around 59°F (15°C): a sweater and a light jacket. About 14 hours of daylight. About 4 rain days in a typical August.

A typical day: temperatures & daylightAfternoons, nights & daylight Show detailsHide details

About 14 hours of daylight.

Sunrise 06:33Sunset 20:3059°F84°F00:0006:0012:0018:0024:00

The sun rises about 06:33 and sets about 20:30 (local time, mid-month). Mornings start around 59°F (15°C); afternoons reach about 84°F (29°C). Expect rain on about 4 days in a typical August.

Typical afternoon
84°F (29°C)
average daily high, 15 recent Augusts
Night low
59°F (15°C)
average daily minimum
Daylight
13h 57m
on the 15th, computed from latitude

Early, middle or late?

Early or late August?

Early August is typically warmer. The afternoon high averages 85°F on the 1st, versus 81°F on the 31st. Historical wet-day frequency falls from 20% to 12% between those dates.

Early August 1 August

85°F

Typical afternoon high

20% historical wet-day frequency

Mid August 15 August

84°F

Typical afternoon high

14% historical wet-day frequency

Late August 31 August

81°F

Typical afternoon high

12% historical wet-day frequency

Historical daily averages from 2011–2025, smoothed over two weeks. A seasonal pattern, not a forecast. This does not establish which week has the lowest prices or fewest visitors.

Daily calendar & holiday datesAugust 2027 · historical weather & dated holidays Show calendarHide calendar

August 2027 calendar

Weather shows historical patterns, not a forecast. Holidays and events use the dates shown for 2027.

MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
185°
285°385°485°585°685°785°885°
985°1085°1184°1284°1384°1484°1584°
1684°1784°1884°1984°2084°2184°2283°
2383°2483°2583°2683°2783°2882°2982°
3082°3181°

Afternoon high rain likely (25%+) local school holidays public holiday event

School-holiday dates for August 2027 aren't available in our data yet. A day without a school marker doesn't mean schools are open.

Afternoons cool from about 85°F (29°C) in the first week to 82°F (28°C) in the last. The chance of a wet day runs 12–20%.

Elsewhere in August 2027, the share of people living where schools are out on a typical day: Germany 73%, Italy 100%, Spain 100%, Netherlands 90%. (School holidays: OpenHolidays, ODbL.)

Crowds and cost

Visitor season

Will it be busy?

Steady all year. August averages 86% of February's overnight stays per day. Overnight demand varies little across the year.

Overnight stays across Yugozapaden do not measure queues, day visitors or congestion at individual sights. For its size, quieter than most of Europe this month.

Hotel price season

Will it be cheaper?

Well below usual. Estimated from national hotel prices and local visitor demand; no measured regional room rate is available.

Fewer overnight stays do not automatically mean cheaper rooms. Check actual quotes for your trip.

Bulgaria as a whole
Well below EU average
2024 restaurants and hotels price level: 53 where the EU average is 100. A relative index, not a room rate.

Year-to-year variation

How much does August vary?

Across the recorded years

In the 15 years from 2011 to 2025, the month's afternoons averaged between 81°F (27°C) and 87°F (31°C); in 12 of them they were within 3°F (1.5°C) of the typical 84°F (29°C). Rain days ranged from 1 to 9; half the years had 3–5.

Rain days in each August

Historical rain days; exact figures in the table below. 2011: 3 rain days320112012: 3 rain days32013: 1 rain days12014: 4 rain days42015: 3 rain days32016: 5 rain days52017: 2 rain days22018: 3 rain days32019: 2 rain days22020: 9 rain days92021: 5 rain days52022: 8 rain days82023: 6 rain days62024: 5 rain days52025: 4 rain days42025
Rain days
4
at least 1 mm, typical year; about 7 in a wet year
Mostly sunny days
18 of 31
cloud cover under 30%
Years with a 95°F+ day
4 of 15
of the last 15 Augusts had at least one day at or above 95°F (35°C)
Good weather days
29 of 31
rated very good or better
See every recorded AugustHistorical monthly averages, year by year Show detailsHide details
Historical monthly averages, not daily extremes.
YearAfternoon highRain days
201183°F3
201286°F3
201384°F1
201483°F4
201583°F3
201681°F5
201783°F2
201882°F3
201985°F2
202083°F9
202187°F5
202282°F8
202384°F6
202487°F5
202584°F4

Checked against official climate averages for Sofia. How we check

Compare dates

July, August
or September?

Historical regional averages. Overnight demand vs February peak, measured as average stays per day.
Typical conditionsJulAugSep
Afternoons84°F84°F76°F
Rain days544
Overnight demand72%86%70%

July: Similar monthly conditions to August. July guide →

September: Cooler afternoons than August. September guide →

Overnight demand measures accommodation stays, not queues.

Compare any of the 12 monthsChoose another month and compare it with August Show comparisonHide comparison

Yellow marks the top three months on the Balanced mix. August stays as your reference.

Hotel stays vary little through the year. No other scored month has a Weather score at least 1.0 point higher than August.

Your comparison

August or July?

Overnight stays vary little through the year.

National hotel prices and local visitor demand suggest well below usual. No measured regional room rate is available.

Read the July guide →
August compared with another month
Typical conditionsAugustJuly
Afternoons84°F84°F
Nights59°F59°F
Rain days45
Visitor seasonSteady all yearSteady all year
Overall / 108.88.7
Month rank#2#4
Every month, in detail Show detailsHide details
All 12 months. Scores and ranks follow your priorities. Explore the whole year.
MonthOverallRankHighLowRain daysWeatherVisitor season
January6.5#1243°F25°F75.1Steady all year
February6.8#1048°F29°F55.7Steady all year
March7.1#855°F34°F96.3Steady all year
April8.0#764°F41°F87.9Steady all year
May8.5#571°F48°F99.0Steady all year
June8.7#379°F56°F109.1Steady all year
July8.7#484°F59°F59.1Steady all year
August8.8#284°F59°F49.3Steady all year
September9.0#176°F53°F49.8Steady all year
October8.2#664°F43°F68.4Steady all year
November7.1#954°F36°F66.3Steady all year
December6.7#1146°F29°F75.4Steady all year

Near here

Nearby places in August

Nearby regions, nearest first. Distances are centre to centre, as the crow flies; they are not road distances or journey times.

Elsewhere in Europe

Same dates, elsewhere in Europe

Sofia & the southwest's weather ranks 1 of 28 mountain regions this month. We found no mountain regions outside Bulgaria with similar weather and a quieter visitor season.

All of Bulgaria in August · Everywhere in August

How we knowSources, regional scope & scoring method Show detailsHide details

Hotel stays are steady all year here: this month is 86% of the busiest and 17% above average. That counts overnight stays, not how busy the sights are. That means about 17,000 overnight visitors on a typical August night across the region, 58% of them from Bulgaria itself. Rentals booked through Airbnb, Booking, Expedia and Tripadvisor add up to 6,900 more: 41 for every 100 counted above. Some are the same properties counted twice.

Climate suitability (HCI:Urban, 0–100)82
How our weather was checkedOfficial climate averages for Sofia from the national weather service, every month: afternoon highs typically within 1°F (0.7°C), night lows within 1°F (0.3°C).
Tourist nights per 1,000 residents per day8
Busiest month hereFebruary · 10
Visitors as share of people present0.8%
Rank among Europe's regions this month13th percentile
Domestic share of nights58%
Platform rental nights per 100 counted nights41
Visitor share if every platform night were extra1.1%
National hotel-price seasonBulgaria historical 2024–2025 index: About usual (+2% vs its average month). Not a local room quote.
Population used2.0 million
Statistical regionBG41 · Yugozapaden

Crowds: Eurostat nights spent at tourist accommodation, by month and NUTS 2 region, 2024–2025 average. Overnight visitors per night is the month's nights divided by its days; the per-1,000 figure is Eurostat's, against each year's population. Platform rentals: Eurostat nights booked via Airbnb, Booking, Expedia and Tripadvisor, 2024–2025 average, shown separately because some properties are in both counts. Weather: Holiday Climate Index computed from ERA5 reanalysis with daily highs, night lows and rain days corrected from open national weather-service station records, 2011–2025, population-weighted to the region; day-by-day figures are the same data averaged by date. Heat and rain odds are counted across those years. Sunrise and sunset: NOAA solar equations, local time. Prices: Eurostat price level index and HICP, national. Full method · this region's data.