What to do in Sofia when it rains
Don't let the forecast cancel your plans. From small cinemas and gallery visits to escape rooms and painting with wine, here's how to spend a rainy afternoon in Sofia.
Cover photos: Etudite na Sofia
You look out of the window, then down at the shoes that have finally dried out from yesterday, and suddenly going out seems a lot less appealing.
We get it. November in Sofia isn't exactly a great motivator, and it's easy to put that walk off until the next sunny day. Do that, though, and we might not see each other until April. We won't try to sell you on the romance of puddles, especially if you've just stepped in one. We will give you a few reasons to leave the house that are worth sacrificing your hair for. Here are some ways to spend a rainy afternoon or evening in the city without checking the forecast every five minutes. We're skipping the usual coffee stop and Friday-night party; we've already mapped those out for you. Instead, we're looking at theatre, small cinemas, galleries and a few things you never quite get around to doing. Grab your umbrella. We've got the rest.
Make an evening of the theatre
The theatre season is well underway, and our watchlist keeps growing. Where to start? At ARTVENT, Suzie Miller's Inter Alia, starring Radina Kardzhilova and Plamen Dimov, follows a judge whose professional convictions collide painfully with her family life. At the Ivan Vazov National Theatre, Miroslav Krleža's The Glembays digs into the secrets of a wealthy family whose celebration takes a dangerous turn. For more laughs, try The Duel, based on Ivan Vazov's play, at the National Theatre. For love, humour and tenderness, there's Valeri Petrov's When the Roses Dance at the Satirical Theatre. Theatre 199 offers Yana Borisova's The Sea After You and Joanna Murray-Smith's Switzerland, depending on whether you're in the mood for tangled relationships or a suspenseful encounter with Patricia Highsmith. Check dates and book ahead, so your evening out doesn't remain a good intention. Check the performance language and any surtitles with the venue, too.
Paint with a glass of wine
If the last picture you painted was in school art class, perhaps it's time to add something new to the collection. Paint-and-wine evenings welcome beginners, with an artist guiding you through each step. Pick a session by the painting you'll be making, and check what's included in the price: materials and a drink often are.
Go with friends, make a date of it or turn up on your own. Nobody's asking you to prove you've got talent.
You'll leave with a painting to take home, even if it's a fairly loose interpretation of the original. If canvas isn't your thing, try painting ceramics instead. Just bear in mind that you'll usually need to collect your finished piece after it's been glazed and fired.
See it on the big screen
You probably have a favourite film you've watched several times but never in a cinema. Check Cinema House (Dom na Kinoto) and the Odeon cinematheque for retrospectives and special screenings. For contemporary European and Bulgarian cinema, add G8 to your list. Festival programmes can also turn up a film you've never heard of and will soon be recommending to everyone. Look out for screenings with a filmmaker Q&A, too: some questions just won't wait once the credits roll. Company is entirely optional, so there's no need to put off a good film until you've assembled a group.
Step into a gallery
How many exhibitions have you saved on your phone, only to realise they've already closed? Until 31 December 2026, Kvadrat 500 is showing Hristo Simeonov's Between Matter and Antimatter: more than 50 works, from portraits and landscapes to images inspired by his fascination with space and physics.
From 4 November to 3 December 2026, add Intimacy, a solo exhibition by Jenny Ivanova, to your list.
You'll find it at Velmar Jewelry House, 51 Vasil Levski Boulevard. Seven oil paintings and seven drawings explore closeness and the boundaries we put around it. The opening is on 4 November, from 6pm to 9pm. There are exhibitions around every corner, of course, so there's no reason to stop at these two.
Go back to the museum, without the school trip
If your last museum visit involved a form teacher and a headcount by the coach, it's time for another go. At The Red Flat, you step into a Bulgarian family's home in the 1980s, complete with a rotary phone, a record player and a kitchen full of appliances from the period. You can open drawers, leaf through magazines and get up close to the objects while an audio guide talks you through everyday life under socialism. Allow about an hour and a half, and pick up your ticket first at GIFTED, 24 Ivan Denkoglu Street. For archaeological finds, head to the National Archaeological Museum, part of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, opposite the Presidency. A mobile guide is available there, too. In November, the Archaeological Museum is open Tuesday to Sunday until 5pm.
Get a team together for an escape room
If your friends love puzzles and crime stories, take the investigation into an escape room. Choose a story everyone can get behind:
a detective case, an adventure or a horror scenario, provided nobody's going to hold it against you afterwards.
Check the running time and team size before you start inviting more people. If it's your first game, say so when you book and ask which room works best for beginners. Then find out who spots the details, who takes charge and who ends up staring despairingly into a corner.
Give board games a go
When it's raining, board games earn their place on the afternoon's agenda. Round up your usual crowd and head to a board game club. Order a drink and get ready to build cities, solve crimes or escape into magical worlds. If you're new to it, start with a shorter game rather than a strategy epic with a rulebook the length of a small novel. Check whether you need to book a table and how the club charges for your time. And if someone suggests Monopoly again, at least this time you'll have a whole shelf of alternatives.
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