Primorsko: Arkutino Beach

Arkutino Beach is one of the favourites of many tourists who choose the Southern Black Sea annually for their holiday in Bulgaria. It has beautiful features – extensive beachfront, high dunes – home to rare plants, and stunning horizon views including the Snake island and the green shores of Ropotamo Reserve. It consists of a guarded and unguarded part. Also, the location of Arkutino Beach is easy and accessible – right next to the main road connecting the towns on the South Black Sea Coast. Therefore the beach is a frequently visited destination by tourists staying in Sozopol and Primorsko, who diversify their vacation by visiting new beaches. In addition around the pier, the waters are shallow and even a few tens of meters into, the level is only knee-deep. For this reason, Arkutino Beach is a favourite place for families with young children.

Where is the location of Arkutino Beach, Primorsko, Bulgaria



USEFUL: For planning your visit to the place or accommodation in the nearby settlements, can use the collection of assistive tools – Google Road Map with calculator in km, flights to Bulgaria, rental cars, weather forecast, hotel search, timetables of buses in the region, see this link.

Arkutino Beach is 10 km north of Primorsko and 13 km south of Sozopol. It lays right next to the swamp Arkutino from where the name of the beach comes. The length of the beach is 1.5 km, and its width reaches 70 m (excluding dunes).

Description and photos of Arkutino beach

It is divided into three zones. In the middle, it is a guarded area with umbrellas, sunbeds for rent and lifeguard. Besides, there are beach restaurants for food and drinks, and there is a grocery store in the building of the hotel complex – if other products are needed.

Arkutino Beach - general view of the guarded area and Snake Island ( Zmiyski Ostrov in Bulgarian)
Arkutino Beach – general view of the guarded area and Snake Island ( Zmiyski Ostrov in Bulgarian)

 A look in the right to Cape Kaya and the wild shores of Ropotamo Reserve
A look in the right to Cape Kaya and the wild shores of Ropotamo Reserve

Arkutino Beach view from the high hill along the path leading to the Lion’s Head

For the purpose of easier passage through the dunes and for their protection, there are wooden paths installed.

Wooden paths for easy passage on the sand

The high dunes are a habitat of the rare and beautiful Sea daffodil (Pancratium maritimum)

Sea daffodil (Pancratium Maritimum). It is a protected species under the Biological Diversity Act of Bulgaria. Flowering is in July.
Sea daffodil (Pancratium Maritimum). It is a protected species under the Biological Diversity Act of Bulgaria. Flowering is in July.

Behind the pier, in the north of the beach, is the one unguarded area. There is the best view of Snake Island.

The northern part of Arkutino Beach - wild and unguarded
The northern part of Arkutino Beach – wild and unguarded

The island is only 500m from the shore, and the idea of ​​visiting swimming seems attractive to some tourists. Unfortunately – as a part of the Ropotamo Reserve – this is forbidden. Accordingly the order, the Reserve has a strict visitation regime, and the island is not present in the list of allowed tourism destinations listed in the reserve management plan. For more details – see the map with allowed touristic paths of Ropotamo Reserve.

Snake Island - called with this name because many water snakes inhabited it in the past
Snake Island – called with this name because many water snakes inhabited it in the past
In the southern part of Arkutino Beach is the other unguarded area
In the southern part of Arkutino Beach is the other unguarded area

The southern part of Arkutino Beach reaches Cape Kaya – part of the Ropotamo Reserve.

The hiking trail leading to the mouth of Ropotamo River

Arkutino Beach reaches Cape Kaya, which is part of the Ropotamo Reserve. At Cape Kaya is the start of a hiking trail. Further, one goes through the forest and reaches to the mouth of the Ropotamo River. In case you want to combine stay at Arkutino Beach with the walk along this trail, it is advisable to take an item of appropriate clothing. Due to the narrow grassland paths and lots of flies (in the summer), it is better to equip yourself with hiking shoes or covered sneakers, long trousers, insect spray, water, sunglasses and a hat.

Options for visiting and stay at Arkutino Beach

To reach the beach from the main road, have to pass through an area where is a hotel complex. For more information follow the link:

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In front of the complex, there is a parking lot. Because it is often full, another parking lot can use, that is in front of the Arkutino swamp.

A parking lot in the right, in front of the Arkutino swamp, on the road Sozopol - Primorsko
A parking lot in the right, in front of the Arkutino swamp, on the road Sozopol – Primorsko

Preservation of the protected area

Arkutino Beach is within the boundaries of a protected area called “Beglik Tash – Ropotamo”. Therefore some rules should be observed when visiting to protect natural resources.

To put it briefly – do not throw away waste, do not tear plants, do not light a fire, no camping, and let the place look like you’ve found it!

In detail, or if you intend to carry out particular activities other than a stay at the beach or simple tourist walk, the full text of the law can read here.

Beglik Tash – Ropotamo – current prohibitions and regimes ( the page of Bulgarian “Executive Environment Agency”)

The exact boundaries of the protected area can see here https://gis.wwf.bg/mobilz/en/ (“Protected areas in Bulgaria” layer must be bookmarked).

The swamp Arkutino

A visit to the beach in the summer can combine with a visit to the Arkutino swamp. Accordingly, in the Greek translation, it means “The swamp of the bear” (αρκούδα – meaning bear). Its location is close to the main road, behind the parking lot. Moreover, there is a specially constructed bridge for tourists that crosses the marsh.

The bridge in the swamp Arkutino
The bridge in the swamp Arkutino

Due to heavy rainfall in recent years, populations of white water lilies have declined sharply, and now the surviving plants are quite far from the bridge. If you want to photograph them, it is advisable to have a camera with an optical zoom at least 4x. The marsh belongs to the territory of the Ropotamo Reserve and accordingly the order when visiting it, should not damage the plants.

Flowering white water lily (Nymphaea alba)
Flowering white water lily (Nymphaea alba) photographed in July at the Arkutino swamp. The photo was taken with a telephoto lens with 5x optical zoom. Depending on the climatic conditions, flowering may continue until the autumn.

What else to see around the Arкutino Beach

To diversify your holiday in Bulgaria, you can try the following suggestions in the south direction:

  1. The hiking trail, leading to the mouth of the Ropotamo River. You can join it from the southern end of the beach
  2. Boat trip along the Ropotamo River. The point where the boats start is 4.5 km from here in the direction of Primorsko
  3. The town of Primorsko (8.5 km), its beaches and museum
  4. Ancient Thracian sanctuary Beglik Tash (13 km)
  5. Ropotamo Reserve and the many hiking trails around forest and sea (14 km)

In the north direction, can try the following suggestions:

  1. The wild “Chauffeurs’ Beach” in Alepu area (3.5 km)
  2. Rock Formation, similar to a fjord, at Cape Agalina (8 km)
  3. Sozopol City with its beaches and historical sites (13 km)

USEFUL: To get a quick and easy idea of ​​where these places are – see the destinations marked on our Google map. There all the landmarks we’ve written about, are marked as tags with links.

To plan your trip to them, you can use the selection of assistive tools: Google Road Map with calculator in km, flights to Bulgaria, rental cars, weather forecast, hotel search, timetables of buses in the region.

Offers for hotels in Primorsko


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