Bansko lies at the foot of the Pirin Mountains in south-west Bulgaria, at the northern end of the Razlog valley, and the first sight of it is the wall behind: Pirin's jagged limestone peaks, climbing to Vihren at 2,914 metres, the second-highest mountain in the country after Musala. The range is a national park and a UNESCO site, and its high lakes, dwarf pine and rare Bosnian pine hold some of the most unspoiled alpine country in the Balkans. Winter brings snow from December well into spring, and Bansko is one of the busiest ski resorts in Bulgaria, with a gondola that runs from the edge of town.
The old town is surprisingly pretty for a place that has grown so fast. Behind the new hotels, the narrow cobbled lanes still hold stone houses with heavy wooden doors, high walls and slate roofs built in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, when Bansko was a prosperous trading and craft town. Traditional taverns known as mehanas have low beams, open fires and walls hung with rugs, and the poet Nikola Vaptsarov was born in the town in 1909. The Holy Trinity church, with its thick walls and sunken floor, was built low so as not to offend Ottoman rulers who banned tall Christian buildings.
For a rider, Bansko makes a good base. Razlog, the larger neighbour, has fuel and supermarkets, and there are stations on the road in and out of Bansko itself. The road south over the Predel pass, at roughly 1,100 metres, leads to Gotse Delchev and the Rhodopes, with good curves and views over the Pirin. In summer, the air is cool at altitude, but thunderstorms build over the peaks in the afternoon, so aim to be down by then. Watch for potholes, tractors, and the occasional horse cart.
Eat in a mehana: kapama, a slow-cooked stew of meats and cabbage; banitsa with cheese; and the local cured sausage the town is known for, washed down with red wine from the Struma valley. Summer and early autumn are best, when the days are long, the meadows are green and the air smells of pine and woodsmoke. Come in winter only if you plan to ski, since the passes can be icy and the best roads close.