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Veliki Preslav was the capital of Bulgaria from the time of the First Bulgarian Kingdom. It is situated 20 km from Shumen and 30 km from the first Bulgarian capital of Pliska. The city was founded in the time of Prince Boris I in the late 9th century as a military base with a palace and a garrison. In 893 after the acceptance of Christianity it was declared capital during the Preslav Ecclesiastical and National Gathering and it turned into a seat of the First Bulgarian Literary School - the Preslav one. It developed as an important cultural centre not only for Bulgaria, but also for the Slavic world. The medieval writers and scientists Naum Ohridski, Konstantin Preslavski, Joan Exzarch, Presbyter Kosme, Chernorizets Hrabar and so on served in the Preslav Literary School. During the Middle Ages Preslav turned into one of the most beautiful and magnificent cities in Southeastern Europe. Today Veliki Preslav is declared a national historical and archeological reserve. There are more than 35 000 artifacts found in it as 1700 of them are exhibited in the specialized museum. The famous one among them is the Preslav Golden Treausre - beautiful and perfectly made jewelry. There is also the marble iconostasis from the palace monastery, as well as the only Bulgarian mosaic icon - a typical representative of the religious art from the 10th century that depicts St. Theodore Tyron. There is an ethnographic house in Veliki Preslav, too. It is preserved in an authentic manner and the customs of the region are presented there. Aauthentic folklore may be heard there or the traditional "pulled" banitsa with local wines of Preslav may be sampled. Guests may explore the town and the beautiful church of St. Peter and Paul. After being almost destroyed in a fire, it was restored completely and now it is a monument of architecture. Near Preslav there are two nature reserves. One is along the river of Dervishka and it protects large amounts of horse chestnut and the other famous reserve is Patleina situated in the eponymous area where the rare yellow Urumov tulip and red bud grow. These scenic sites, as well as the surrounding of Veliki Preslav provide opportunities for interesting walks and picnics, eco and rural tourism. There are marked routes for hiking leading to the huts in the region of the town. The accommodation base in the town is relatively limited. It includes two hotels in Veliki Preslav and several cozy guesthouses. A good alternative to the hotels in Veliki Preslav are the guest houses, villas and family hotels in the nearby towns and areas that are a maximum of 10 km from the town. These are Patleina, Osmar, Dragoevo and others.