Bulgaria's Black Sea Island St. Anastasia Opens for Tourists

Bulgaria's Black Sea island St. Anastasia, off the coast of Burgas, opens for tourists on May 15, report Bulgarian-language media. 

On the island, previously known as Bolshevik and used as a political prison in the communist era, is the only surviving island monastery from the Middle Ages in the western Black Sea. 

The monastery and the church with original XIX c. murals have been restored, there are also a museum, tourist attractions, a restaurant and a herb shop, selling herbs, grown on the island.

The monastery has a hotel section, offering overnight stay in a monastic cell.

The island is accessible by boat, which will leave three times a day from the pier in the Burgas sea garden.