Razlog Valley

41°52′N 23°30′E / 41.867°N 23.500°E / 41.867; 23.500The Razlog Valley (Bulgarian: Разложка котловина, romanized: Razlozhka kotlovina) is a valley in southwestern Bulgaria, Blagoevgrad Province, containing the Razlog, Bansko, and Belitsa municipalities.

The transitional continental Mediterranean climate and nature of the valley are influenced by both the high alpine mountain “walls” of Rila and Pirin and the vast and wild Rhodopes, and the warm Mediterranean climate of the Aegean Sea entering from the south via the Mesta river course.

It is home to Bansko, a renowned winter resort center and one of the top tourist destinations in Bulgaria.

There are four towns - Bansko, Belitsa, Dobrinishte and Razlog - and many villages in the area, some of them being Banya, Bachevo, Dobarsko, Godlevo, Gorno Draglishte, Dolno Draglishte, Eleshnitsa, Kraishte, Gorno Kraishte.

The Razlog Valley has abundant water resources, including many tributaries of the Mesta River, as well as hot springs in the villages of Banya, Bachevo and Eleshnitsa and the Razhdavets and Katarino areas, with the temperature of some of the springs reaching 60 °C and the discharge 70-80 litres per second.