National Palace of Culture (NDK)

The National Palace of Culture abbreviated in Bulgarian as NDK is the largest multifunctional congress, conference, convention, and exhibition center in Southeastern Europe.

This enormous landmark was built in 1981 to celebrate the 1300th anniversary of the Bulgarian state. It’s a hexagon shape and a mass of concrete & glass. More than 10,000 tons of steel were used for the construction of the NDK. That is 3,000 tons more than the Eiffel Tower. The main function of the building is a concert hall. It also hosts exhibitions and trade fairs. In front of the building is an underground arcade of shops and cafes.

The idea for the construction of this true contemporary castle comes from the former Bulgarian First Lady Lyudmila Zhivkova. She was the daughter of the communist politician and leader of the former People’s Republic of Bulgaria Todor Zhivkov. The project was worked out by a team of Bulgarian and foreign architects, led by Alexander Barov. The landscaping of Bulgaria Square in front of the National Palace of Culture was made by another team of architects and landscape engineers, led by Atanas Agura.

The congress center has a wide variety of technical equipment at its disposal to host different types of events, such as concerts, conferences, exhibitions, and shows. It has an area of 123,000 m² on eight floors and three underground levels. The National Palace of Culture has 13 halls and 15,000 m² of exhibition area, a trade center, and a car park.

Address: 1 Bulgaria sq. Sofia
Phone: 00359 2 916 6300
Fax: 00359 2 865 7053
Email: office@ndk.bg
http://www.ndk.bg/