Anton

Anton is a small village of around 1,600 residents in the Zlatitsa–Pirdop Valley, about 80 km east of Sofia, at an elevation of roughly 807 m between the Balkan Mountains (Stara Planina) and Sredna Gora. It is the sole settlement and administrative seat of Anton Municipality, one of Bulgaria's smallest. The village was historically known as Ladzhene (from a Turkish word for mineral spring), and its municipal territory reaches into the Vartopa area, part of Central Balkan National Park. Anton is also notable as one of the few Bulgarian settlements with an Aromanian community. The nearby Elenska Basilica, a partially preserved Late Roman/early Byzantine (5th–6th century) Christian basilica, is the area's most significant archaeological landmark, and the village's Church of St. Elijah (1895) has frescoes by the Debar-school painters Hristo Blagoev and his nephew Serafim.

Anton lies on the I-6 road (Sofia–Karlovo–Burgas) and the Sofia–Karlovo–Sliven–Karnobat–Varna railway line (Bulgarian State Railways line 3), which run the length of the Zlatitsa–Pirdop Valley; both a direct road and rail connection from Sofia (roughly 80 km) exist via this corridor. Sofia Airport is the nearest airport with international service.

Anton is a small, walkable village; a car is the most practical way to reach the surrounding countryside, the Elenska Basilica, and Vartopa/Central Balkan National Park trailheads.

• Elenska Basilica — a partially preserved Late Roman/early Byzantine (5th–6th century) Christian basilica, the area's key historic site.
• Church of St. Elijah (1895) — village parish church with frescoes by Hristo Blagoev and Serafim of the Debar school.

Hiking into the Balkan Mountains and Sredna Gora foothills, and day trips toward the Vartopa section of Central Balkan National Park, are the main outdoor draws.

• Pirdop — neighbouring town in the same valley, on the same rail/road corridor
• Zlatitsa — neighbouring town in the Zlatitsa–Pirdop Valley
• Sofia — Bulgaria's capital, about 80 km west via the I-6 road and rail line