Forty kilometres northeast of Razgrad, ISPERIH is a sleepy market town lying between gently undulating pastures. It has a pleasant town centre splashed with the usual pavement cafés, and an animated Friday-morning market which attracts villagers from all over the Ludogorie. However, the town's importance to travellers is really as a jumping-off point for the historical sites around Sveshtari, 7km northwest.

Head downhill from Isperih's bus station to reach the town centre, where you turn left then bear left past a small park to find the administrative building of the town museum ( gradski muzei ; Mon-Fri 9am-5pm; tel 0835/3500; US$1), where staff can book private rooms in nearby village houses (US$9-18). Most of these are in Malâk Porovets (served by infrequent buses), a rustic spot 8km northwest of town on the Ruse road. There's no regular display in the museum, although videos about the Sveshtari site are often shown in an affiliated building, and museum staff can advise you on the current state of affairs at the tomb.