Wne I went to Veliko Tarnovo I was catching a train from Istanbul to Romania and got off for a couple of days. I hopped of the train without knowing where I was, no guidebook, map or money and the staition's a bit out of town. Some tout met me there and took me to a decent homestay. VT is an easy place to find your way around but it is the only place in Bulgaria I saw. I think I spent about $10 on the homestay and $0.40 a cappuchino. Not many tourists there but I hooked up with a few and headed up to Transylvania with them.
The train ride from Istanbul is cool, crossing the border has an iron curtain feel to it, with passengers (generally E Europeans) getting thrown off the train for one reason or other. Istanbul is touristy but Galata and the Asian side are cooler.