The town is situated on the banks of the Danube, at the mouth of its tributary – the Lom River. It is the successor of an ancient settlement founded by the Thracians under the name of Artanes, which later grew into the Roman Almus Fortress (29 AD). The ancient and medieval artifacts discovered can be seen in the local Museum of History. In the centre of the city, 50 architectural monuments of culture can be seen one after another. The local landmarks also include the Krastyo Pishurka Monument and the fire lookout tower. Just a hundred metres away is the recently renovated oldest newspaper shop in Bulgaria, which in the 1920s was declared the most beautiful in the country. The 140 year old secondary school was designed by Viennese architect of Bulgarian descent Konstantin Jovanović, who also designed the National Assembly building in Sofia.
The three major churches in the city are also gems for tourists: Uspenie Bogorodichno, St. Nicholas the Wonderworker and the new St. Nicholas Church with the vicarage building. The city centre also holds one of the first Bulgarian community centres — Postoyanstvo, established in 1856.