Bulgaria will host the first three stages of the 2026 Giro d'Italia – the second successive year it will begin outside Italy.
Albania hosted the opening three stages of this year's race in May, which since 2010 has started abroad seven times, including Jerusalem in 2018.
The three-week event will take place 8-31 May and finishes in Rome.
The 2026 edition will cover 3,458km with about 50,000 metres of elevation gain.
The Women's Giro d'Italia, which begins on 30 May, will not start in Bulgaria and instead begins in Cesenatico on Italy's east coast.
After nine stages it will finish on 7 June in Saluzzo.
Two-time winner Elisa Longo Borghini will be defending her title on home soil, while Britain's Simon Yates is the reigning men's champion.
The Giro d'Italia is one of cycling's three Grand Tours, alongside the Tour de France and Vuelta a Espana.
