Bulgaria: inexpensive holidays in winter 2019-2020, New Year and other holidays of life
Bulgaria. The whole country is based on mountains. Somewhere they are higher, somewhere – lower, but there are mountains and stones in all places, large cities or small settlements. Bulgaria has four major ski resorts at altitudes ranging from 900 to 2600 meters.
In winter in Bulgaria, resorts come no less than in summer to the sea. Tourists are attracted not only by loyal prices and a variety of trails: the weather here is very good, and the nature at this time of year in the mountains is dazzlingly beautiful.
bansko
Bansko is a cozy small settlement, a city 160 km from Sofia.
You can easily get there by taxi in one and a half to two hours at a cost of 70 to 100 EUR. Another option is by bus. It is inexpensive: only 8-10 EUR.
But the most interesting way is to get to Bansko by train. A trip along the narrow gauge will give you a lot of impressions: breathtaking views of the snow-capped mountains and gorges stretched throughout the journey, and so – 7 hours of travel. Such a trip is not a waste of time! It costs this “attraction” with delivery of only 4-6 EUR.
By train you can also reach Bansko from Istanbul. But this is already half a thousand kilometers: longer than from Sofia.
Bansko is an atmospheric place. Here in a small area are concentrated hundreds of small cozy cafes and boutiques for different tastes with national flavor and local cuisine. The city center is a real museum, only residential.
This is generally typical for Bulgaria: the houses preserved in their original form are historical monuments, but people live in them. Among the buildings and ruins of the II century, on the paving stones of the most valuable historical slabs, the schoolboy plays football.
In the buildings - monuments protected by UNESCO, people arrange modern lofts. But always according to the established rules: the house must be painted with a certain paint, or use certain materials for stone decoration.
For history lovers in Bansko there is something to see: in the picturesque mountainous places around there are several monasteries, where excursions are conducted. If you search Google for historical monuments, you will see about 140 objects on the city map.
But the main magnet that attracts tourists here, of course, is the ski slopes.
The slopes for skiing and snowboarding, with a total length of 75 km, are divided into blue, green, for experts. And for children there are also a lot of opportunities for sports: they are trained in skiing and snowboarding in a specialized school.
The route for experts is long - 18 km long. Among the ski sports at the resort there are: heliskiing, helibording, paragliding, there is a shooting range for biathlon.
Helibording is an extreme pleasure, an instant burst of adrenaline into the blood: you are thrown into the snow directly from the blue sky from the helicopter, and you rush along the track, lifting diamond crumbs shining in the sun!
Helibording is technically the same, only on the board. The adventure is only available to advanced experienced experts.
There is an outdoor swimming pool in the city centre.
The winter weather in Bansko, as in all ski resorts in Bulgaria, is stable, warm: the temperature usually does not fall below the mark of 5 C.
Hotels in the city can be found for every taste: from very "luxury", to small budget options, cozy mini-hotels, or individual apartments.
Pamporovo
The Pamporovo ski resort is located a little further from Sofia (240 km) towards Plovdiv. All the main routes in Pamporovo start from the top of Snezhanka (1926 m above sea level).
The slopes of Snezhanka are suitable for snowboarding, there is also a halfpipe, and very difficult tracks for extreme descent with night lighting.
In Pamporovo, sledging is popular from gentle slopes, in the forest you can find areas for cross-country skiing.
People come to the mountains in Pamporovo in summer: lovers of ecological hiking in the mountains or climbing are attracted by the gorges Trigrad and the Devil’s Throat.
The Devil's Throat is a majestic and mysterious place. The entrance to the cave is like a throat through which you can plunge into the “head” of the devil: the rocks form such a sculpture. Interestingly, no object trapped in the water inside the cave will ever reappear.
According to legend, the cave served Orpheus as a portal through which he managed to penetrate into the underworld of Hedes and save Eurydice.
Inside the cave, in the very center of the cave path system, in the depths, is a hall with a roaring waterfall.
The walls of the cave are decorated with paintings and bas-reliefs. Above the exit from the throat of the devil was placed an altar with the image of the Virgin, and there is a small spring with clean water. This is done, apparently, in order to cheer up and find peace of mind after visiting this place.
Another legend, no less gloomy, tells that the dead Thracian warriors were thrown from a cliff into a waterfall to gain immortality.
And in winter and summer in the throat of the devil temperature remains unchanged: +8 C.
If you are traveling with children, perhaps you should not take them on such a tour - the cave, indeed, is a majestic place, but sullen - such entertainment is not suitable for everyone, especially for children with a fragile psyche.
Christmas carols
As elsewhere in Europe, the New Year in Bulgaria is not as important as Christmas on December 25. 31 are celebrated mainly by tourists.
Russians in Bulgaria traditionally celebrate ALL in the style of an ongoing marathon: Christmas on December 25 (which, by the way, begins on Christmas Eve 24 and Russians too), and then smoothly move on to the celebration of the New Year on December 31.
Usually, local Russians these days are grouped in small flocks in hotels, where they organize New Year feasts on their own. But “local” Russians in the New Year holidays usually remains a little – most – those who live for a long time in the regime of permanent residence, still prefer to retire to their native expanses.
Christmas in Bulgarian is a peaceful family gathering. 24 eat lean food. On the table is necessarily present Christmas bread "Goddess".
On December 25, lean dishes are replaced by meat. Good-natured and hospitable Bulgarians drink wine and carol in small groups of “songs and dances” from house to house, or even just on the streets.
Instead of New Year’s readers and dances around the Christmas tree, children in Bulgaria flank the streets with “survaknitsa”: frames with ribbons and bells, coins and flowers. This is a nice tradition: people in national festive costumes with carols and survaccines in their hands look very picturesque.
In theaters these days, a popular program of the Vienna Opera, touring with a Christmas concert in Bulgaria annually for several years. The program, which perfectly fits into the concept of Christmas, includes light, elegant orchestral waltzes, vocal numbers.
If you suddenly work and get lost in time, in reality you will be returned and awakened from winter hibernation giant discounts in shops and supermarkets, the largest of the year.
Sales start in early December and continue until Christmas on December 25.
At the beginning of the month in supermarkets and boutiques there are: chocolate Santa Santa Santa Santa Santa Santa, golden deer, stars and funny souvenirs with the inscription Merry Christmas; appliances, electronics, clothes, books, etc. - everything that did not have time to sell this year, and the next one may not be useful to anyone, you can buy at a discount of 50-70%.
In the central park of Sofia "Gradska Gradina" in front of the National Art Gallery, a small fair is usually held every year.
December 31 in Sofia is an annual festive salute.
Autumn and spring
In the off-season in Bulgaria come only lovers of privacy. Of course, at this time you can also find a lot of interesting things: visit museums, go on excursions with discounts to all the beautiful places that did not close due to the cold weather.
But by the season, the influx of tourists will be very large, immediately after the New Year holidays, the number of hotel and apartment bookings begins to rapidly gain momentum.
Sunny Beach
There are many different opinions about Sunny Beach: someone believes that hotels in Sunny Beach are simply terrible, the sea is also dirty: unkept beaches with mountains of garbage make a depressing impression. Some believe that the staff in hotels is rude and in general, all this corresponds to a cheap holiday: just for the declared money.
Others are ecstatic. I like everything: the hotels are beautiful, the sea, and friendly staff. Both are true. There are hotels with a very good reputation, but there are also bad ones. All this infrastructure of the “city of contrasts”, beautiful and terrible, coexists here with each other in a very small area.
On the territory of some luxury residential complexes security will not let without prior agreement, if you want to see the apartments that are in the rental complex, if you come from the street without prior agreement.
Even (say) you will be able to convince the security service of your creditworthiness. Apartments there are unaffordable for majority from different countries. These areas are mainly located a little further from the main pier in the city with yachts - boats and entertainment ships-restaurants.
There are also hotels that were former rest homes of the state corporation Norilsk Nickel. Now there are many private properties.
In Sunny Beach there are about 800 hotels located on the coast 10 km away. There are many options for living here, both in hotels and in private rental apartments.
Housing prices range from 10 leva to 2000 UER per day. Of course, living with your grandmother - the hostess behind the wall, you can not count on "all inclusive", and will eat separately.
Monthly spending on food is the same as in Moscow. As you know, there is no sea in Moscow.
Good quality products in Bulgaria: as elsewhere in Europe, obsessed with “eco”, Bulgaria also has many boutiques with “bio” – food, additives, products of improved quality.
So, in any even the smallest supermarket, you will find dozens of variations of cereal, rye, oatmeal, germinated wheat, muesli, etc.; you can buy yogurt from goat, sheep, cow's milk for a healthy breakfast, in general, a lot of things that improve health. “Useless” products, such as sausages, are also here – high-quality, farm.
sea
Every day you can easily change the paid beach: there are no restrictions. You don’t like the beach of your hotel. Then you have no problem going to the next location the next day. Undoubtedly, in this experimental way you will find a clean and convenient place: Sunny Beach was even awarded the Blue Flag for cleanliness and environmental friendliness.
Of course, much has changed in Bulgaria since the country joined the European Union, including tourism and the sea, of course, is quite different.
But history lovers have nothing to see in Sunny Beach: it is better to go to Nessebor. Perhaps the only place to visit is the Church of St. Catherine. A small cozy building is a functioning chapel, open from morning to evening. It’s nice to go there on a hot afternoon and be a little alone with yourself.
But entertainment on the water is full here: buns, bananas, boats, jet skis, surfing for any level (from "olders" to "dummies") - everything you want at reasonable prices. Diving here is expensive: 15 minutes of diving costs 100 EUR.
Sunny Beach is of course the most famous seaside resort in Bulgaria. But along the sea coast there are many small settlements where you can find not only an ordinary stay in the hotel, but also privacy.
Now the habit of relaxing solo, a small company or family is trending in any season, just choose what you like more: skiing and snow, or the sea and heat.
Text and photo: Valeria Fialkova