Population

Bulgaria has a population of approximately 7.8m people, and a land area of 43,000 miles2(111,000 km2). Sofia, the Capital, which has approximately 1.2m inhabitants is the largest City in Bulgaria. The other main Cities and Towns are Plovdiv, Varna, Bourgas, Stara Zagora, Ruse and Pleven.

Key Tourist Locations

From a tourism perspective, the most popular destinations are on the coast and in the Ski resorts. The Black Sea Coast is dominated by the larger more successful summer resorts such as those at Sunny Beach, Pomorie, Sozopol, St. Vlas, Albena and Balchik, which are serviced by two main airports at Bourgas and Varna. The mountain destinations have grown in popularity substantially in recent years, the most successful one being at Bansko, the other two main Skiing resorts being Borovets and Pamporovo. Skiing is also available in Sofia of Vitosha Mountain.

Events Overview

Public holidays include the following:

• New Year (1 and 2 January)
• Liberation Day, National Bulgarian Day (3 March)
• Easter - one week after the Catholic Easter
• Labour day (1 May)
• Cyrillic Alphabet Day (24 May)
• Bulgaria’s Unification Day (6 September)
• Bulgarian Independence Day (22 September)
• Christmas (24, 25 and 26 December)
• New Year’s Eve (31 December)

Bulgarians observe a number of traditional customs as well:

• Trifon Zarezan on 14^th February is the ancient festival of the wine growers. Vines are pruned and sprinkled with wine to ensure a bounteous harvest.
• On 1^st March Bulgarians give one another martenitsa, red and white tasselled threads which are worn for health and happiness at the coming of spring. When wearers see their first stork of the season, the martenitsa is tied to the nearest tree.
• The Festival of Roses is celebrated with folk songs and dances at Kazanlak and Karlovo on the first Sunday in June.
• The Jazz Festival – 8 -13 August, Bansko
• Orpheus Music Festival – 17 – 19 June, Smolyan
• Bagpipe Festival in Gela, Rhodope Mountains – Mid August, and many more.

Language

The largest barrier faced by all visitors to Bulgaria is the (Bulgarian) language, and the Cyrillic alphabet.Bulgarian is the first written South Slavonic language, which was conceived in the 9^th century. Most tourist resorts have signs and menus translated into English, service staff generally speak foreign languages (English or German). However, in the countryside you may find that street signs are in Cyrillic and that there are few people that speak English. With the imminent entry into the EU, major road signs are being translated into English in addition to Bulgarian.

During Communist times it was common for Schools to teach Russian as the secondary language, but over the past 15 years the English language has replaced Russian as the secondary language.

Economy

Bulgaria has the most stable economy in the Eastern Europe region. This stability has been achieved with the help of the International Monetary Fund currency board, which pegged the Bulgarian Lev to the Euro in 1998 – 1999

Money

Currency Exchange Rate: -

£1 = 2.8 Bulgarian Lev (BGN)*

€1 = 1.95 BGN*

$1 = 1.6 BGN*

* The above rates are for guidance purposes only, for up to date exchange rates please visit http://www.xe.com/ucc/

Credit/Debit Cards are accepted, mainly in popular areas of the Country and in Hotels, Shops and Restaurants. It is advisable before entering such places to check with members of staff to ensure they accept Credit Cards, or alternatively ensure you carry sufficient cash to cover what you wish to purchase. There are plenty of ATM Cash machines at Banks, on the high streets, and Petrol stations. In the main the following Credit/Debit Cards are accepted: -

Visa, MasterCard, JCB, Diners Club, American Express and Airplus.

Government

Founded in the year 681, Bulgaria has linked the East and West, controlling the key land routes from Europe to the Middle East and Asia for millennia. Bulgaria is a land of crossroads and remembers many ancient civilizations such as Thracian's, Slavs, Romans, Byzantines and the great people who wrote the pages of its remarkable history.

Nature

Bulgaria is distinguished by its generous and varied natural environment. It offers great beaches in summer and great skiing in winter, as well as cultural, eco, rural and spa tourism, natural mineral springs and spas, diverse flora and fauna, small picturesque villages with living traditions and folklore. For an insight into the magnificent Bulgarian landscapes, visit http://photo-forum.net/joro/

Food

Because of its geographical position and long tumultuous history, Bulgarian cuisine has evolved as a blend of the most enjoyable Slavonic, Greek and Turkish dishes. The harvest of the Black Sea brings nets full of fresh seafood, the fertile farms grow organic fruits and vegetables and local vineyards produce golden grapes and high quality red and white wines.

Drinking Water

Tap water is safe to drink in Bulgaria. There are also a lot of mineral water suppliers like Gorna Banya, Devin, Bankya and more. Refreshing and affordable mineral water is available in 0.5 litre, 1.5 litre, 5 and 10 litre bottles.