Winter tourist season at its height

published on 2/3/10 2:57 PM

Photo: Архив

For those fond of winter sports, the winter itself is not a grey and boring season but an urge to head to the mountains. Skiing, snowboarding, sledging, lavish dinners and regional tours are only some of the lures that attract tourists to the winter resorts every year. This winter season once again Bulgaria’s winter resorts cannot complain from the lack of tourists despite the crisis and the unusually dry and warm weather at the start of the season.

It is really nice that our winter resorts have taken measures against the vicissitudes of the weather by equipping themselves with snow cannons. This way skiers can take full advantage of their winter vacation. A drop of the number of tourists is expected this year due to the global economic crisis. According to those working in this branch of the economy, the drop won’t exceed 10%. More optimistic forecasts claim the number would be the same as last year. The reason is the lower number of bookings through British tour operators. Currently, however, there’s a rise of the number of tourists from Greece, Romania, Serbia and Macedonia. To attract more guests, many hotels and tour operators reduced their fares. Hotel owners in Bansko have reduced prices by 10%. This way if you chose to stay in a 3-star hotel, you’d pay from 20 to 30 euro while staying in a rented house would cost from 10 to 15 euro per night.

A hit this season is the winter resort of Pamporovo in the Rhodopi Mountains. The reason is that it is currently growing and there’s most snow there throughout the season. In the last two years, huge investments to the tune of 7.5 mln euro have improved the infrastructure. The highest trump in the deck of Pamporovo is the recently opened border crossing point with Greece. Literally within days, the local hotels and restaurants were teeming with Greek tourists.

“Together with the basic tourist products we offer year-round in Pamporovo, there’s also spa tourism which can perfectly combine with skiing in the winter,” says Siika Katsarova, representative of the local hotels. “At the moment, the hotels in Pamporovo which offer spa facilities are treated favorably by our partners. This winter season many of our spa hotels did not reduce their prices but instead offered additional wellness and spa procedures to their packages.”

In the winter resort of Bansko, in southwestern Bulgaria, tourists can enjoy the so-called “thematic evenings” devoted to the local cuisine and folklore. There are also free-of-charge cooking courses; courses in traditional chain folk dances. Along the popular destinations such as Pamporovo, Borovets and Bansko, tourists are also interested in less known winter resorts such as Beklemeto and Uzana in the Balkan Range; and Malyovitsa and Semkovo in Rila Mountain. One reason for this interest is cheaper prices. If you want to get rid of the daily stress, we offer a stay at one of the small villages scattered in the Rhodopi Mountains. In Shiroka Luka, Gela, Solishta, Trigrad or Orehovo you’ll find cozy guest houses whose hosts will offer you delicious local dishes. A visit to Yagodiska or Devi’s Throat caves and snow horse riding are additional attractions in the region. This way your winter vacation may turn into a real and unforgettable adventure which will recharge you!

English version: Delian Zahariev

По публикацията работи: Veneta Nikolova

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