This summer the tourist season seems to be going ahead at idle speed. The number of foreign tourists in Bulgaria’s seaside resorts is down, Bulgarians on the other hand have more and more often been opting to spend their holidays in neighbouring Greece and Turkey, according to the media and entrepreneurs in the business. For the second year running Bulgarian tourism, which traditionally has an annual growth rate of 4-5 percent has fallen on hard times. So, why isn’t anyone surprised?

“Chaos and a complete mess” – that is how the state of one of the most lucrative sectors in this country has been described. The trouble is that this is not something just caviling media or politicians have been saying. In June the number of holidaymakers from abroad is down by 4 percent compared to the same period of 2014, National Statistical Institute data show. The decline in numbers is drastic for tourists from Russia and Ukraine but also from France, Italy, Poland etc. On the other hand the number of Bulgarians heading for seaside resorts in neighbouring countries is more than 30 percent up, forming long lines of vehicles at the border checkpoints. And all this, knowing how much the “communication” campaigns of our tourism ministry cost, campaigns that aim to convince us to vacation here in Bulgaria because it is the best place to spend the summer. That Bulgarians love their country, its history going back thousands of years, its beautiful landscapes and, sometimes green seaside is beyond any doubt. But there are things that are hard to stomach – not being able to reach the beach because access to it has been deliberately and illegally cut off, the exorbitant cost of beach umbrellas and deckchairs or the extortion by taxi drivers that have made the country a byname far and wide. What can we say about resorts like Golden Sands and Sunny Beach that have become synonymous with alcohol tourism? Chalga (the Bulgarian version of vulgar gangster music), prostitution, revving engines of flashy cars, round-the-clock binges by tourists from Britain and Germany…

Our “Black Sea Riviera”, especially in and around Varna and Bourgas is more like a gigantic metropolis spreading like wildfire in all directions, swallowing the coastline, sand dunes, camping sites, forests, fishing villages, crushing everything in its wake as the state institutions look on and do nothing. So, it is only logical to pack one’s bags and head South – to Chalkidiki, Bodrum or Marmaris where prices are affordable, conditions – superb and the services offered – high quality. And most importantly – where one will get real value for money.

Of course, there are still idyllic places by the sea here, in Bulgaria that are still out of reach of the chaos and of law breakers, but they are few and far between. But there seem to be people who are happy to spend their time in Bulgaria’s Black Sea resorts – where else would they be allowed to park their cars anywhere they feel like it, drive their ATVs on the beaches and keep other tourists awake till dawn with their insupportable music? Young people also seem to be happy. They come from Europe in droves to drink themselves silly at dirt cheap prices, inventing new words like “balconing” – getting drunk and jumping from their balconies into swimming pools or the latest “hit” this summer – throwing their TV sets out of their windows.

Tourists coming from Romania are happy too – their numbers are greatest in the Bulgarian seaside resorts and nothing seems to be capable of turning them away. But what attracts them most are the low prices, compared to average European prices. But there is more to it:

“People in Romania are saying the same things about Bulgaria that we, here say about Greece,” explains Roumen Draganov from the Institute for Analysis and Assessment of Tourism. “They say: your hotels are great, prices are low, the food is excellent, the beaches are well organized, there are amusements for the children, especially in big resorts. And of course, they have the same complaints that we Bulgarians have like no parking spaces. British tourists are happy that the alcohol and the food are so cheap.”

Photos: Veneta Nikolova