Hotel owners have been reporting mass cancellations after the introduction of the new anti-Covid measures. Staff are also leaving. Due to the low vaccination rate interest in Bulgaria as a winter destination has been dwindling among tourists from abroad.

“We are outraged by the overnight changes in regulations and are very worried about the coming winter season,” Malin Bistrin, deputy chair of the Bulgarian Hotel and Restaurant Association said for the BNR, and added that a better vaccine information campaign is needed. “To preserve the entire economy of the country other sectors should also set an example that they will vaccinate their staff,” Malin Bistrin said.