Where, if not Bulgaria, can you combine a sun-soaked holiday by the sea with the cool and green mountain and the rustic feel of village life? This summer, the guest houses and family hotels offering the 3 in 1 combination were booked 100% this summer. Judging by the huge amount of interest, September also looks like being successful. Despite the rise in prices, many Bulgarians and foreigners opt for this holiday combination, away from the chaos of the crowded resorts, but also enjoying their time at the beach, mountain hikes and the small joys of village life.

“And when you rent an entire village house for two families, the holiday comes out cheap,” says Velizar Gotsev from bgVakancia, a leading rural tourism and guest house platform in Bulgaria, and adds:

“You can find house such as this in places where you can combine different ways of spending your holiday. And that is thanks to Bulgaria’s nature – for example in Mount Strandzha in Southern Bulgaria, around Burgas there are several villages – Fazanovo, Pismenovo, Kosti and others, which are located up in the mountain, yet they are only 10 kms. from the seashore. From these villages, resorts like Kiten and Primorsko are no more than a 10-minute drive. You are spending your holiday in a village, when you look around there’s the mountain, but the nearest beach is just a stone’s throw away.”

The accommodation in these villages usually offers everything necessary for a perfect holiday – including a terrace overlooking the mountain, a yard with farm animals, a vegetable garden or a children’s play area, a separate kitchen, air conditioning, free wi-fi. Some village houses even have a swimming pool and a restaurant, or will offer their guests an opportunity to cook traditional recipes.  

“You can find that along the Northern segment of the seacoast,” Velizar Gotsev says. “Between Albena and Balchik there is an area of summer houses called Zlatna Ribka. There are several villages nearby like Rogachevo, General Kantardzhievo, and others, offering the same conditions, minus the mountain. Still, they are genuine villages, and the sea is so near, just a few minutes’ away.”

Over the past 10 years, small towns and villages 10-20 kms. from the seashore have seen a rise in the number of tourists, says Velizar Gotsev:

“On the one hand, EU funding was used, on the other – people invested their own money. Some people renovated their houses so as to offer decent conditions, while others built new houses to meet the most modern tourist requirements 100%. And so, in July and August it was practically impossible to find any vacant houses anywhere that is close to the seashore,” Velizar Gotsev says in conclusion.  

Translated and posted by Milena Dahnova

Photos: BGNES