Bulgaria is an amazing country with a 13-century-old history, picturesque nature, hospitable people, favorable climate and the country surprises everyone who comes here for the first time. A great number of antique towns, sanctuaries and monastery complexes still carry the marks of the Thracian, Greek and Roman civilizations. Medieval strongholds such as Tsarevets, Assenova Krepost (Assen’s Fortress) and Baba Vida fortress conquer you with their magnificence and size. There are nine sights in Bulgaria, which are included in UNESCO’s list for world cultural and natural heritage-The Thracian Tomb in Sveshtari, the Thracian Tomb in Kazanlak, the Madara Horseman, The Boyana Church, The Ivanovo Rock Churches, The Rila Monastery, the old town of Nessebar, The Srebarna Reserve and the Pirin national park. In Bulgariaare about 350 natural landmarks, 429 reservation areas and over 600 thermal springs on the territory of the country. Also there are three national and eleven natural parks in Bulgaria. They take about 5% of the country’s territory. These parks are situated mostly in the mountains, but some of them are on seaside areas, or around river banks.
The four clearly expresses seasons, along with the variety of nature – mountains with broad-leaved and coniferous forests, hilly plains, picturesque river valleys, the sea – create a number of specific micro-climatic conditions. Spring is mild, summer is warm, autumn – cool and sunny, and winter – not very cold, with snowfalls on the high mountains. All this makes Bulgaria a preferable resting place for the tourists and our country has enjoyed a substantial growth in income from international tourism over the past decade.
Geographically Bulgaria is noted for its diversity with a landscape ranging from the snow-capped peaks in Rila, Pirin, and the Balkan Mountains to the mild and sunny weather of the Black Sea coast. There are 16 mountains in Bulgaria and they cover about one third of the country’s territory. Slanting slopes alternate with high peaks, deep abysses, picturesque river valleys and majestic gorges. The unique caves and waterfalls attract a great number of tourists… The turbulent mountain waters, winds and rains have shaped numerous rock phenomena in Bulgaria. With time they have created an extremely picturesque and weird world of rocks. A world that charms everyone who has the luck to get in touch with it… SKIING AND MOUNTAIN TOURISM Our country has perfect conditions for skiing and offer convenient ski-tracks and equipment for skiing tourism and winter sports. Borovetz, Bansko and Pamporovo are our top choice winter resorts which are favourite destination for ski fans all over the world! The continuance of the skiing season in the mountain resorts is up to 190 days. The total length of the ski-tracks is more than 80 km with displacement up to 1500 meters. During the summer season the mountains offer various opportunities for active tourism and rest. The tourists can lend color to their stay through different programs for walking, bicycle and horse tourism, hang-gliding, parachuting, water sports, rock climbing, speleological tourism, orientation competitions, scout camps, etc. SEA TOURISM The Bulgarian Black Sea coast is 378 km long. About 70 beaches with total area of 9 million square kilometers spread along the coast. The Black Sea water has low content of salt. This, along with its moderate temperature (22-24 0C in summer), makes it especially nice for swimming and bathing. Our seaside resorts as Sunny Beach, Golden Sands, Nessebur, Sozopol, Albena etc. are resorts with established experience in the summer tourism and great expectations in future! They offer quality rate and low prices. Several picturesque rivers flow into the Black Sea. Their creeks are surrounded by thick, cool, moisture-loving woods. Some of these rivers are floatable for small jet boats, so they offer the tourists unforgetable boat rides along the stream. The numerous seaside lakes – lagoons and firths, are shelters for a huge variety of rare plants and animal species, especially birds. Some of them keep large findings of curative mud, which, in combination with the hundreds of minerals springs along the coast, puts Bulgaria into one of the top places in Europe for richness of balneo-curative resources. VILLAGE TOURISM If you are a fan of the rural tourism you simply have to go and see the Bulgarian villages which preserved the originality of life-style and traditions. A rest in a village is attractive, so more and more people prefer this kind of relaxation and entertainment. The countryside, the local folklore, habits and crafts, the traditional cuisine and the notorious Bulgarian hospitality attract both Bulgarian and foreign visitors. Having chosen the village entertainment, a tourist can get involved in agricultural activities, rides with horses and carts, craftsmen’s activities like wood processing, carving, textile, ceramics, weaving, blacksmith activities, etc. If you are willing, you can take part in cuisine courses or wine tasting, you can study Bulgarian folklore or watch the local family and religious celebrations… Most of the village housekeepers grow various vegetables, fruit-trees, dessert and wine sorts of grapes, and also keep a lot of animals, pets and birds. They produce different kinds of wine, brandy, local delicacies, and of course, the famous home-made Bulgarian yoghurt. The tourists are impressed by the traditions in agricultural production.
Although Bulgaria joined EU on January 2007 the real estate prices are much lower than any other destination in our region and this is a precondition to make one really great investment because the estate prices steadily increased with at least 30% a year and the properties in our country have extremely low taxes. By comparison the selling price in Sofia to the end of 2006 year was 900-1100 euro (67-82euro square foot) and the prices in our region were: - in Zagreb (Croatia) - 2000-2500 euro sq.m - in Belgrade (Serbia) - 2000-2200 euro sq.m - in Bucharest (Romania) -1700-1900 sq.m - in Athens (Greece) the selling price was 7600-8800 sq.m It is clear that prices in Bulgaria are vastly cheaper in comparison with the neighbour countries.
