A Guide to Bulgaria

These pages will tell you a little more about the wonderful country of Bulgaria. We will be adding new pages to this section as discover more ourselves but if you have something you think should be on this page then feel free to send us an email.

General Information
Useful Information
Weather & climate
What to see & do
Printable Town Guides

A guide to St Vlas

Food & Drink
Getting Around Bulgaria

General Information

Facts

Location: Bulgaria is situated in Southeast Europe and occupies the eastern part of the Balkan Peninsula.
To the north it borders on Romania, to the west on the Republic of Macedonia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, to the east on the Black Sea, to the south on Greece and to the southeast on Turkey's European part.
Area: 111.000 sq km.
Latitude: 43N
Longitude: 25E
Area size of Bulgaria: 110910km2
Population of Bulgaria: 8,428,006 people
Country domain code for Bulgaria: BG
International Phone code for Bulgaria : 00359
Capital: Sofia (pop. 1,141,000)
Large Cities: Plovdiv, Varna, Veliko Turnovo
Language: Bulgarian. While English, German, French and Russian is spoken in the country's resorts, hotels and restaurants.
Alphabet: Cyrillic. Signs along international motorways, in airports and resorts are also spelled in Roman letters.
Religion: 86.6% of the population is Eastern Orthodox, 13% are Muslims. The Bulgarian Church is autonomous and headed by a Patriarch.
State government: Bulgaria is a parliamentary republic.
Official holidays: January 1 - New Year
March 3 - Bulgaria's Liberation from Ottoman rule - the National Day
Easter - one week after the Catholic Easter
May 1 - Labour Day
May 6 - Bulgarian Army Day
May 24 - Day of Bulgarian Enlightenment and Culture and the Slav Script
September 6 - Bulgaria's Unification
September 22 - Independance Day
December 25-26 - Christmas

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Useful Information

Time Difference: Winter time: GMT +2 hours (October through March).
Summer time: GMT +3 hours (April through September)
Voltage: 220 V only
Monetary Units: lev. Banknote denominations include 1,00, 2,00, 5,00, 10,00, 20,00, 50,00 and 100,00 leva, as well as coins of 1,00 smaller denominations.
Working Hours: offices - 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. (Monday to Friday)
banks - 9.00 a.m. to 3.00 p.m. (Monday to Friday)
shops - 10.00 a.m. to 8.00 pm. (Monday to Friday, Saturday until noon)
Important Telephone Numbers: Police - 166
Ambulance - 150
Road assistance - 146
Medical Service: Free first aid and consultation in emergencies
Currency Exchange: In banks and 24-hour change bureaux. The exchange rate is announced every day.
Credit Cards: Visa, MasterCard, JCB, Diners Club, American Express, Access, Airplus. They can be used for the payment of all standard services in hotels, restaurants, night clubs, shops, car rentals, plane tickets, etc.
Passports and Visas: You will need a valid passport with an entry or transit visa which is issued by the embassies and consulates of the Republic of Bulgaria abroad.
No entry visas are required for citizens of the countries with which Bulgaria has a visa-free regime, or of organized tourists who have bought a package tour.
No entry visas are required for citizens of the EU and EFTA member states. No visas are required for CIS citizens for a stay of one month, provided they are in the possession of a valid passport, a voucher for pre-paid tourist services or if they pay the sum of 40 USD for each day of their stay in the country.

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Weather & climate

Bulgaria has a very pleasant climate, it has an average temperature of 27_c in the summer and over 300 hours of sunshine during the high season.

The average annual temperature is 10.5°C.
The average January temperature is around O°C.
Average summer temperatures rarely exceed 30°C

Average daily temperature

Mar	Apr	May	June	July	Aug	Sept	Oct	Nov
10	18	21	25	30	28	24	21	15

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What to see & do

Bulgaria's towering mountains, deep valleys and abundant flora and fauna make it a nature and sports-lovers' paradise, with fabulous opportunities for walking, hiking and mountain biking. Studded with mountain villages, medieval monasteries, fragrant rose fields and plunging waterfalls, this beautiful land offers explorers a myriad of sights and experiences.

Bulgaria is also renowned for its rich cultural heritage, demonstrated with much-celebrated seasonal festivals, ritual folk dances and brightly coloured, decorative national costume. Throughout the summer, cultural and folk festivals are held across the country. There are also many tours that you can arrange whilst you stay at the Vineyards. These can be arranged on-site or the tour services can be found at different locations such as Sunny Beach or Nessebar.

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Printable Guides

To really help you get the most out of your stay in Bulgaria we will be adding several town and village guides over the coming months. These are packed full of useful information and contain a simple map of the local restaurants and amenities to ensure you don't get lost.

St Vlas

Your guide to a village that you must not miss. It is so easy to drive straight through the village and miss it entirely that we thought we should draw your attention to this gem. The pdf guide that you can download contains a full description and map of the village. St Vlas Village Guide

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Food & Drink

Bulgarian food is a blend of Slavonic, Greek and Turkish cuisine, and includes specialities such as shopska salad, (tomatoes, cucumber, peppers, and sheep's milk cheese) and tarator (chilled cucumber, walnut and yogurt soup). Other musts include kebapcheta (kebabs), kavarma (individual casseroles of pork or veal with onions and mushrooms), shishkebab, mousaka and Bulgarian yoghurt. Your meals can be washed down with a local, fruity wine or a cold beer; very cheap compared to home.

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Getting Around Bulgaria

Taxis

Taxis aren't a bad way of getting around, fix a price with the driver first, not because they want to rip you off, its just to open up negotiations and let them know you want a good deal. They do want your business. They're the only thing in Bulgaria that can be pricey. Or take a bus (but they are far and few between). You have to bear in mind that the taxi drivers only earn good money for 6 months of the year.

Car Hire

Car hire can be another way of getting around. Car hire seems to be around £25 per day. You can check out the best price for car rental using the links below s a starting point.

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