Travel in Bulgaria

Bulgaria’s growing reputation and infrastructure development support travel sales

Bulgaria is becoming increasingly well-known at international level for its impressive travel and tourism offer. In particular, the country’s reputation for offering excellent value for money has led to its profile as an international tourism destination rising dramatically across Europe in recent years.

Online sales set to overtake offline sales in travel intermediaries

2019 saw offline sales still dominant in travel intermediaries. This was mainly due to the innate reluctance of most Bulgarians to engage with online payments, especially when dealing with a company that they have little or no prior experience with.

Low cost carriers remain on top in airlines

Low cost carriers continue to lead sales in airlines, with Hungary-based Wizz Air and Ireland-based player Ryanair operating by far the most extensive route networks of any airlines operating in the country. With Bulgaria positioned primarily as a destination that offers excellent value for money, low cost carriers are the natural choice for many inbound travellers.

Uber remains absent from Bulgaria due to regulatory hurdles

Ride sharing platform Uber has still not returned to Bulgaria after its departure from Sofia in October 2015. At the time of its withdrawal, the company had been operating in the Bulgarian capital for 10 troubled months.

Strong prospects for domestic and outbound travel, with inbound travel to continue booming

Bulgaria’s travel industry is poised for further strong growth over the forecast period, with buoyant inbound arrivals to be based on the country’s rising profile in key source markets in Europe, as well as rising interest from further afield. Notably, Russia and Ukraine and various Middle Eastern countries offer strong prospects for growth in arrivals as Bulgaria’s reputation as an affordable safe and very pleasant destination continue to spread outside of its current strongholds of other EU member states.

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