Borovets Bulgaria recommended ?

[guidon]

Has anyone skiied in Bulgaria ? One of my friends is trying to convince me that it would be good and that I could save a lot of money by going there. They are planning on heading to Borovets and he says that the trip will be at least 25% cheaper than the last trip to Les Arcs in France. Has anyone skied in Bulgaria ?

[nervous]

My boss was somewhere in Bulgaria snowboarding and he said that they tried to rip him off. He said if you go, you should bring the currency (levs ?) with you and don't buy it there. I think alot of the equipment resorts have is old and is second hand from places like France.

[john510]

Guidon, did you go and ski in Bulgaria in the end ?

I know someone who bought property there, right beside one of the ski slopes, he said that it was cheaper than flying there for 2 weeks a year and paying accommodation over the next 7 years. I think he plans to use it in Janurary and then rent it out in February and March and evern in the summer if possible. I think it would be something for me to save up for and ski off into the sunset in my retirement.

[paul]

I know some people who have been there. The main thing they said was that the saved a bunch of money. Skiing in Bulgaria is not quite like skiing in the (French/German/Swiss/Austrian) Alps. Also be careful where you exchange your money, as Bulgaria is not yet on the €uro, and the exchange rate at the resorts isn't the best.

[Trigger]

Went there this year, for one reason to (as cheap as possible) convince the Missus that Skiing was great fun.
Two Kids accompanied 15 & 7.
Result: Mission Accomplished.:cool:
Feedback overall from Borovets this year was poor, Rip Off, Poor Skiing, Seedy Bars, Hookers (Not The Sail Boats!) Mafia on and on.
Here's what we found.
Borovets in a Rustic village set in Woodland, with log fires in all bars and restaurants. During the day was a magical place, night time we never ventured in, and stayed in the Hotel Lion and supped at the lovely bar there, food OK not Gourmet but fuel for next day.
Lunch time and early evening meals priced from steaks 20 to 40 levs i.e €10 to €20
Pizza and a plate of chips €10 - €15
Pint of Beer €2.50 - €3.50
Samokov (Village 7km away halve the above prices)
You decide whether rip off or not. Considering it's half price down the road I guess it is, but looking at it V Tirol etc it aint.
Snow.
We had a good week of snow cover, but pistes were poorly groomed and ice was evident towards the end of the week.
Standard of slopes.
For nervous beginners..Perfect (Green slope for about 3 miles from top of near mountain)
Intermediates...If, like me, you dont mind covering the entire resort in 3 days and taking it from there OK
Advanced and Exploreres. Go elsewhere it's not for you.

Will go back there once more, for Missus to gain a bit more confidence and then we will progress to the more established resorts.
I found the place inexpensive, but the infrastructure poor, but it perfectly fitted the bill for what I wanted to achieve.

[paul]

Feedback overall from Borovets this year was poor, Rip Off, Poor Skiing, Seedy Bars, Hookers (Not The Sail Boats!) Mafia on and on.
:D

Thanks for your review Trigger ! From where (and with whom) did you fly to Bulgaria ?

[Trigger]

Paul,
Directski from Dublin to Sofia. Czech Airlines was the carrier.
All went very smooth.
Just looking at the post, the prices I quoted are what we paid when eating in Borovets (the Village itself), say for Lunch or apres ski evening.
The Hotel was half board, so included in the price.
OK ?

[paul]

Thanks Trigger ! It's always good to get first hand experiences about resorts. I did find a video of a crazy Bulgarian in Borovets
Borovets Bulgaria high speed ski run

[Rozov]

Hi there,
we have a chalet in Bansko and have had a few days out in Borovets, which we really enjoyed as we were went when there was good snow and not many people.
The lifts are quite old in Borovets but there are plans in place now to update them all, like they have done in Bansko. The resort is definitely better for beginners and intermediates but there is quite a lot of good off-piste, although we havn't explored it all as yet!
For equipment hire, if you shop around you will find a lot of shops that replace their equipment every season so you shouldn't end up with battered old stuff.
It is generally better to bring Euros and change them at a bank, banks usually give you the best exchange and wont rip you off! (Never change money at the airport, its a terribe rate).
Aer Lingus are flying to Bulgaria now, as well as Czech Airlines.
Hope that helps!
Victoria

[rilalodge]

Hi Paul,

I now live in Bulgaria and run a bed and breakfast guest house just outside the Borovets resort. I have to agree with most of Triggers comments. The resort is over-priced for food and beer etc., but it is a resort - and any holiday resort you go to in the world the prices will be higher than in the small towns and villages around.

Samokov is my local town and yes, he is correct in stating that food and drink down in the town is half the price that it is in Borovets, and my guests usually come back to the house after their day skiing or snow boarding and then go for their meals into town. Easy, simple and half the price !

As for the skiing and snowboarding - well in my opinion (and that of ALL my guests) Borovets is indeed a thoroughly enjoyable resort. There is cross country skiing and some good runs and absolutely perfect for beginners and intermediates. Yes, the lifts are old but are presently being renewed, yes - there are seedy bars as again there are in any resort, but you know what, if you don't like them, don't go in! Millions of euro are being ploughed into Borovets to bring it up to the modern standard that us western europeans are used to and trust me - they are getting there. There are also loads of good bars and restaurants with friendly staff and a warm welcome. Do i sound biased? Yes of course i am - i live here and to be honest, i wouldn't live anywhere else and would never consider moving back to the uk. Boy - i can't wait for the snow to come !!! :o) All in all, i would say to ANYONE, come and have a look, if you don't like it then at least you can say you have been and it wasn't your cup of tea and at the end of the day - it didn't cost a fortune !

Regards to everyone and have a great season

Steff

(http://www.rilalodge.com)

[Mark]

Borovets Piste Map.20