It looks like we are in for a successful summer season despite the long pandemic and the war in Ukraine which have been fueling a sense of unpredictability in the industry. However, according to the Institute for Analysis and Evaluation in Tourism, 9 million people (1.5 million more than last summer) are expected to choose Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast for their summer holidays this year.

Optimistic as the expectations for the season may be, the soaring prices of fuels, of electricity and food is cause for some serious concern. Holiday costs this year will be significantly higher. While in 2021 one week by the sea for a family of four cost around 1,700 Leva (almost EUR 870), now the costs have soared to 2,400 Leva (EUR 1,227), which means spending seven days by the sea will now cost 200-300 Leva (approximately EUR 102 – 153) more per person. But it all depends on the category of the hotel and whether it is high season or not.

The prices of the tourist packages in Sunny Beach have gone up by 20%-30%, Teodor Pastarmadzhiev, member of the board of the Union of Hotel Owners in Sunny Beach said in an interview with Radio Bulgaria a few days ago:

• Bulgaria’s Sunny Beach opens season with moderate optimism despite the war and pandemic

A holiday on the Northern portion of the coastline, is going to cost 10-20% more than last summer, says Pavlin Kosev, chairperson of the Varna Association of Restaurateurs and Hoteliers:

“We are doing our best with this juggling act of using the buffers we had for optimizing expenditure, so the rise in prices will not have to be entirely at the expense of tourists, because we have no interest in a sharp rise in the cost of tourist packages,” Pavlin Kosev says.

In his words, the organized tourism packages are contracted with foreign partners at least a year earlier. “We can’t just go and raise prices because we have already been included in their catalogues,” Kosev says and adds:

“We have now been able to negotiate new prices with some of our partners but with others, who have already sold some of our packages and services at the old prices, we have not been able to. So that the situation is dynamic.”

Last summer, and the summer before that the rent for beach umbrellas and sunbeds was literally symbolic, because of the pandemic, but now they could cost a pretty penny – starting at 30 Leva (a little over EUR 15) for an umbrella and two sunbeds, and going up. There are places where renting beach accessories could cost as much as your hotel room.

People with a more modest holiday budget opt for campsites, though there too they will find prices will be higher – at one of the most popular camping sites in Bulgaria, Gradina, accommodation prices this summer are up by 10%.

And what about food, a major holiday expense? The beer, the fish and the salads cost more practically everywhere, early-season holidaymakers say. As Radio Bulgaria found out, at Veleka beach near Sinemorets on the Southern Black Sea coastline, fresh-squeezed orange juice costs EUR 4.60, beer – EUR 3.58 and a small serving of horse mackerel – EUR 7.67, though it should be borne in mind these are still out-of-season prices. In August, they will most likely go through the roof. 

Photos: Facebook /Veleka Beach, BGNES