Travel News

A friend who visited Bulgaria recently reports that this little-known country offers some unusual bargains. I find that easy to believe, since I found very good values on a recent trip to Hungary and Czechoslovakia, and Bulgaria is reputed to be among the least expensive of the East Bloc countries.

One factor that makes travel in Bulgaria inexpensive is a favorable exchange rate for tourists. The Bulgarian lev is fixed at about one to the U.S. dollar, but the tourist rate is about 80 per cent higher. If you deal on the ubiquitous black market (not recommended), you can get at least twice as much for hard currency, my friend reports.

Bulgaria is the most loyal of the Soviet satellite countries, and perhaps the only one that is genuinely pro-Russian. This attitude stems from the country’s long history of Turkish occupation. It was the Russians who, in 1878, liberated the Bulgarians from their Ottoman oppressors.

Sofia, the capital, is a splendid city of broad tree-lined boulevards and well-preserved historic buildings. Two churches are among the main sights: the Alexander Nevsky, which contains a fine art museum known for its medieval icons, and the Church of St. Sophia, which dates from the sixth century.

My friend stayed at the Hotel Europa, part of the French Novotel chain. The price for a very large, well-furnished room with three meals a day was $78 U.S. for two, and this is one of the country’s most expensive hotels. The Grand Hotel Balkan, which houses an entire fourth- century church in its courtyard, and the Park Hotel Moskva cost about $10 less per day with meals.

Less expensive lodging is available in Sofia, starting at as little as $6 a day for a double room in a private home. In a three-star pension, $29 a day buys a room and three meals for two. It is usually a good idea to take all your meals at your hotel, since it costs at most $10 a day extra per person, and usually only $5 or $6. Hotel restaurants generally have good food and the price is right, and it may be hard to find non-hotel restaurants when you want them. My friend wandered for half an hour around 8 a.m. in downtown Sofia without finding a restaurant open for breakfast.

Balkanourist, the government tourist agency, has day-long excursions from Sofia at reasonable prices; for example, a full- day excursion into the mountains visiting the beautiful Mt. Vitosha for $10 including lunch. A trip to the Rila Monastery, one of the highlights of a visit to Bulgaria, costs $14. Car rental is available at moderate rates. A small car goes for $210 a week with unlimited mileage, and the extra cost for a chauffeur-driven car is only $10 a day.

Bulgaria is noted for its Black Sea resorts – some call it the Eastern European Riviera. The government has built a number of large resort hotels in the area, most of which are also health spas with natural mineral springs. During summer the price at a medium-priced resort hotel in the area runs around $40 to $50 a day for two, including all meals. From the Black Sea inexpensive two- or three-day excursions are available to Moscow or Leningrad. Package tours to the Black Sea can be booked at reasonable prices out of London or New York.

Another relatively inexpensive way to reach Bulgaria is to travel by charter plane to Belgrade, Yugoslavia, then take the Orient Express train to Sofia, which takes only four hours. If you are visiting Greece, there are cheap package tours offered by several travel agencies in Thessaloniki.

My friend reports that shopping is good in Bulgaria. Leather goods are particularly worth buying; a pair of gloves that would cost five times as much here go for only $3.50. Children’s toys and copper articles are also good buys.