site.btaCool Spring Delays Beginning of Tourist Season on Northern Coast

Cool Spring Delays Beginning of Tourist Season on Northern Coast

Dobrich, June 21 (BTA) - High-class hotels on the northern Black Sea coast are already fully booked up for July and August although the cool spring delayed the beginning of the season. Therefore, the total growth of tourists is expected around 5-7 per cent compared to last summer. "We will count again on last-minute bookings," Dimiter Dimitrov, Chair of the Regional Association of Hotel and Restaurant Keepers in Northeastern Bulgaria, told BTA.

While the first tourists usually arrive around May 25, this year most of the hotels to the north opened up for the season around June 5 and 10, Dimitrov commented.

Bulgaria is among the top five tourist destinations in Russia for the summer, Russian touroperators said at a conference titled "Prospects for the Development of Russian Tourism in Bulgaria", which took place in the Albena Resort earlier in June. Given that package holidays are not offered in Turkey and Egypt any longer, Cyprus has become the most preferred destination for Russian tourists. Greece and Tunisia are second, Russia is fourth and Bulgaria is ranked fifth, marketing expert Valeria Romanenkova said.

However, the drop of Russian tourists' bookings in Turkish and Egyptian resorts does not automatically mean that they will come to Bulgaria, said Albena Trade Director Margarita Todorova. So the estimates about a 25 increase of Russian tourists will not be fulfilled. The real increase will be between 5 and 10 per cent, she added.

Reacting to objections to the high charge on beach equipment (a beach umbrella and a lounger cost 20 leva per day), the Tourism Ministry announced that the concession granting procedure for beaches will be changed, which will reduce the price of beach services.

Albena CEO Krassimir Stanev expects more tourists from Western and Central Europe and the Scandinavian countries. He explained that special efforts have been made to strengthen safety and security.

The children's holiday village in Kranevo expects between 14,000 and 20,000 children for the upcoming season, Mayor Roumen Nikolov said.