site.btaStrong Summer Season in Store for Bulgarian Seaside Resorts amid Favourable Market Trends

Strong Summer Season in Store for Bulgarian Seaside Resorts amid Favourable Market Trends

Varna, on the Black Sea, March 28 (BTA) - There is a strong tourist season in store for Bulgarian seaside resorts this coming summer amid favourable market trends, and the tourists are expected to outnumber last year;s by 400,000-450,000, Dr Stoyan Marinov, a professor of economics and tourism organization at the Varna Economic University, said in a BTA interview. Marinov is also a member of the Managing Board of the local chamber of tourism.

"Tourists are changing their destination preferences and this is a promise for a good business for the Bulgarian hotels this summer", he said.

The souring relations between Russia and Turkey, and relations between Russia and Egypt are sure to divert tourists from Turkey, Egypt and other Mediterranean destinations in North Africa. These tourists will opt for alternatives, including Greece, Croatia and Bulgaria.

"This makes me a moderate optimist because we have only that many beds and they have already been booked and distributed among the tour operators. In the total picture, some 30 per cent of beds are for the German market, approximately as much for the Russian market, 10 per cent for the Romanian market and as much for the Scandinavian countries and the UK. No dramatic shifts are likely," Marinov reasoned.

Some tour operators report a 20 per cent increase of bookings on the German market compared to this time last year. An increase is also seen on the Russian market.
"Last year the Russian tourists turned their back on Bulgaria and the Germans chose Turkey attracted by the quality of the tourist products there. In figures, things looked like this, compared to 2014: 95,000 fewer Germans, 130,000 fewer Russians, 30,000 fewer Ukrainians and Britons, adding up to a total loss of 340,000 tourists. This year we expect to make up for the loss and even make a small growth."

A small number of the beds in accommodations establishments on the seaside are in the official registers. Unofficially, there are maybe over 300,000 beds in all hotels, park hotels, BBs, private rooms and others, said Marinov. In July and August they are solid booked.          

The occupancy rate this year is expected to be better than last year's even for the months of May, June, September and October.

Marinov sees two problems for the hotel business on the coast. One is that after the privatization of tourist assets and infrastructure when communism fell in the late 1990s, each hotel owner started pursuing his own marketing and sales policy. "Chaos reigned in the large resorts and it has persisted to this day. The result is a clash of interests, worsening economic performance and dropping prices," said Marinov. He believes that the State has no way to intervene but NGOs and local associations can help improve the situation.

Another problem is the loose rules for conduct for tourists. "Many of the tourists, especially youths, have an outrageous behaviour and do things they would never think of doing where the fines and penalties are draconian. This has driven away tourists in the wealthier segment, the families with children."

Marinov outlined two directions for development of tourism in the smaller seaside towns like Obzor, Pomorie,  Kranevo, Balchik and Kavarna. One is the Pomorie model where lots of high-end residential and tourist communities were built. The other is to prioritize small family hotels and bed and breakfasts.

On the southern Bulgarian Black Sea coast, Bulgarian tourists make up 30 per cent of all visitors, said Marinov.

He expects to see there a come-back of camping sites because demand for this type of holidaying is quite high among Western tourists. "It is another big opportunity for small resort towns and Bulgarian seaside tourism in general."