site.btaBurgas to Terminate Membership in Bulgarian Black Sea Coast Alliance

Burgas Municipality will terminate its membership in the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast Alliance, Burgas Mayor Dimitar Nikolov said on Monday in a report to the municipal councilors. The Alliance was established on the initiative of Fraport Twin Star Management AD, the concessionaire of the airports in Burgas and Varna, and brought together a number of representatives of various resorts, hotels, airlines, tourist chambers and others, to promote the Bulgarian Black Sea as a preferred tourist destination in Europe and to enhance investment and commercial cooperation in the region. 

Nikolov argued that at the moment, neither other Black Sea municipalities nor the Ministry of Tourism have been attracted as members to the Alliance. In his view, priority is being given to advertising and developing the Bulgarian northern Black Sea coast, while the expected efforts to position the southern Black Sea coast as an attractive, innovative and sustainable tourist destination are failing to materialize. "There is no environment for cooperation between local representatives of the tourism industry and the aviation sector, and there is continued reliance on municipal resources," stated Nikolov.

He concluded that the participation in the Alliance will not lead to the achievement of the formally stated goals of Burgas Municipality, as much-needed air transport from Burgas to all important European destinations has also not been ensured.