site.btaBurgas Airport Welcomes Season's First Tourists

Burgas Airport welcomed the first tourist flight of the season on Sunday. A Ryanair plane on a regular flight from Krakow, Poland, passed under a water arch on the runway. The 183 passengers were greeted by the airport management.

Visitors said they would be vacationing at resorts on the Southern Black Sea coast, with some visiting Bulgaria for the first time. Many Ukrainian citizens were among the passengers.

The airport expects an at least 10% increase in the number of passengers handled this year, Director Vasil Atanasov said. He predicted a stronger tourist season this summer. "We expect an increase in passengers compared to 2024 while maintaining the current market profile," he said. The highest number of travellers is expected from the UK, Poland, Czechia, Germany and Slovakia.

"We are seeing growth in almost all of our top 10 markets, except Israel, where the situation remains complicated," Atanasov said. Flights from Germany are expected to increase by about 70%.

Atanasov recalled that Bulgaria would host the second edition of the Erlebe Bulgarien (Experience Bulgaria) initiative in the Golden Sands resort in June. The forum is expected to bring together nearly 200 key representatives of the tourism industry in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, including tour operators, travel agencies and industry organizations.

He said the charter flight season would start officially in early May. The air service between Burgas and Sofia will resume in mid-June with four flights a week, increasing to daily service from July.