Bulgaria Mini Guide
Bulgaria is located to the west of the Black Sea in the area of Eastern Europe known as the Balkans. It is bordered by
Greece, Macedonia, Romania and Turkey and is close to the Turkish Straits. The capital of Bulgaria is Sofia which is a hub of cultural interest with many landmarks, bars, restaurants and nightclubs.
Bulgaria has four international airports at Sofia and the cities Varna, Plovdiv and Bourgas, while Easyjet, SkyEurope and Wizzair are among the low cost airlines which have regular flights to Bulgaria. Bulgaria also offers some domestic flights within Bulgaria.
EU citizens and people from a number of other countries do not need visas to go to Bulgaria but you should check the requirements before planning your journey. Take a ferry from
Italy to Greece and then drive through Serbia or Romania if you plan to get to Bulgaria by car.
Travelling from Greece you have to go from
Thessaloniki towards Serres and then Promahonas. In Bulgaria you have to pay road tax at the border which is inexpensive and then you are given a special sticker to place on your car. However you also need to pay health insurance to the Bulgarian authorities. The total for road tax and health insurance for five days would be in the region of 10 Euros. Keep the receipt for this transaction. There are no tolls on Bulgarian roads.
A number of major European cities have train routes to Bulgaria including Istanbul, Moscow and
Vienna. Renting a car is the best way to see Bulgaria and Rhino car hire offers the most competitive rates around. You will not make much sense of the signs however unless you know Bulgarian. One cultural tip is that Bulgarians - contrary to most nationalities - shake their head for ‘yes’ and nod for ‘no’.