Practical information Bulgaria

42824  sq.mi

London-Sofia: 4 hrs (1, 254 mi).

7400000 hab.

The international airport of Sofia is 6 miles to the east of the city (allow for a 20 min journey). There is an exchange bureau and counters for car rental (Hertz, Avis, Budget, Inter-Balkan). Buses go to the city centre around every 10 mins. Taxis are also available, however most refuse to use a metre. Bargain firmly (around leva 100/150 per trip).

Do not drive at night due to the bad condition of the roads and numerous unlit obstacles. Do not leave your vehicle just anywhere without surveillance (use secured car parks). Avoid keeping cash on you and, in town, beware of pickpockets.
Do not change money on the side in the street: guaranteed rip-off.

Bulgarian (Cyrillic alphabet). English is spoken in the towns and tourist centres. Russian, Turkish, German and French are also spoken.

Valid passport for at least six months. No visa needed for a stay of less than a month. Beyond that, a tourist visa, valid for three months, is issued by the consulate (bring a photo and fill in the form). Its price varies depending on whether it is issued on the same day (around 62 pounds sterling), in 24 hours (about 44 pounds), or in seven days (about 36 pounds). 46 ?). A visa is not required as part of an organised trip.

Orthodox Christians (85.7%), Muslims (12.9%), Jews (0.8%), and Catholics (O.6%).

The currency is the Lev (or Leva, in the plural). The exchange rate on 19/03/10 was approximately 2.19 leva for £1. You can withdraw cash using an international bank card in the major towns which have ATM machines, or over the counter at a bank. However, only large restaurants, international hotels and luxury boutiques accept international bank cards as a form of payment.

By taxi: they are numerous in the towns and cheap, on condition that you demand use of the metre.

By bus: frequent and not very expensive. In the towns, you buy tickets and set priced tickets for the day in the station kiosks or directly on the bus. Trolleybuses and yellow trams in Sofia. As the names of the stations and directions are not well indicated, find out from the driver or other passengers. To get from one town to another, take private buses, particularly those from the company called Group, which are much faster than public buses.

By train: practical and cheap. Three categories of trains: expressen (express, booking compulsory), barz (fast) and patnichski (slow). Tickets are bought and bookings made in the stations. Do not hesitate to treat yourself to first class, which is not very expensive.

By car: ideal for driving around the countryside. Documents required for a private vehicle: national driving licence, vehicle registration document, and third party liability insurance. Car hirers (Avis, Budget, Hertz, Europcar...) can be found in the international airports (Sofia, Varna, Bourgas) and in town. The prices are more or less the same as in the UK. Provide a national licence and passport. You can pay by credit card. On the roads, most signs are in Cyrillic characters. It is therefore useful to have a road map with the transcription in Latin characters. Departing from Sofia: Varna: 8 hours. Bourgas: 6 hours. Plovdiv: 2 hours. Roussé: 9 hours. From November to April, snowfall sometimes makes driving difficult.

By plane: Balkan Airlines has eight domestic connections to the main towns in the country and the coast departing from Sofia taking less than an hour and at prices scarcely higher than the train.

No vaccine required. It is however recommended to be up to date with the following vaccines: tetanus, poliomyelitis, hepatitises A and B, diphtheria. Be careful of ticks in rural areas. Plan to bring mosquito repellent cream in summer. Tap water is drinkable.

220 V.

In hotels, camp site and museums, the marked prices include taxes. In fact, this is the price set for foreigners, about twice as much as the price set for Bulgarians. In restaurants, market prices include taxes and service but it is a custom to leave a tip in restaurants and taxis.

From the UK : 00 + 359 + town code (Sofia: 2. Plovdiv: 32. Varna: 52. Bourgas: 56. Roussé: 82. Gabrovo: 66) + number.
To the UK : 00 + 44 + the number without initial 0.
From one town to the other in Bulgaria: 0 + code + number.
The majority of the telephone boxes function with one of the two cards from the companies Bulfon or Betkom that you buy from newsstands on the streets, hotels, or post offices.