Bulgaria attracts 150 000 Romanian tourists in summer 2008

About 150 000 Romanians came to Bulgaria for their vacation in the summer of 2008, according to data published in the Romanian press.The total number of Romanians who went abroad for a summer holiday in 2008 is 700 000. Greece remains the most popular destination for them with over 250 000 Romanian tourists.The number of Romanians who visited Turkey over the summer registers the highest growth. Romania's Black Sea coast was visited by 100 000 foreigners in summer 2008.Source: News.bg

Bulgaria Boasts Highest Real Estate Price Growth Globally in Q2

Bulgaria retained its number one spot in the Knight Frank Global House Price Index with a 32.3-percent year on year growth in real estate property prices in the second quarter of 2008. Real estate property prices in the country marked a 32.3% year on year increase in the first quarter of the year. Global house price inflation continues to slow, with annual growth standing at 4.8% in the second quarter of 2008, down from 6.1% in the previous quarter, Knight Frank data show. Prices are now falling in almost half the markets listed in the Knight Frank Global House Price Index. Nevertheless growth rates in double figures are still being recorded in eight markets - Bulgaria, Slovakia, Russia, the Czech Republic, Hong Kong, Singapore, Cyprus and Colombia. The economies of central and south-eastern Europe appear to be the strongest performers, while northern Europe (including the Baltic States), together with the United States, are suffering the most. The Knight Frank Global House Price Index shows that global house price inflation is continuing to fall back, with much of continental Europe now seeing low or negative growth, according to Nick Barnes head of international research at Knight Frank. Bulgaria is at the head of this list, where values have grown at 32.3% over the past year, and have now risen by 68% over the past two years. Admittedly this occurred from a low base, but demand from international investors and domestic economic growth remain strong, although there are fears of oversupply, particularly in the resort locations. Strong performance in Slovakia and the Czech Republic is also driven by robust economic growth. The rapidly depreciating housing markets of the Baltic States – led by Latvia, where prices fell by 24.1% over the past year, demonstrate that rising inflation and mortgage costs are real risks for the emerging economies of Europe. However, housing markets in countries such as Spain, Denmark, the UK and Ireland are all being severely challenged by the global credit squeeze. Country Y/Y % change in Q2 Y/Y % change in Q1 Rank Q2 2007 Bulgaria 32,2 27,1 3 Slovakia 31,2 20,5 5 Russia 26,5 53,7 1 Czech Republic 25,4 20,5 5 Hong Kong 25,1 - - Singapore 16,3 25,2 4 Cyprus 12,9 8 20 Colombia 12,5 12,8 10 Iceland 9,6 9,6 17 China 9,2 7,1 22 Australia 9 10,1 16 Belgium 6,9 11 12 Croatia 5,8 6,9 24 Austria 5,4 7,7 21 Italy 5,4 5,4 28 Canada 4,8 9,1 18 Indonesia 4,4 7 23 Sweden 4,3 10,3 14 Serbia 3,8 0,2 36 South Africa 3,8 15,5 7 France 3,2 6,8 25 Finland 2,8 6,5 26 Spain 2,4 5,8 27 Malaysia 2,2 11 12 Greece 1,7 4,2 29 Източник: Profit.bg

70 Million EUR Investment in Biggest Office Center in Bulgaria

70 million EUR will be the cost of the biggest office center in Bulgaria - the European Trade Center.The construction works are presently planned to be finished in January 2010.The large project has mobilized big part of the sector's capacity.By the project's data round 60% of the constructing and engineering resource of Sofia is occupied with the center's realizing.14 cranes are presently working on the building site.The European Trade Center is located on the busiest boulevard in Sofia - ‘Tsarigradsko Shose' and includes the highest office building in construction process in Bulgaria for the moment.The new center will be build using a serial of ‘green technologies', lowering the energy expends and optimizing the functional environment in the center. The roofs will be planted.The center is being built in a common comnplex with ‘Carefour Tsarigradsko Mall' and will offer individual projecting of office surfaces.

New ferry connects Bulgaria and Romania over Danube

The new ferry complex connecting the Bulgarian port of Nikopol and the Romanian port of Turnu Magurele over the Danube River will opened in mid July, 2008.The news was announced by Bulgaria's Deputy Minister of Transport Dimcho Mihalevski during his visit to the northern Bulgarian town of Nikopol.The ferry complex has been constructed already but some additional safety guarantees are being completed at the moment.About EUR 6,5 M have been invested in the ferry, EUR 2,5 M of which have been provided by the Bulgarian government, whereas the rest is EU funding under the PHARE Program.The Bulgarian side of the ferry complex will be operated by the Bulgarian River Shipping company.The Deputy Minister of Transport Mihalevski said in Nikopol that the new ferry would have a great economic impact as part of the country's policy to tackle the marginalizing of its border regions by opening up its borders.Mihalevsky reminded that another ferry line between the city of Silistra and the Romanian town of Caluras had been opened recently, and said that two more border checkpoints would be opened on the Bulgarian-Greek border by the middle of 2009.The Bulgarian platform of the new ferry can carry 12 trucks, and crosses the river in only eight minutes. Yet, the fees for using it have not been set because the ownership issue has not been settled.The rehabilitation of the 45-km road connecting Nikopol and the district center, the city of Pleven, is going as planned.

Why Investing in Bulgaria Worths?

Bulgaria is one of the fastest growing property markets in Europe offering investors low property prices, continued strong capital growth and high rental returns.Executives at a property exhibition taking place in Larnaca and Nicosia thios week are expected to argue that Bulgaria also provides investors with one key element above many other European investment hotspots; "value for money".Dwayne Holt, Nikolay Pavlov and Nimet Kama, CEO of Platinum Global, will be speaking at presentations at the Golden Bay Hotel in Larnaca on Wednesday and at the Europe Hotel in Nicosia on Thursday, where they will explain how for a relatively low outlay investors can buy high quality well managed properties offering great returns over the medium term, and with Bulgaria really only starting in its investment cycle, these trends should continue well in to the future.Foreign direct investment in Bulgaria reachjed more than EUR 1.6 bln in 2004, leaving behind developed countries like Italy, Greece, Austria and Portugal. The amount of confidence shown by both institutional and retail investors is down to the very positive economic indicators emanating from the country.High prices and over-development in much of the Mediterranean means investors are looking at Europe's next favourite destination, Bulgaria. It offers properties at some of the lowest prices in Europe, and benefits from favourable weather and a low cost of living.This low cost alternative for holiday makers is proving to be immensely popular with tourists and tourist numbers have increased by 20% for the last four consecutive years.Bulgaria is also regarded as one of the best investment destinations in Europe with strong capital growth rates made possible by extensive EU investment in infrastructure and tourism. Against this backdrop of positive, targeted government and EU investment, real estate prices are proving remarkably resilient to the global credit crunch. Bulgaria is the first country in central and eastern Europe to establish a national Real Estate Market Index, REMI, which shows property prices have been increasing considerably for the last four years, and are anticipated to continue rising steadily by 15% in the upcoming years. These capital growth rates are unheard of in more established markets such as Spain and Portugal.According to the WTO forecasts, 12 mln tourists will visit Bulgaria in 2020, which will make it the most promising destination in the eastern European region.Continued development of the tourist infrastructure such as airports and rail are accommodating the large increase in demand from major tour operators in the area and will ultimately allow for a 50% increase in capacity over the coming years.Bulgaria has 370 km of coastline boasting some of the best beaches in Europe and a summer that lasts from April to October.The country has an impressive scenery of mountain ranges and breathtaking views with many lakes, waterfalls and caves, which remain unspoilt, despite the rise in tourism. It has a rich, diverse history and large numbers of architectural treasures. A unique element about Bulgaria's geography and climate is that it can accommodate an all year round tourist season with both the Black Sea coast and the numerous ski resorts located in the southerly mountain ranges.A typical sea village, Aheloy, keeps in tune with what is a fascinating national treasure of natural landscapes blending perfectly with a charming sea. It has 5,000 inhabitants and is 3km from Ravda and 6km from Sunny Beach and Nessebar.There is a small stone beach and a quay for boats. Aheloy is also famous for its beautiful fruit gardens and vineyards and is a unique mixture of preserved green sites, calm and pleasant sea and sandy beaches.By contrast Bansko is a charming and historic city at the foot of the north-eastern part of the Pirin Mountains, with a population of about 9,500. Positioned 6km south of Razlog, 60km south-east of Blagoevgrad and 160km south of Sofia, Bansko is a climatic mountain resort, famous for ski sports because the location of the city allows favorable conditions for skiing from the month of December to April.The ski tracks have a length of 65km from 1,100m to 2,550m above sea level while the ski facilities rival many western European resorts, but at a third of the price, while extensive new development is currently underway in the neighboring villages which will vastly increase capacity and ultimately make the Bansko region one of the most sought-after ski destinations in Europe.

USA Invsted $600 Mln in Bulgaria for 18 Years - US Ambassador Beyrle

In the last 18 years the American Agency for international development had invested in Bulgaria round $600 million. This was informed by the US Ambassador to Bulgaria John Beyrle, by the time of the international press conference on theme ‘Democracy that give result'. The Ambassador calculated that the US Government invested per $10 every year in each Bulgarian citizen. The local experience in the development of the democracy may be favorable for the Western Balkans, the diplomat added.

European University to Open Doors in Bulgaria

An agreement of opening a European University in Bulgaria was signed, the mayor of Pernik Municipality Rositza Yanakieva announced.The university will be based in the city of Pernik (Southwestern Bulgaria, near Sofia).The University will be private and will accept 1840 students in the subjects: business administration, computer systems, information, telecommunications, architecture and engineering.The project's coordinator is Professor Hristo Hristov from the Technical University - Sofia.The university is expected to start action in 2009.Pernik Municipality engaged itself to cooperate for maximally fast realization of the construction and starting of the project.

SPA and Wellness Tourism in Bulgaria to Flourish

The interest of Bulgarian and foreign tourists towards local SPA and wellness tourism is increasing. This was reported after the latest research of local State Agency of Tourism (SAT).According to the research 18% of the Bulgarians and 134% of the foreign tourists devote time for SPA tourism during their winter vacation.One of the main priorities in the strategy for developing of the sector is exactly this kind of tourism, pointed out Stela Baltova, vice chairperson of SAT.The interest towards SPA in world measures is enormous. According to specialists this must be the tourism product around which to be united all European countries and to offer it on the world market.

How do we travel to Bulgaria?

Direct international flights are available to the capital, Sofia, all year round. Direct charter flights to the Black Sea (Varna/Burgas) and Plovdiv are available during the spring/summer months and can be booked through local UK travel agents.

What are the costs of living in Bulgaria?

It's not possible to compare living costs in Bulgaria and Western Europe. Living costs in Bulgaria are extremely low! For example the food is generally twice cheaper than UK. House insurance: around €100-200 per year depending on the type of house, together with the belongings and furniture inside. For a property of price €30,000 insurance against theft, flood and fire costs about €125 per year with a decent insurance company like Allianz. Gas: the gas system network is not developed in Bulgaria yet. People here mostly use electricity to cook. For heating: there are central heating systems in the big cities: monthly costs for a 2-bedroom apartment around €120. In the small places people use charcoal and wood, which is even cheaper way to heat a house. For electricity, when used for cooking, light or hot water one pays about €30 monthly. Local and national taxes for owning a property: depending on the place where the property is located, the most expensive area is the capital Sofia, where the annual taxes of 2 bedroom apartment are around €150 per year, but the rest of the country is around €80 per year