Bulgaria

Bulgaria has had a tough old time of it. Dominated by the Romans and Byzantines for the majority of the first millennium AD, subsequently subjugated by the Ottoman Turks from the mid 1300’s to the late 19th century, and finally trapped as the Soviet Union draped an post-war iron curtain across Eastern Europe. As a result, since independence in 1989 tourism has been slow to develop but things are definitely picking up, and with good reason because Bulgaria has so much to offer.

Mention the words ‘Bulgaria’ and ‘holiday’ in the same sentence and most people probably imagine Black Sea package holidays and some of Europe’s cheapest beer. While that’s not completely without merit, Bulgaria’s real attractions lie inland in beautiful and wildlife-full (bears, lynx, rare birds of prey) mountain terrain and some culturally fascinating cities, monasteries and archeological sites. Finally, Bulgaria even has some – fairly basic, admittedly – skiing in resorts such as Bansko and Pamporovo.

Actually, there is one more reason for visiting – to experience a pace of life rarely seen in 21st Century Britain. Rural Bulgaria tends to operate on a time zone aligned to GMT minus about 50 years, and while this might come as something of a culture shock to hyped up urban-dwellers from Western Europe, the gentle and laidback tempo soon works its magic. With regular flights into both Sofia and Plovdiv it’s time to take the plunge into another culture and what feels like another era.