site.btaTourism Minister, Experts Discuss Development of Cultural Tourism in Bulgaria

An event dedicated to the development of cultural tourism in Bulgaria was held in Plovdiv on Friday.

Outgoing Tourism Minister Miroslav Borshosh opened the event by saying that cultural tourism needs to be the focus of Bulgaria in 2026, regardless of who will be minister of tourism. He emphasized that Bulgaria as a tourist destination has always been developed in the direction of summer and to some extent winter tourism. The minister pointed out that the goal of this meeting is to show cultural institutes that they have the full support from the ministry for what they would like to implement.

Museums are the natural guardians of intangible cultural heritage, stressed Dr. Irena Todorova, Executive Director of the Regional Centre for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in South-Eastern Europe under the auspices of UNESCO. She pointed out that back in 2015, UNESCO set itself the clear goal of investing a lot of effort in promoting their role not only as guardians of artifacts, but also as centres for education, culture, and civil society. "UNESCO does not recognize the museum as an economic component, but much more as a goal of cultural tourism, through which to serve national identity and develop cultural economies and creative industries," she emphasized.

On the other hand, Prof. Svetla Dimitrova, Chair of the Bulgarian National Committee of the International Council of Museums, noted that there must be confidence that cultural heritage can be profitable. She appealed to the directors of museums to be bolder. "If you build cafes and renovate your exhibitions, you will attract many more people", she said.

Likewise, Dr. Ognyan Todorov, Chair of the Bulgarian Museums Association and Director of the Plovdiv Natural History Museum, pointed out that museums must transform from existing for something into existing for someone. He outlined the three main areas that are priorities of the association and emphasized that museums must be enabled to provide an experience for visitors and thus develop and return the interest of Bulgarian and foreign tourists. "Everything we do is so that our institutions can develop and be at a better European level", he pointed out.

Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) Director General Kiril Valchev said that the Bulgarian News Agency is the natural platform for information about all the activities of Bulgarian cultural institutes. He recalled that BTA created a specialized editorial office called LIK in 2021, which publishes information about culture from Bulgaria and the world. "So far, BTA has contracts with 12 museums and galleries, which systematically provide information about their calendars and events", he noted, adding that he will sign a cooperation agreement with the Bulgarian Museums Association on Friday, which will allow the Agency to publish photos, videos and texts from museums in the country.

Bulgarian National Radio (BNR) Director General Milen Mitev also emphasized that the Bulgarian National Radio has great desire to support the cause of Bulgarian tourism. He pointed out that Bulgarian tourism is indeed a cause and that BNR is also a kind of cultural institute, which through its musical ensembles also operates on the cultural market and the cultural sphere, therefore understanding many of the problems that every cultural institute in Bulgaria faces daily. In order for tourism to be sustainable, tourists must be satisfied and to return to the country again and again, Mitev noted.