site.btaNational Tourism Board to Create Calendar of Major Events That Make Bulgaria Attractive Destination

The National Tourism Board (NTB) will attempt, for the first time in Bulgaria, to develop a methodology—an unprecedented table of major events that make Bulgaria an attractive destination not only in the field of tourism but across all sectors of public life, said NTB deputy head Martin Zahariev during the conference titled “Destination Bulgaria in Focus for 2026,” organized by the NTB with institutional support from the Ministry of Tourism. 

“This is our first attempt of its kind; nothing like this has been done so far. In essence, it will convincingly demonstrate the added value of the events that will take place in Bulgaria, as well as their connection to tourism services and the industries linked to them,” Zahariev said, adding that establishing this precedent could establish a standard in the coming years.

“We can adopt as a rule the methodology recommended by the World Tourism Organization, based on cognitive analysis for measuring tourism’s impact on the economy,” Zahariev noted. He added that after a year of precise monitoring and analysis of events that have already taken place, there will be an even clearer picture focused on outcomes and on integrating statistical data needed to make proper statistical and managerial decisions in tourism. 

Zahariev cited registry data showing that Bulgaria has 37,000 investors and hoteliers from one- to five-star accommodations, nearly 5,000 tour operators, about 20,000 restaurateurs, 230 tourism associations, 265 municipalities, 125 sports federations, 1,900 tourism festivals and events, 500 tourist attractions, and—according to National Statistical Institute (NSI) data—5,600 concerts annually attended by 2.7 million people, 80 theatres with 47,000 seats, 84 cinemas with 320,000 annual screenings, along with sports facilities, congress centers, stadiums, conference halls, and more.

“Not all of them produce events, but the colossal amount of information they could generate would be difficult to process even by the most advanced version of artificial intelligence,” Zahariev remarked. He explained that rules and a methodology must be introduced for evaluating events—for example, whether an event has international participation, significant contribution to the local economy, or strong international visibility.

According to Zahariev, if all this information is gathered, made accessible, organized clearly, translated into the EU’s main languages, and if this calendar becomes a platform offering value-added services, it would be of great importance for Bulgaria’s image. In the future, user-generated data from event participants could also be added.

Zahariev emphasized that, at the national level, the method for collecting and presenting tourism’s impact on the economy is carried out through the so-called “tourism satellite accounts” of the NSI. However, he said these lack a number of important data points—such as employment figures in the sector, investments in tourism, and even the overall gross value added generated by the sector.

According to Zahariev, one reason the Ministry of Tourism has the smallest budget within the Council of Ministers is the fundamental misunderstanding of tourism’s importance as a major multiplier of added value. He stated that in practice, the sector has one of the highest multipliers in the economy. From the perspective of added value, every additional lev spent in the “Hotels and Restaurants” sector leads to an increase of 0.73 leva in added value, of which 0.34 leva represents compensation for employees—highlighting the sector’s social role. Additionally, every BGN 1 million spent in the sector creates 100 new jobs, Zahariev added.