site.btaInstitutions Must Take Greater Commitment to Tourism Sector, Progressive Bulgaria MP Says

Progressive Bulgaria MP Mario Smarkov said on Monday during BTA's forum "BG Tourism – Summer 2026" that institutions should take greater responsibility for the tourism sector, particularly regarding destination accessibility.

"As I have always said, including in my previous capacity as regional governor, the State owes a debt to tourism. This applies above all to transport connectivity because, apart from flights, especially concerning neighbouring countries, the lack of quality road connections significantly hampers tourism along our Black Sea coast," Smarkov said.

He proposed broadening the focus beyond traditional summer and winter holidays by making use of Bulgaria’s historical and natural assets. Smarkov said he sees considerable potential in promoting Bulgaria as a centre of Orthodoxy and developing religious tourism.

"It would be wonderful to promote both Bulgarian spa tourism and Bulgarian religious tourism, because Bulgaria is one of the main centres of Orthodoxy," he commented.

Smarkov also called on the media not to distort facts, while placing greater emphasis on positive messages in order to counter mass panic and misinformation.

"This is not about concealing news, but about emphasizing positive messages, because you are facing an extremely powerful opponent, the so-called social media, which unfortunately people trust much more," Smarkov said.

He drew a historical parallel with the concealment of information during the Chernobyl disaster, which, according to him, created lasting public distrust toward official sources.

"For me, this is a burden we carry from the past, in this case from Chernobyl, when the State, with the help of the media at the time, concealed information for a long period. Unfortunately, when there is mass panic, people find it very difficult to trust," he added.