site.btaParliamentary Tourism Committee Meeting in Sozopol Discusses Sector’s Challenges, Projects and Stakeholders’ Interaction

The National Assembly Tourism Committee held an off-site meeting in the seaside resort of Sozopol on Saturday. The participants in the event discussed developments and challenges in the tourism sector, current and future projects, and the authorities’ interaction with other stakeholders.

Minister of Transport and Communications Grozdan Karadjov said at the meeting that to date, the two international airports on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, in Burgas and Varna, have accumulated more than EUR 110 million in investments. This year alone, a further EUR 12.5 million will be invested in the runway at Burgas Sarafovo Airport, which is currently operating at full capacity. Highlighting the launch of new express trains from Sofia to Varna and Burgas this summer, Karadjov noted: “We at the ministry are trying to respond to every issue.”

Minister of Tourism Miroslav Borshosh said modern tourism cannot thrive without effective connectivity, accessibility, and cleanliness, and local needs are best understood when you're on the ground. “I walked through Primorsko today and saw how clean it was. They clean the town three times a day. That’s possible when local government is committed and invests in that direction. It’s not easy for a municipality to maintain a staff of over 200 people dedicated to cleanliness," Borshosh said. According to him, this is the second successful instance of such a meeting, which enables direct insight into the needs of local authorities.

Environment and Water Minister Manol Genov said that preserving the good ecological condition of the sea water is a top priority for his ministry. "Based on the inspections we've carried out, I can say that the sea water in Bulgaria is currently perhaps among the cleanest in Europe. We all know the causes of marine pollution," Genov emphasized. He said that every pollution report is investigated.

Polina Karastoyanova, Executive Director of the National Tourism Board, said the current summer tourist season is expected to be the most successful to date. Karastoyanova emphasized that the successful season was made possible by the work of investors and management teams who prepared the resorts, conducted preliminary negotiations, and implemented a highly effective marketing strategy to secure contracts and attract tourists to the Black Sea coast. She noted the strategic importance of easing the visa requirements for Turkish tourists and the need to construct a Black Sea Motorway along the coastline.

Zhivko Ivanov, Deputy Chair of the Bulgarian Union of Balneology and SPA Tourism, said the Turkish market is very important, so the news about easing the visa regime for Turkish citizens is expected and positive. "However, I don’t know how you will motivate the Foreign Ministry to start working on this," Ivanov said. He added that workers from third countries, announced back in October last year, have still not arrived in Bulgaria, "and the season is already underway – next week is August." Ivanov expressed doubts about the forecasts for a strong summer season, noting that “there is a decline in key markets”.

Lyuben Dilov, Deputy Chair of the National Assembly Tourism Committee, announced a joint initiative being developed between Bulgaria, Greece, and Turkiye to promote the region through cultural tourism. According to Dilov, the project combines efforts of cultural institutions, museums, and NGOs and aims to encourage so-called climate and cultural tourism, including outside the peak summer season. Dilov also reminded about ongoing work on amendments to the Tourism Act intended to grant local authorities more freedom to manage tourism infrastructure and use collected funds effectively, without being hindered by ownership differences between the state and municipalities.