BULGARIAN accommodation standards will rival those in Western Europe when the country’s hotel industry is fully privatised, according to the country’s trade and tourism minister Valentin Vassilev.
“Privatisation of the tourism industry is occurring at a very fast rate. More than 85% is now privatised and we plan completion by the end of the year,” he said.
“Foreign investors initially showed interest only in the big city hotels but have subsequently turned their attention to the Black Sea resorts like Sunny Beach.”
Vassilev was in London to launch Bulgaria’s new consumer advertising campaign, which will highlight the Black Sea, the capital Sofia, winter sports, culture and lifestyle.
Following the formation of a national tourist board, funds have been allocated for advertising in Bulgaria’s major markets including the UK, Germany and Russia.
Vassilev said: “For many years we’ve lacked a powerful advertising plan. Tourism is a priority of the Bulgarian government and our untapped potential provides great opportunities.”
The government last year launched an infrastructure upgrading plan for the Black Sea coast that includes new roads and facilities. Improvements are also being made to Varna, Bourgas and Sofia airports.
Strict controls are in place to monitor tourism standards, according to Vassilev, who said that regular inspections will be made, with heavy penalties for those failing to meet the criteria.
The UK provided 75,224 or just 3.5% of Bulgaria’s 2.1m visitors last year – the total climbed 2.1% over 1997.
The UK target is 200,000 within the next few years, said Vassilev who admitted that some UK operators had turned their backs on Bulgaria because of “low-quality service.”
“We lost some of the UK tourists and our intention is to get them back,” he said.
Bulgaria specialist Balkan Holidays managing director Nicky Antonov welcomed the end of state hotel ownership.
“Privatisation means higher standards. Total privatisation would encourage me to feature a bigger programme.”
“Bulgaria has until now been sold as cheap and cheerful, but that’s changing rapidly. We’ve seen two-star hotels upgraded to three-star and three-star hotels becoming four-star. We now need promotion of Bulgaria to be extended to catch the upper market.
“The country no longer needs to be known for late deals and cheap holidays.”