Skiing in Bulgaria, Bansko

Hi there, just after the World cup is over I decided to sit down and start writing another post. Since it is very hot in Malta and I do miss colder weather, I was thinking of one of our cooler holidays... Skiing in Bansko.

If you are looking for a less expensive than the norm skiing holiday, Bulgaria is the place to go.  I have already been in Bulgaria skiing on four separate occasions and always been to Bansko resort. My other experience skiing was in Italy at San Martino di Castrozza.  Not withstanding the lower cost, Bansko is full of charm, character and beautiful views.  This town sits at the bottom of the Pirin mountains and has a lot of hotels, restaurants and pubs.  Apart from the fact that Bansko has a great skiing resort with very long lines it is also a great town with a lot of history.  Bankso, is roughly two hours away from the nearest airport which is Sofia.

During the four years we have been there, I have seen an increase in people; both locals and tourists. This year’s crowd was the largest I have seen. 

Bansko Ski Resort

Bansko ski-resort

The ski resort can be used for skiing, snowboarding, extreme sports, biathlon and cross-country skiing. It has a total of 70km ski runs, with a 5km cross-country track and the longest track being that of 16km.  There are different tracks from total beginners marked as green, blue, red and black. If you are still learning how to ski and improving your skills you can find that going to this resort will help you a lot.  There are small tracks that give you the opportunity to train  for different skill levels, before going on the big long slopes.

The best part of this resort is to the ability to ski down from the peak of mountain Todorka, with impeccable views all the way down. From there you can then skii all the way down to the Bansko village. This is a total of 16km skiing. The track is a combination of blue and red slopes. Some parts are slightly scarier than others but the views are definitely breath taking. To top it all off when you are on the highest peak of Todorka you can see the clouds beneath you.  While skiing down you find multiple opportunities to stop for a snack as at the ski resort you can find a number of restaurants, offering both food and drinks. You can find alcohol, hot drinks, mulled wine and to get your energy back, food you can find are chicken soup, pizza, hot-dogs and other options including meat. The prices for both food and drinks are slightly higher than what you would pay for at Bansko's center.

During one of our holidays here, I also had the unfortunate event of trying out their medical services and I can say that it is efficient. In the event of an accident while skiing, there are snow-mobiles available which can arrive to your location within a few minutes and they take you down to the clinic. That way you can have a free snow-mobile ride ;p I do still remember my accident clearly, while I was skiing I had a direct collision with one skier that decided to cut me off.  I ended up with a broken nose while the other skier with just a bruise.  That however, did not stop me from skiing again the following day!

Bansko WinterWonderland

On the Pirin Mountains

The Town of Bansko

After a long day of skiing we usually enjoy a walk to the town centre from the old Pirin street. Bansko has a mix of modern and old buildings. You can find newly built hotels and apartments and at the same time you can also see extremely old houses which are still lived in and old stone paved narrow windy roads. The town center is beautiful and great for site-seeing. It also has numerous numbers of bars and traditional restaurants spread around. You can also find an ice skating ring in winter, a bowling-alley and a lot of shops selling anything you wish for. In Bansko there is definitely something to do for everyone and for this reason I believe that each year we go, I feel that there is more people and have seen it develop nicely in the past four years. 

Bansko Holy Trinity Church

Food in Bansko

While walking down the Pirin road of Bansko, you will definitely be annoyed by all the men advertising their restaurants and trying all they can to pull you in.  There are some great traditional restaurants in the centre of Bansko. Usually one finds a lot of meat, grilled meat, soups are always very good, especially during the cold winter days.  Usually we order a mix of different meat cuts and they usually blow you away with amazing dishes and nice decorated with some fire display on the dish. Food in Bansko is not very expensive and you can easily go out and enjoy a nice meal for two for less than 30LEV (Bulgarian currency is LEV) including some drinks. 

The delicious Balkan Food

When is it best to go to Bansko?

I always went during winter to Bansko mostly to enjoy skiing since we have nowhere to ski in Malta. During winter you can mostly ski, snowboard and ice skate. However, friends of mine from Bulgaria always say that we should head up there in summer. In Summer it is different and greener, it is great especially for hiking, mountain biking, zip-lining and canyoning.  We are still trying to find the right time to go enjoy some time in summer there and I will make sure to keep you updated. Has anyone been in Summer to Bansko or Bulgaria in general? Any suggestion on where to visit and what to do?