Bulgaria Ski discussion board

Impartial advice:
After Borovets and the convenience of ski down to hotel with ease and ski areas choice independantly without the need to catch gondola to the ski area Boro is still best.
Other plus is the scenery being in a ski resort not a town away from the ski area and having chance to smell the pine trees and walk on snow rather on a pavement around block of flats.
Consider Bansko as Benidorm and Borovets like small island somewhere.
If you want Benidormlike then Bansko is fine.
Allow and more dead time for queues up and down plus more care because there will be much move people on the slopes in Bansko going in all directions .
Or try Pamporovo for even more magic scenerywise but with some bus rides to ski areas and a bit more gambling snowise because it is lower as a whole.Forgot and the longer transfer times which does not allow to ski on the day of arrival or departure so you will use them days simply for the travels there and back.
But if the weather and snow is good Pamp could be best.
That leave you with the most balance experience (probably ) Borovets.

Impartial advice:
After Borovets and the convenience of ski down to hotel with ease and ski areas choice independantly without the need to catch gondola to the ski area Boro is still best.
Other plus is the scenery being in a ski resort not a town away from the ski area and having chance to smell the pine trees and walk on snow rather on a pavement around block of flats.
Consider Bansko as Benidorm and Borovets like small island somewhere.
If you want Benidormlike then Bansko is fine.
Allow and more dead time for queues up and down plus more care because there will be much move people on the slopes in Bansko going in all directions .
Or try Pamporovo for even more magic scenerywise but with some bus rides to ski areas and a bit more gambling snowise because it is lower as a whole.Forgot and the longer transfer times which does not allow to ski on the day of arrival or departure so you will use them days simply for the travels there and back.
But if the weather and snow is good Pamp could be best.
That leave you with the most balance experience (probably ) Borovets.

i just have to reply to this in defence of Bansko ! admittingly i have never been to the other 2 resorts so i cannot compare them. But i do want to say that Bansko is in NO WAY like Benidorm !!!! Sunny Beach maybe, but not Bansko. How can beautiful old traditional buildings and the old town steeped in culture be likened to that Even the new bars and hotels are done with taste and not like high rise spanish blocks of concrete. i like the fact the town is away from the skiing, it gives you the choice of a relaxing traditional evening or lively entertaining evening if you stay nearer the ski end. perfect if you ask me as i like both.

skied both resorts... Bansko has put alot of money into the resorts with modern chairlifts and plenty of runs, and with the reassurance of practically every run covered by snow cannons, and having only queued 15mins max for the gondola. But for some reason I want to go back to Borovets again, don't know whether its the better apres ski, or the different runs; on the downside there is very few snow cannons, and like bansko the gondola (although not necessary to use in borovets) can get very busy.

So looking to go to Borovets next season, for a change, but i still recommend Bansko as well...

Totally biased partial advice...
Bansko has better lifts, better linked pistes, better restaurants and a wider choice of accommodation. It is generally cheaper to eat and drink, more choice on the mountain, better hire... and is more (i can't believe i'm saying this) board friendly
There is continued investment in infrastructure, a chipped lift ticket system requiring no need to feed the machine when using a lift, many banks offering best day rate exchange, traditional mehanas, many shops, old town, less touts, very few seedy strip bars, spa facilities... etc etc etc
I must confess to liking Boro as well, its not better nor worse, just different... definitely like the new snowpark, but generally it could do with a revamp, more investment etc, which hopefully will come in the future... I'll be over on Thursday for a day to ski again, always a pleasure

If I am connected to Bansko in 'some way' of course I would defend my choice of place of living, investment,money making or something of that sort.
On the queues front you can not beat Bansko.it is top for big queues we all know.
For crowded runs- Bansko is top, for low positioning -Bansko is top,
For ski runs links which are dependant on a gondola battle Bansko skores very high
For town like place where you have to move to a proper ski area- Bansko is top without a doubt.supermarket prices are the same in Bansko or in Samokov you know it.
Why not compare prices of Bunderishka poliana with Borovets for costs.
Bansko and Samokov are very similar.
Now let's talk about the main bad point of Bansko:you have to catch a gondola to go anywhere near skiable place.
Not the same with Borovets or Pamporovo for that matter.

More totally impartiality:
For limitless block of flats -Bansko scores again Top.
Hire prices are very similar because tourists get their gear in advance and pay for it on line so it doesn't count,
There is a little corner containing just a few streets where you may call it some historic pocket, but the rest is far from it.
Bottom line is : if you want resort like feel Boro and Pamporovo are the ones.
If I want to go to a ski resort for a total change from everyday I will choose ski resort with runs attached to it relatively high in the mountain,and full of conveniences like night skiing maybe,like walks in the evening along those ski runs or paths so for my 7ish days I would experience mountains as long as possible not just for few precious couple of hours minus the queueing times.
Maybe I would try to do some sledging just off my hotel rather that trying to negotiate and practice walks on the pavements and streets which I will be doing for the rest of the year anyway. With a limited chance of actually being covered with the white stuff ( I know somebody will try to point out this season which is just one off and not representative of the norm) I would not feel fully on a ski holiday.
So there you have it:
I would not line up Bansko against Borovets- there is nothing much to compare them and the choice is kind of obvious.

I would group Pamporovo and Borovets and say - go and visit both places.
!

i don't want to get into some kind of resort battle here and i'm not being biased. if i didn't have use of an apartment in bansko then i would definately go out and try the other resorts, but while it is free then i don't see the point in spending extra money. otherwise i'd love to experience the other 2 and compare myself. to be honest i don't think anyone should be putting any resort down, they all need our support so that they can actually get some more revenue to make the resorts better, and by putting people off, how can that be achieved ? i know queues can be a problem, but at least they are trying to help by putting on a free ski bus now. Every year i see a little improvement on something.
And the Old town is more than just a pocket, if you take the time and wind your way through the streets, past schools, parks and the amazing train station, you will see the true culture and the reason why bulgaria needs the tourist income.

Pros and cons for both resorts, obviously depends on what you want. For me the quality of the hill at Bansko combined with the culture of the town is the best combo. Doesn't mean to say others shouldn't prefer Borovets or Pamporovo.

Mr M your analogy referencing Benidorm is interesting given that the Ski Club of GB website says this about Bansko:
"Of all the fast-rising Bulgarian resorts, Bansko seems to be the most promising. The mountain is easily the most versatile in the country, and the town itself hasn't fully succumbed to the temptation to turn itself into Magaluf or Benidorm-on-snow as sister Bulgarian Borovets and Pamporovo have."