Bulgaria Ski discussion board

My Background:
I'm 34 and been skiing since the age of 11. I skied Borovets in 1986 and 1989 and took my family there this year as it suited them as beginners. I have personally skied in virtually every European country since the mid 80's and did qualify as an Ski Instuctor but never pursued it professionally. I am competant on a Snowboard and understand the differing needs of skiers and boarders.

Why this review:
I wasn't too happy with some aspects of my family's holiday in Borovets and want others to benefit from our experience. Take as much or as little from this posting - I do not mind... after-all it is only my opinion.

Before I start - some basics:
A hotel should basically be clean, warm + safe with extras in direct relation to the cost and any awarded star rating. The price charged should reflect the environment experienced by the guests.
A restaurant should provide you with food that is edible, of reasonable quality and nicely presented. The price charged should reflect the quality, quantity, environment and service being provided.
Alcohol... (i'm not an expert on this) so... 'Drinks' should be exactly what the said they were... and hot,cold,warm or as strong/weak as the manufacturer intended.
Snow conditions are partly dictated by the weather but Piste Conditions are the responsibility of the Piste Maintainers.
Hired Ski Equipment should be fit for purpose, maintained, modern and safe. Any deviation from this is unacceptable as injuries will result.

Here goes...
Bulgaria:
Relatively recent addition to the EU - but progress has been slow (compared with western Europe) over the 20yrs since my first visit. Look beyond the glitz/neon and you will still see the old Bulgaria. Tourists are unfortuantely now seen as an easy source of money and many are only too pleased to tap into this. Many non-Bulgarians have 'invested' in the sking/holiday industry/areas which tends to bring out the commercialisation at the expense of the nation's culture.

Borovets:
The village itself has expanded with new build hotels and many restaurants have 'popped' up literally to serve the tourists. As with every destination in the world you will find good and bad establishments.

Hotels in Borovets are generally more basic than in the UK but they should and generally do come up to the basic standard.
In the Rila problems include: Smoking, Security, Heating, Sanitation.
Smoking in public buildings/places is very much permitted in Bulgaria and a large percentatge of the population smoke. As a result you will often experience smokey atmospheres when you (as Brits) no-longer expect them. If you find your hotel room too smokey then politely request a change - we did and received a more pleasant room as a result.
Security is equal to any other resort or country in the world = if you leave valuables unsecured then do not expect them to be there when you return. If you have a £500 set of skis etc then lock them to the rack. You wouldn't leave £500 cash lying about would you? That said - The Rila Hotel is charging £35 to use a safety/security box for a week... other Hotels are charging far less and every Rila guest we met complained about the price to the reps and the Hotel. The box is not even in your room it's behind the reception desk - it's a blatant rip-off and they have been told this.
Heating levels in the Rila rooms are only just adequate partly due to ill-fitting patio doors but the fact it is -10degC outside doesn't help. It's not a huge issue as there are plenty of blankets and an extra fan heater can be requested... either way I'm happy not to be paying their utility bills!
This might just be Rila specific but... water from the tap did not always run clear. Every now and again the shower water and tap water would be a slightly murky brown colour. I strongly advise you purchase BIG bottles of water to drink in your room - these are available from the local mini-markets in the street and are not expensive.

Rila's 1st floor restaurant (for the package holiday people) was bright and clean but sadly the food was not up to much. It was there in volume but not of the quality of the UK. Often it was luke-warm and poorly presented. You will not starve but you are in no danger of piling on the pounds either. The hotel needs to improve this if it is to continue attracting British tourists.

Other slope-side restaurants are not much better. The quantity + quality were almost always poor and the prices excessive as a result. In general you are left feeling 'milked'. Better value can be found if you go further from the slopes, Rila/town centre area.

We know of 10 cases of 'food poisoning' amoungst our fellow travellers ... roughly 20% of people we knew... including my 8yr old daughter. Avoid "KING BURGER" outside the Rila - the Burgers are cheap but 95% uncooked.

Best place we found to eat: Hunters Steak Bar, just down the hill from the Samakov Hotel. Great selection of Beautiful food, presented with care and attention by an honest Bulgarian Family who are truely pleased to have your custom. It's a relaxed atmosphere most likened to dining with them in their front room! Added bonus - it's a non-smoking restaurant which is virtually unique in Borovets!

Drinks were generally very expensive. Best summed up by the fact that 500ml of Bulgarian Lager costs £0.75 in the town of Samakov (10miles from Borovets) yet in Resort you be charged £2.00 for the same 500ml and even more on the mountain itself. Other drinks were priced on the same basis. I know this goes on all over the world and it will continue if we keep paying the inflated prices.

We enough snow to ski on and they did make some with the cannons. But and it is a BIG but - the Pistes were not groomed as they should have been. Beginner and Intermediate slopes should be maintained morning, noon and night especially when fresh snow falls. A Blue run with 30cm of ungroomed powder is not acceptable. A Red or Black with the same is ok as those with more experience skii these runs. Blue runs are for learning/developing on and you dont learn much in such poor piste conditions. There is no excuse as there are ample piste-bashers in what is a small resort.

Rocks were poking through on some runs especially at lowere levels - this is common to all resorts when there is barey enough snow and not something unique to Borovets. Grooming f the slopes during the daqy would have helped.... see my last point.

Hired Ski + Board Equipment... this is my biggest issue and one that my travel company will be hearing about! Borosport have some balls to be issuing such appauling equipment. It had grass on it from the end of last season. It had not been planed, edged or waxed. It was at least a couple of years old at best. Many of the kids ski boots had no inner soles! I now have a fungal infection on my hands and feet due to the snow-board boots! My kids had snow sticking to the base of their skis on day one ... it took some serious complaining to get them changed for a fractionally better pairs. Apparently they only issue the equipment... it is up to us to have it maintained and pay for it to be maintained. Never before have I seen it this BAD. Even the Ski Instructors (themselves Borosports employees!) were complaining about it! I know many reading this will have pre-booked ski-packs etc and all I can say is stand your ground and do not accept sub-standard equipment from any of the Borosports outlets. This is a prime example of ripping off vulnerable beginners who do not know any better.

2nd last thing... tipping. It has become common amoung waiters etc to short change you. Meal cost is 12.50Lev... they will give you 2Lev change for the 15Lev you gave them keeping 0.5Lev for themselves. Not an honest practice really but fine with me as I stopped leaving any tip on the table... which may possibly have been more than they short changed me by.

Lastly - if you want to treat yourself to a nice new 'Spyder' ski jacket and trousers while you are there... or indeed your bag gets lost on the way out there... go to the last little shop opposite the back of the Rila Hotel. £150 for this years Spyder jacket and trousers... not a dodgy fake or sub-standard etc. You'll not find them any cheaper in the UK... treat yourself for next season. Proof that every cloud has a silver lining)

Would I go back? No.
Why? It no longer strikes the right balance between value for money and quality of experience.
Would I recommend Borovets to anyone? Yes, to the someone who has had no more that 10hours experience on a dry slope that wants a relatively in-expensive family holiday BUT I would ensure they hired equipment in resort and did not use Borosport Ski Hire or Borosport Ski School.

I hope this submission has been of help to some and not too discouraging to others. I've tried to keep to the facts and be fair. I'll try to monitor any replies and answer any questions you may have.

Calum

Just back too and stayed in the Rila. This is a very fair review. The point about the equipment is correct and many people seemed to have problems. Our skis had the din settings changed overnight for a skier 40 Kg heavier. The condition of the piste really did need improving with better preparation, and the short-changing was rife. We probably will go back again though, as there are several plus points to Borovets. It is a lovely village with all facilities close at hand. Having been before, we had decided to treat the hotel as B&B and so had budgeted to eat out most nights. If you had not been before, you would have been very disappointed at the 'half board' status of the hotels, but there are lots of good options for eating out around the village (although you will pay something close to prices in the UK, but not quite as much as in the Alps). Restaurants we would recommend include The Happy Duck, Sunny Bistro and Red Dragon. We booked our own ski lessons (before travelling) through the Samokov Ski School and were really happy with these.

Good review! we a party of 12 have just got back from Borovets and here is my review.
We stayed at the hotel Ela the room was ok but the heating either didnt work or it was absoultely boiling.The towel rail and extractor fan fan didnt work but the shower is one of the best i ever used.
When my son in law went down about his heating not working they sent someone up who tried a few things and then left.He went back down again late in the evening and they just shugged their shoulders.My son in law is a plumber! and told them what was wrong and offered to sort it out but they didnt take him up on his offer.
The food at the hotel was apalling and the christmas day dinner spectactule was the worst meal i have ever been served. Best place we found for food on the last day(as usually happens) Green King just down from the Flora hotel, the main man asked (the only time it happened ) if there was anything wrong with the food if someone left something and it was reasonably priced. The worst besides the hotel was Maxcana just up from the green king they served up roast spit pork which was day and half old and was dry as hell and my pizza was like soggy old socks. They wanted 106 lev for it all they got 50 the manager admitted the food was bad.
Ski hire was as you stated but a few of us didnt have to change them but the ones who did they said take them around the corner get them serviced and waxed it will cost 5 lev!
Slopes and Pistes were terrible suppose i have been spoilt by going to Austria! a rock caught me out once lol!
What annoyed us the most was i dont give a damn attitude from the bulgians about everything and the keeping of the change.
Best thing to do if they say they dont have small change say i will hang onto to my money till you do they soon discover they have change.
Would we go back: No its a beautiful country but this experience has put us off for good.

Hia
I have also just returned from a week here and some of the points are fair.
Ski School - we were with Borosports as intermediates and have no complaints with the instruction. Started as a group of 18 with 2 instructors which wasn't good but after they assessed our skills we were divided into two smaller groups. Our group ran the majority of the red runs and learnt a lot from our instructor. Equipment was poor though. Ours was from the Mariela ski depot behind the gondala and my hubbys ski broke (binding came completely off) half way down the mountain. Luckily we were with our instructor who called for a skidoo to come to collect him. Took 45 mins to arrive which was a bit nerve wracking and then he had to pay 25lev for the pleasure.

Loved the Bulgarian people - no hassle in a bad way. Some people asking you into bars but they don't get offended by you just saying no thanks.

Definately stick to the bulgarian food as it is far superior to the English type food. Hotch potch and meat stew is a must from Central bar opposite Samokov hotel. - Not cheap though.

Overall had a good time. Me and my hubby are not great moaners and were there to have a good time and that's what we did.