Bulgaria Ski discussion board

Quick report: the piste bashers are working heroically to keep some skiing going, but unless they get serious dumps of snow and, crucially, consistent low temperatures, it's all over for this season.

Essentially, there are only two major runs going, the green zigzagging down from the top to the middle station (Studenetz 2 quadchair), and the wide red from the beginning of the green (it's linked by a short blue run) down to Brothers Restaurant, about 2/3 way down to Studenetz, you know, the one with the T-bar drag lift.

Both degrade rapidly during the day, typically icy first thing, an hour of decentish skiing around mid morning, then slush by lunch - water skiing outside Brothers restaurant.

There are a couple of other bits and pieces, and they're still doing the beginners lessons on the gentle top bits, but that's about it. Some maniacs have skiied other runs, but mostly with severe damage to their bodies, clothes and pride.

Would still go back there, if snow were ok, in spite of what has been said (true) that prices on the mountains are now rip-off by BG standards. Given that just about every skier is funnelled on to two or three lifts, queues are very tolerable, mostly less than five minutes, tell that to the French/Swiss/Italian resorts!

May post some more general stuff later after sleep - transfer at 2.30am BG time this am!

x k

Yes, just got back myself and have to agree with this report. I had a good time but hated walking to and from the three-man chair at the beginning and end of ski day.

Also very true about meal prices. I did however find Piter's tea room very (next door to Bohimi to thr right of the Blue run T-bar) reasonable. When I enquired about this I discovered that he didn't pay any kickbacks to the instructors and therefore didn't need to hike up his prices.

I love skiing in Pamps, but have discovered that this place is becoming more and more commercial. Look at the Hotels and Apartments springing up everywhere. This place has well and truely been discovered.

Ah well, the dream is over.

DW

Just back yesterday also...

Still had a good week - was back for the 4th time but there were a number of things that bothered me.

For the first time I encountered several very rude staff in a few different places - first of all in the hotel pamporovo (second time staying, would not go back again), and we were put in freezing cold rooms on the 7th floor (windows open all night in corridor outside our room as cables were going through them) and the receptionist would not entertain moving us anywhere else & told us to speak to the rep, which we tried to do but missed her the first night and were boozing the second night so just got extra blankets and put up with it. They also would not give me a second key for the room when my hubby had gone out with the only key we had and I had to sit in the corridor for 15 mins while I waited for the chambermaid. In the hotel bar, on two occasions a member of staff was extremely rude to my friends and I (we were just having coffee and had not been drinking so it was not because we were drunk or anything). In another bar - the white hart, a staff member practically pulled a chair from under me when I moved it from one table to another!

Also noticed this year that the taxis were very expensive and tried to take you out of your way (only for I had been before I wouldn't have known) and were much more expensive than even last year. As others have mentioned, everything went up in price, restaurants, beer etc and also found that the same rounds got more expensive as the night was on.

I've always enjoyed the hols in Pamps, but this year, I think the snow or lack of it especially disappointed me. For the first time I didn't encounter many queues on the lifts (last year the queues were 30-40 mins on the 3 & 4 man lifts), not sure if that's because there was very little snow or if it was because it was later in the season than usual. The building around the resort is immense and I don't think they have the infrastructure to carry it off - if the queues were 30-40mins last year and next year they have double the bed capacity, well it stands to reason that the queues will be longer.

So all in all, I think next year I will be looking for another resort. I realise that the holiday is cheaper than other skiing holidays, but to be honest I think that I would prefer to pay a bit extra to get somewhere with better facilities. I also understand that the locals are paid low wages in comparison to us, but I've always been very aware of this and always tried to tip generously for everything, however I'm not prepared to tip for bad service or being ripped off.

At the end of the day, I did still enjoy my week even though the skiing was crap, the majority of the staff were lovely but there were a number of staff who would have coloured my judgement of the place more had I not been before and not encountered it, the nightlife was still as good as ever and I felt that the hotel pamps had gone downhill in the 3 years since I was first there.

I'm sure I'll be back at some stage, or maybe to one of the other resorts, but I think I'll leave it for a few years and see if things get a bit better....

We were in pamps in february, went for a meal in that tower at the top of the three man lift, whilst up there the lifts broke down, we were going to walk down, but they were going to charge the same amount we had paid for the lift up to use the stairs, that's not just ripping you off it's also quite enterprising. Didn't pay though, just stayed and had a beer. I loved the place and would go back next year, although it was my first time anywhere in Bulgaria even I wondeed about the amount of building going on.