How the successful 2021 tourist season in Bulgaria affected the Bulgarian property market

The summer of 2021 on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast turned out to be a hot one. Warm weather with occasional rains that brought a refreshing coolness delighted holidaymakers. The number of tourists from Europe, Israel, Ukraine and Russia who chose Bulgaria for their summer holidays gave the staff working in tourism and real estate plenty to do. According to preliminary data, more than 2 million people holidayed at Bulgarian seaside resorts over the three summer months. The specialists at Bulgaria Avenue have identified several features of the interplay between the tourism and real-estate markets in 2021, and they are ready to share them with you.

Tourism in Bulgaria in 2021

The 2021 tourist season in Bulgaria was scheduled to open on 1 May. It was expected that already during the Easter holidays the country would welcome tourists from Israel, Romania, other European countries and Russia. However, regulations related to the prevention of the coronavirus pandemic forced adjustments to these plans. In May there were very few tourists on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast – in Varna, Byala, Sveti Vlas, Sozopol and Sunny Beach. Most of the visitors came from other Bulgarian cities and from Romania to spend a pleasant weekend by the sea. On weekdays the rare hotels that had opened stood empty.

This trend led to nearly half of the hoteliers and restaurant owners declaring that they were unwilling to open even for the summer. It was expected that 2021 would prove just as much of a failure for tourism as 2020 had been.

The first days of June only added to this pessimistic outlook. Bulgaria was closed to citizens of the United Kingdom and Russia; the situation with travel permits in European countries remained unstable. Airports were already accustomed to standing empty, while queues of motoring tourists began to build up at the border crossings. 

The summer of 2021 revealed Bulgaria in a new light for many – people began arriving in the country by car. Among them were travellers and owners of property in Varna and Burgas. The long distances and the need to cross several borders deterred neither families with children nor pensioners from Russia, Ukraine, the Netherlands and Germany.

The number of motoring travellers did not decline even after air links with various countries were resumed.

As a result, the 2021 tourist season in Bulgaria vividly demonstrated the emergence of new trends:

• A growing share of individual tourism. More and more travellers organised their trips independently, buying tickets, arranging transfers, booking apartments and obtaining visas. 
• Bookings were made not only for hotels that work with tour operators, but also for ordinary flats in gated complexes in Sveti Vlas and at the Saint Constantine and Helena resort, houses in Kosharitsa and Pomorie, and townhouses. To do this, tourists contacted owners directly, used specialised websites, and actively turned to estate agencies. This year Bulgaria Avenue received more enquiries about renting seaside property than ever before.
• Pensioners and young couples rented studios in Ravda, Nessebar and Obzor. Families with children preferred two- and three-room flats on the first sea line or slightly further inland. Popular destinations were Sveti Vlas, Sunny Beach, Sozopol and Nessebar. 
• For many, the availability of parking became an important requirement.

These trends proved so successful that, according to preliminary information published by the Ministry of Tourism, in 2021 more than 2.2 million tourists holidayed on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast. One and a half million of them were Bulgarian citizens, and the rest came from various corners of Europe. 

Among foreign tourists, the largest group was citizens of Romania; by mid-August almost 223,000 people had visited Bulgaria. 

The number of tourists from Poland was 58,000. More than 37,000 Czech citizens chose to holiday in Varna and the resorts around Burgas. The figures for arrivals from Germany and Ukraine were similar. There were 37,000 Germans who visited Bulgaria and 33,000 Ukrainians. Statistics recorded 14,500 Israeli citizens and only 7,300 Russians.

The figures are enormous. As a result, at the beginning of August tourists could not find vacant apartments or hotel rooms. The media repeatedly published warnings that a weekend break was only possible if a booking had been made in advance. 

The relevance of buying property in Bulgaria

The powerful pressure on the tourism sector and the growth of individual tourism also had an impact on the real-estate market. Bulgarian property became more popular among investors. Among buyers, the share of Bulgarians and of citizens of Germany and Israel grew. Many of them decided to buy flats in Golden Sands, in Sunny Beach and, of course, in Burgas and Varna.

The large seaside cities of Burgas and Varna are more often chosen for permanent residence, whereas the main aim of buying housing at the seaside resorts is to let the property out. Many people deliberately bought several inexpensive studios and luxurious two- and three-room flats in the Fort Noks, Harmony Suites and Melia complexes. One apartment would be bought for personal use, while the others were purchased as an investment. Even those who had been unsure whether it was worth buying a flat in Bulgaria realised that Bulgarian real estate is a good investment.

The influx of tourists and the inability to find accommodation in the places they liked sparked an interest in property among fans of summer seaside holidays. Most of them were families with children. Comfort and good infrastructure turned out to be the key factor for them. That is why they too focused on housing in Fort Noks, Amadeus and Aphrodite at Sunny Beach, Paradise Garden in Elenite, and the Dinevi Group complexes in Sveti Vlas.

Bulgaria Avenue offers seaside property in Bulgaria for sale. In line with your enquiry, we will select for you a studio, a house with a plot, a two- or three-room flat, a chalet or a villa.