Ferry to Bulgaria from Turkey, Ukraine and Russia in 2021 - News

The Bulgaria–Turkey, Bulgaria–Russia and Bulgaria–Ukraine ferry is a wonderful opportunity to travel by sea from one country to another. During the journey you can see many new things, enjoy the fresh sea air and save money. There is a lot of information online about the ferry from Varna and Burgas to Istanbul, Novorossiysk (Russia) and Chornomorsk (Ukraine), yet there is no specific data. Read our article to find out how things stand with ferry services at the beginning of 2021.

Burgas–Istanbul

In 2019, the management of the Burgas seaport presented the route of the Burgas–Istanbul ferry service with a stop in the Turkish town of Igneada. A successful trial voyage was carried out, to which officials from Bulgaria and Turkey were invited. 

Under the project, it was assumed that from 1 June 2020 the Burgas–Istanbul ferry would become a regular service and would make 45 voyages by 15 September. Travel time – 4 hours. Vessel capacity – 200 people. According to estimates, a return ticket would cost 70 euros, but for the initial period the Turkish government planned to introduce subsidies of up to 50%. 

Citizens of many countries, including Russia, Kazakhstan and Ukraine, showed great interest in the route. This is because Istanbul airport handles thousands of flights from various countries, offering convenient connections and favourable conditions. As a rule, airfares are low. For this reason, the option of travelling to Bulgaria via Turkey attracted and continues to attract many travellers. But whereas previously the question of how to get to Sunny Beach, Pomorie or Obzor was resolved in favour of a long bus journey or a rather expensive private transfer, the ferry would become a comfortable and interesting alternative to travelling by car. 

Unfortunately, given the coronavirus situation, when international tourism was effectively banned, implementation of the ferry project was postponed. At present there are no exact data on its resumption. Most likely, the Istanbul–Burgas ferry will not operate in 2021. It will start running no earlier than 2022.

Varna–Istanbul ferry

Another ferry route option that is supposed to connect Bulgaria with Turkey is Varna–Istanbul.

As of the beginning of 2021, the project for launching this route is not being considered. Most likely, interest from the government and investors will only appear after real results are obtained regarding the Burgas–Istanbul ferry. 

Ferry from Ukraine to Bulgaria: Chornomorsk–Varna, Odesa–Varna

One of the relatively quick and convenient ways to travel from Ukraine to Bulgaria used to be the Chornomorsk (Illichivsk until 2016) – Varna ferry. The operator was the shipping company “Ukrferry”.  The cost of an adult ticket ranged from 70 to 200 dollars depending on the cabin category. However, this service has not been running for a long time, and when ferry connections between Ukraine and Bulgaria will be resumed is still unknown.

In previous years it was also possible to travel to Bulgaria on a cargo ferry running the Odesa–Varna route. There were passenger cabins on board the vessel. However, as of the beginning of 2021, this way of reaching the Bulgarian Black Sea resorts from Ukraine is also unavailable. 

As of January 2021, the official website of Ukrferry Shipping Company (https://www.ukrferry.com/) lists in its schedule voyages from Chornomorsk to Batumi (Georgia), Karasu (Turkey) and Poti (Georgia). The ferries "Greifswald", "Kaunas" and "Vilnius", which serve these routes, are combined car/rail and passenger vessels. 

Voyages from Chornomorsk to Constanta (Romania) are currently cancelled.

On the other hand, from 12 February 2021 the Orlivka (Ukraine) – Isaccea (Romania) ferry crossing has been open to cars, passenger transport and pedestrians. We would remind you that the crossing was opened back in August 2020 but operated only for freight transport. Thus, another way has appeared to get from Ukraine to Bulgaria via Romania. The ferry crossing time is about 10 minutes. The cost for a passenger car is 15 euros. The distance from Isaccea to Varna is about 300 km, a 4-hour drive by car.

At the same time, we remind you that in Romania, as of February 2021, a state of emergency is in force, so you must have a recent negative COVID test with you.

Bulgaria–Russia ferry

A passenger ferry service on the Bulgaria–Russia route is also not currently operating. Such a possibility has been discussed for several years. It is assumed that a vessel would run between the Bulgarian ports of Burgas and Varna and the Russian port of Novorossiysk, similar to the cargo route that has been in existence since 2015.

Initially, the launch of the route was hindered by the unreadiness of the port of Novorossiysk to receive and dispatch passengers. Later, other problems arose. At the beginning of 2021, resumption of the project is not being discussed.

Bulgaria Avenue is closely monitoring the development of the situation. As soon as new ferry routes appear or old ones are restored, we will provide detailed information about them.