Sofia Airport

A useful 20% off all Wizz Air flights booked between 22nd and 26th October for travel from today to 27th March has just been announced. This offer includes flights to Sofia from London Luton and from the many cities in Europe that now have direct Wizz Air flights. Full details at wizzair.com.

Flight Cancellation Warning

I have been speaking Balkania travel, a Bulgarian specialist travel agent today, and Vanya there explained how how EasyJet, Bulgaria Air and BA have been consolidating flights to Bulgaria (Varna and Sofia from the UK in particular). This problem can be made much worse by under booked flights being cancelled at very short notice.

Last year EasyJet did this in attempt to avoid flying a loss making flight. I advise always checking on your flight departure a few days before scheduled flight to see if it is still flying. It is perfectly within an airlines right to change your flight without compensation.

My suggestion, for November flights in particular, is to consider Bulgaria Air first. If you are taking a bag and have a glass of wine on board there is often very little difference between the low cost airlines and BA and Bulgaria Air. And of course you arrive at Terminal 2 in Sofia — which exudes a air of calm — in a clinical sort of way. Of course this is only relevant if you are near London.

Talking of which, speculation is rife that Ryanair are looking to fill the void of no direct Dublin flight. This will be a huge boost for visitors from all of Ireland.

Sofia So Good

So there we have it — now’s the time to book your trip. Bansko is gearing up for the season ahead… but recession or no recession, there is nothing like getting out into the mountains for fresh air.

Or a pre Christmas trip to Sofia for spa, shopping and a good night out out. Tip: try my favourite piano bar in Sofia, Sinatras. Sofia is in many respect my favourite European city, and one which like so much in Bulgaria, only reveals its varied pleasures after some perseverance, some research or a local guide.

Need Bansko accommodation? go here:  http://banskoblog.com/bansko-accommodation/

Own property to rent?  offer closes 15th November: http://banskoblog.com/advertise-bansko/

More Flight Offers

We will most likely see a similar offer announced soon from Bulgaria Air and possibly BA, so well worth registering with the airlines to get the offers emailed as they are launched.

If you hear anything on flights to Sofia — or have experienced problems with flight cancellations, consolidations or diversions then please let us know.

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Wizz Air continue to adapt and add new routes. And this additional route, along with Bourgas to Poznan,
Bourgas to Prague, Sofia to Venice  and Sofia to Eindhoven (from 25 October) is superb news for all those looking to visit Bulgaria from UK, Poland, Czech Republic and Austria.

The Wizz Air Varna service  complements BA flights to Varna — its all year round too. If you enjoy Bansko then you should try Varna for its magnificent sea gardens — a real historic area.

Varna is lively all year round and I expect and the new golf course to the north will help bring more tourism outside the summer months.

If you haven’t booked your ski trip to Bulgaria, then now is the time to check flights. If are yet to try Bulgaria for a ski holiday, by the time you have paid for everything CAN be much less than half the price of France. Especially useful if you have a family to pay for. Needless to say its not all good in Bansko — but its coming together, and avoiding the pit falls is easy.

Are you feeling less inclined to spend on your winter holiday this year? And is the thought of missing the annual fix of a ski trip is not filling you with joy? Well, if you are new to this site, then do try joining and getting the guide and more info. There’s no spam — and I am never offended if you wish to opt out receiving the occasional newsletter.

For close to the gondola accommodation  http://banskoblog.com/bansko-accommodation/

Remember to sign up now and receive regular updates including snow condition — just like this report which was taken over Christmas period: http://banskoblog.com/2008/12/bansko-ski-conditions/ – and reports on the best bars, restaurants and clubs and a whole host of info. Or if you’re happy to recommend a place, or business please let me know!

Here’s to sorting winter season flights and thanks to Wizz Air for placing Varna on the city break map some more

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Bansko Jazz Festival

We’re all up to it now. Finding cheap flights. Taking a break – and with the economic crisis in full swing – this should mean a ton of cheap flights to Bulgaria.

Well that’s what you should think. And this is, I am sure, typical of many a reader — here’s an email from Maeve Manogue this morning wanting to fly out for the Bansko Jazz Festival:

“Hi Lance, I recently signed up to Bansko Blog and am finding it really useful. It’s great to find some POSITIVE reading about Bansko among the “doom-and-gloomers” ;o)

I’m looking to go to Bansko for the jazz festival in August, but the London – Sofia flights are suddenly getting really expensive (currently, the cheapest London – Sofia is minimum £200rtn) – and they’re rising by the day! So I just wondered if you had any insight as to why this might be? Is there something going on in Sofia that week or is it just that it’s peak summer holiday time / schools off or something like that?

Hope you can help un-baffle me!! Cheers, and keep up the good work on the blog!”

Why Have Fares Increased?

I now have a better idea as to why this happens after speaking to Bulgaria specialist booking agency, Balkania Travel. This travel agency is run by expat Bulgarians in London – Vania and Valery and the team. They offer a great service, and over 50% of the time they beat the cheapest fares I find through skyscanner.

But why have fares gone up?  Well the first obvious answer is simple – supply and demand. The airlines can’t make money with everyone paying £50 (over half of which is tax) so thay have been trimming their flights.

Then of course there are some people who now understand the media can talk nonsense on the weather. For example, in the UK they say: “its going to be a baking hot summer”. How do they know? Its hard enough forecasting a week ahead let alone months.

And how many times do people really believe that a long range forecast is accurate.

Euro Currency Movements

There is the improvement in the pound against the all important euro. Well in my view the pound will strengthen further. Yesterday it was £1 – €1.16. I think it will be £1 = €1.25 by August — making a holiday in Bulgaria, for non euro earning visitors, a fair bit cheaper than last winter.

Once we see the pound improve a little more, then an overseas holiday will be more affordable. It will certainly feel psychologically more justifiable.

So Bulgaria Air has stopped flying from Manchester (previously twice a week) and Bulgaria Air has also stopped it’s once a day flight from Gatwick…. So now there are nine fewer direct flights a week to Sofia!

This is a real shame, particularly as the Gatwick departure times were excellent…10:30am take off and a punctuality record that, in my experience, beats every other airline I have ever flown with. Who would have thought that?

Charter Flights

There are fewer charter flights to the coast (Bourgas especially) and Varna this summer. So some travelers will be using Sofia as their destination. The charter flights left are obscenely expensive – think €325 to Bourgas. So rural Bansko property owners will use Sofia.

In addition, its quite likely that the Bansko Jazz Festival will see more UK property owner visitors than last year. More of their property is complete for owners to use.

I really apologise for stating the obvious BUT there is still competition between the airlines. We  can see clear evidence of this by British Airways now cheaper than Bulgaria Air from Heathrow…and if you take luggage and have a drink on board — are also cheaper than Easy Jet.

Apart from recent 20% off sale, Wizz Air are mostly more expensive.

Can We Book Cheaper By Booking Late?

Probably not — so book TODAY!

At just over £200 — the psychological barrier for a ticket price — this is more than a few weeks back. But comfort yourself that you’ll claw back the €40 or more through super cheap living expenses in Bulgaria.

Try Balkania Travel for BA and enjoy a drink and food on the plane…

No annoying extras or pesky in flight hard sales.

Sale smessages….usually blasted over the tannoy at painful volumes. And whilst I’m on a flow I can be sure as night follows day that I NEVER want a buy scratch card, expensive car hire, or anything else, thank you very much. Not convinced that traditional airlines can be better?  You take a check in hold bag for free.

Organise your car hire/transfer at lowest rates by reading my tips in this article: http://banskoblog.com/sofia-transfers/

Then you can take comfort that you’ll claw back the €40 flight cost through Bulgaria’s super cheap living expenses…1.5 leva (€0.7) for a large beer. And 10 leva (€5 approx) for a decent meal. Its cheaper than cooking yourself.

OR

WAIT… for a special offer. This is very risky now. There is less than a 20% chance this happen, in my view. This is the one time of year airlines can recoup earlier losses and, if there is reasonable demand, they will hold out. BUT I think Bulgaria Air may do an offer soon as they will not be filling up their planes charging more than BA.

So on a light hearted theme — and somewhat off topic — but to add some humour today, I came across this amusing video of Michael O’Leary talking about the “services” that may be available on his new Ryanair transatlantic service for business travelers! Please do not watch this if you are under 18, or prefer not wish to hear words of a sexual nature.

Winter Flights To Sofia

If you are looking for a winter trip then the problem will be worse. The tour operators are cutting back on their commitments. This will mean again that supply and demand will push prices up.

A load of people will be thinking of “roughing” it in Bulgaria. After paying €60 for six hot chocolates up in the mountain in Courcheval and other similar TROIS VALLEE Resorts in France, family skiers, and intermediates in particular, will be wanting to sit back and take stock. Look at their finances – and then book a cheap Bulgaria ski trip. Be it to Bansko, Borovets or Pamporovo.

If you’re reading this please register at this site for a ton of free info to ensure not only that you have a great value ski trip to Bulgaria but also one of the best you have ever had. Accommodation options are here: http://banskoblog.com/bansko-accommodation

Tips for getting cheap flights:

• register with Wizz Air, Easy Jet, Ryanair etc
• call  Balkania Travel tel: 0207 636 8338.  Use them, and they even may call you to tell you about future BA and BG Air flight deals
• watch out for flight release dates. 1st December is a popular date for Easy Jet and others.
• book popular dates, if you can, the day the flights are released
• fly indirect. Austria Air from London via Vienna to Sofia is a great compromise

More Questions Please

Thanks again to Maeve for her question.

If you have a question related to Bulgaria, or Bansko: then do comment below — or send me an email: http://banskoblog.com/contact-bansko-blog/

Property Owners

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BanskoBlog.com is the number1 Bansko website as measured by Alexa – the industry’s most respected independent web site statistics. Thanks for visiting today and hope to see you soon.

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This the Wizz Air 20% off deal launched today, for those of us who didn’t get round to booking flights in the one day offer — which I wrote about on the 19th May, http://banskoblog.com/wizz-air-offer-19-may/, we have a second chance.

Wizz Air fly to a load of destinations in eastern europe: so it well worth checking it out for other places to visit as well as Bulgaria.

One reader, who saw my last 20% off announcement, booked three flights to Sofia paying around £50 return. It really makes a holiday affordable – especially if you have family to pay for.

As always, its best to compare options so do use skyscanner to compare. NOTE: BA and Bulgaria Air take your bags for FREE and you’ll get drinks and food for FREE.

If you are looking for accommodation that is more flexible than anywhere I know. Flexible by length of stay AND day of arrival — then you are in the right place today. Just click here: http://banskoblog.com/bansko-accommodation.

I find that the secret to saving money on your  flights costs is by avoiding Saturday travel. Obviously school holidays have a big impact as well but day of travel often even more so when booking early.

Compare hotel prices via the leading cheap accommodation web site. booking.com. I have estimated before the savings, and they are huge. If you are new to Bansko, then you may be interested that in 2010 we have the Mens Super G World Cup and in 2011 we have the mens downhill! The womens last season here was a huge success and shows how far things have come. But with accommodation from €7 per person per night and living costs the cheapest in Europe, you can afford to come to Bulgaria thre times for every one trip to France.

Summer activities include Jazz Festival in August: details here  http://banskoblog.com/bansko-jazz-fest-2009/  and you may also want to check out Belitsa and the Dancing Bear Sanctuary as this is one of my favourite trips. The views are spectacular and the bears are amazing. Its NOT a museum, FREE entry (but donations encouraged).  Take a look at the kind of bear to be viewed in natural open living spaces:

Finally a little milestone reached today. I recently noticed that the site got its google stamp of approval. It got to a rank of three. This was in very quick time (under four months) and I must thank my mentor, Yaro. His free ebook is well worth reading. It is great for anyone interested in building and optimising either a new, or exisitng, web site. It’s good for a blog style format or regular.

I would also recommend my hosting company, hostgator who are really helpful: as well as being good value. Check them out here http://www.hostgator.com/.

You can keep up to date with news and my stories on Bansko  by subscribing below.

In addition why not give twitter a try. With over 200 followers now I expect this will prove to be a popular way for information to be passed round quickly.

Twitter Bansko

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Cheapest flights to Sofia. The lazy man’s way for a late Bansko ski deal. But first, from Germany, some good news. Flights now increased, with the announcement from no-frills air carrier Germanwings that the number of its Sofia to Köln/Bonn flights goes up to four a week, up from three, starting on March 29th.

The flights will depart from Sofia Airport every Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. Germanwings, which is part of the Lufthansa family, has a fleet of 25 Airbus A 319 aircraft.

But how do you find the best deals?

Well I have just trialled the new skyscanner tool and this cuts time from phoning around agents and visiting multiple web sites. I saved time by its ability to graphically display when the cheapest dates are to fly.

And it enabled me to pick the cheapest from my chosen airport.

Its works for any trip. And from anywhere.  I include this flight tool on this page and left.

Grab A Flight For Great Snow Conditions

View Towards Rila

Conditions are perfect in Bansko, and with over 10cm of fresh snow forecast for tonight, it’s getting better.  The Bansko ski season runs until 30th April.

For guaranteed lowest price accommodation, 200m from lift, click contact.

If have any cheap flight tips, then do please comment below.

If you found this post useful, why not sign up for regular updates? BanskoBlog is the online authority for Bansko.  Receive the essential and still free Bansko guide today.

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