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Bansko. ‘At the moment all ski equipment is being subjected to reparation and maintenance. We are working hard in the mountain in view of the preparation for the winter season’, the Mayor of the Bulgarian ski resort of Bansko Aleksandar Kravarov said in an interview for FOCUS Radio – Pirin.
 

This country is looking forward to joining the EU, but we're already heading over to Europe's new funky-town, says Adrian Mourby
It wasn't all that long ago that the first secretary would summon apparatchiks in black limousines to his summer residence in Varna. "Oh yes," says Anelia. "We used to say the party is everywhere. We still do - but we're not talking politics anymore!" This is the Varna joke. The people of this noisy seaside town enjoy it, but then they enjoy everything. These days it's the all-night party that rules in Varna. In fact, the place has proved so popular with British holidaymakers since British Airways launched flights here earlier this year, that it has extended its schedule to year-round.

European experts would start the final inspection of Bulgaria’s success in the fight against corruption on August 21.
Interior Minister Roumen Petkov already presented some of the measures his ministry undertook to counter corruption.
Petkov said that 41 Interior Ministry employees were dismissed on charges of corruption.

 Bulgaria's seaside resort of Sunny Beach is so fully booked that some hotels have resorted to adding campbeds in the rooms to accommodate the tourists.There is not a single free bed in the resort, Dimitar Yankov of the Nessebar Municipal Council told Standart daily.

Bulgaria's ski resort of Bansko will see a new ring road, which will be built over the following year. Traffic jams that are hellish at the peak of the winter season have brought forth the need for a new road, BNR reported.

Bulgaria's Balkan resort of Bansko has seen the other side of the immigration from Eastern Europe, the Independent writes on Saturday, focusing on the number of Brits that have flooded the town.What was once typically Bulgarian is today "a small corner of Britain in a foreign field", author Andrew Osborn believes. The British diaspora own half of the houses in the area, and a pub that caters to their nostalgia with Sky TV, English breakfasts and cider. They come to Bulgaria because of the low prices of land and beer and the great skiing and nature.

Family skiing holidays are more affordable than ever and with more hotels and resorts catering for all family needs there is no reason why the whole family can’t head to the slopes. Inghams offers a range of special offers such as free lift passes, free insurance, accommodation discounts bringing costs down even further. Check out Inghams top family recommendations for ski 2006-7 with everything ranging from Saariselka in Lapland to Rusutsu in Japan.

Neilson launches its new second edition ski brochure for 2006/7 this month featuring eight new resorts and a raft of new product refinements. Already the holder of more awards than any other ski company, Neilson has made a number of additions to the programme, ranging from more ski-in ski-out properties, to the introduction of a family rep service, further enhancing the Neilson ski product for families, groups and couples. There is also a strong continued emphasis on quality, both of accommodation and service, with new, carefully selected family hotels, featured alongside an increased number of spa hotels and luxury chalets.

 Snowshoeing in Eastern EuropeI've become a big fan of Explore trips since my recent Icelandic volcano trek with the budget adventure outfitter. One of my fellow hikers on that trip, Robert Metcalf, put me on the trail of this other Explore gem: a five-day guided snowshoeing adventure in Bulgaria.

With Bulgaria's trackless Rila Mountains as a backdrop, this trip allows you to visit traditional Bulgarian houses, stop at the painted monastery of Rila — a UNESCO World Heritage site — and eases you into snowshoeing with instruction that should take "just a few minutes to master."

Alternative tourism is among the sectors to which Bulgaria puts weight, the country's state-run tourism agency announced in Salzburg, Austria.The country has presented its tourism development strategy at the Second European Conference on Rural Development in the Austrian city.