BULGARIA hopes to use its cultural heritage to attract wealthier tourists.

French tourism site Courrierinternational posted an item about numbers of tourists in Bulgaria growing because of traditional tourist flows from the former Eastern bloc.

"The preferred resort of the workers from the eastern bloc for decades, Bulgaria has become a centre for mass tourism again resuscitating its ex-clientele, which have neglected it since 1989, " the site said.

In an attempt to boost Bulgaria as a destination for tourists with more money to spend, Bulgarian officials are considering a campaign to attract tourists by using its cultural heritage, which is rich in Orthodox monasteries, mineral springs and holy places left by the Thracians.

This is the type of initiative referred to by Culture Minister Bozhidar Abrashev during a presentation in Poland.

In his presentation, entitled Cultural tourism: A Chance or Threat to the European Cultural Heritage, he praised the successful development of cultural tourism in Bulgaria over the past few years. Speaking to Polish tour operators and agencies, Abrashev emphasised opportunities for cultural tourism in Bulgaria.

"According to the projections of the Council of Europe, Europe's cultural heritage will have an exceptional role in the information society of the 21st century," Abrashev said.

In the era of globalisation, under equal economic conditions, it is the cultural heritage that will determine people's choice of their living environment, he said.

Tourism Agency executive director Bisser Yalumov said that Poland is a traditional market for Bulgaria. Preliminary figures show 86 125 Polish tourists visited Bulgaria in January-August 2004, up 65.59 per cent from a year earlier.

According to Blagoi Ragin, chairperson of Bulgaria's Hoteliers and Restaurateur Association, the country's tourism turnover has a potential of six to eight billion euro a year. He was speaking at the Rhodopes Tourist Bursa in Smolyan last week. The event was also attended by Ivo Marinov, an Economy Ministry director. Statistical data released by Marinov showed the United Kingdom, Germany and the Scandinavian countries as traditional markets. There have been tourists from Eastern Europe and two thirds of holidaymakers being from countries of the EU, according to the data.

According to him, the only decrease in tourism interest was from Russia, Ukraine and Belgium.

He quoted forecasts for the next year's tourism and spoke of expectations for a five to seven per cent increase in tourists.

Other optimistic forecasts are about to be soon circulated with the approach of the winter season and the newly constructed ski runs and infrastructure in some of the resorts, Borovets included.

UK newspaper the Observer, in a report on October 17, said that "one thing that the Bulgarian resort of Borovets certainly does not have to fake is novelty value".

The article was headlined, "For a few leva more ... you'll be living it up like royalty"

"With Andorra going upmarket, Bulgaria has taken over as the destination for budget conscious skiers," the article said.

The Observer said that Bulgaria was positioning itself as the new bargain basement of skiing. If the prices are low enough, the Balkans could easily become the new Pyrenees.

"Whether or not it succeeds in winning over the world's top winter-sports athletes, Borovets is certainly pulling in skiers with an eye for a cheap deal," the Observer said. The article compared Borovets to the Alps or the Pyrenees.

"The ski area is small, and the lifts antiquated; if you're after a high-mileage ski holiday, go elsewhere."

The article said that Bulgaria was worth considering for the cost-conscious beginner "or if you find that holidays to most Alpine resorts are becoming depressingly alike, a ski trip here is guaranteed to be quirky, unforgettable - and great value, too".