Bulgaria's non-governmental tourism organisations insist that the sector be monitored by a ministry, instead of the currently existing State Agency on Tourism.

This was said on September 14 at a news conference by the heads of the National Board of Tourism, the Bulgarian Association of Travel Agents, the Bulgarian Hotel and Restaurant Association, the Bulgarian Tourist Chamber and other organisations.

The representatives openly criticised the ineffectiveness of the tourism agency and the lack of a strategy for the development of the sector.

The development of the tourism sector is connected to infrastructure, transport, advertising, said Bulgarian Tourist Chamber chairperson Tsvetan Tonchev.

According to Poli Karastoyanova, head of the National Tourism Board, a tourism ministry is necessary to successfully use European Union funds that are expected to flow into Bulgaria after the country joins the union.

The tourism sector generates about 15 per cent of Bulgaria's gross domestic product, Tsvetanov said.

Meanwhile, the members of the National Tourism Board are considering the introduction of a special system to provide the services of some of Bulgaria's resorts under preferential terms for Bulgarian tourists.

The announcement was made by Karastoyanova.

The draft project aims at bringing back Bulgarian tourists to local resorts. It envisages several types of subscription cards giving discounts on prices on the model existing in all other countries, Karastoyanova said.

Bulgaria's other major tourist organisation, the Union of Bulgarian Tourist Industry, will also consider the possibilities of launching a special subscription card for Bulgarian tourists. The union will discuss the idea at the end of September 2006, after which it will disclose further details, the union's chief secretary, Ivo Marinov, said. The scheme should not constitute a breach of the Discrimination Act, Marinov said.

Bulgarian summer resorts Dyuni, Slunchev Bryag (Sunny Beach), St Constantine and Elena and some of the sites in Bansko and Pamporovo winter resorts are interested in joining the project.

The January-July 2006 revenue from foreign tourists in Bulgaria marked a 4.62 per cent increase year-on-year, the State Agency for Tourism said on September 14.

According to preliminary data, revenue from international tourism (transport excluded) for the first seven months of 2006 amounts to 1.16 billion euro, which is 4.62 per cent more than in the same period of 2005.

Costs of Bulgarian citizens for travelling abroad in January-July 2006 amounted to 631.2 million euro, or 10.45 per cent more year-on-year.

More than 2.8 million foreign tourists visited Bulgaria from January to July 2006, up 4.82 per cent year-on-year.

The bulk of foreign holidaymakers came from Greece, Serbia and Montenegro, Macedonia, Germany and the UK.

The number of Greek tourists totalled 333 000 from January to July 2006, down 10.75 per cent. The number of German and British tourists stood at 285 000 (down 5.25 per cent) and 246 000 (up 12.11 per cent) respectively.

Romanian tourist arrivals registered the biggest rise in the first seven months of the year with 96.06 per cent. The number of Russian tourists rose 29.06 per cent on the year through July to 132 000.

A total of 2.3 million Bulgarians travelled abroad in the first seven months of 2006, down by more than four per cent year-on-year. Bulgarians travelled mostly to Turkey, Serbia, Greece, Macedonia, Germany, Romania and Italy.