The south-western Bulgarian town of Belitsa, cuddled in the valley of Razlog between the Rila and Pirin Mountain ranges, has received the 2009 European Destination of Excellence (EDEN) award on October 8, the European Commission said in a statement.

The little picturesque town is renowned for its tranquility and gorgeous panoramic sites and is home to the largest bear rescue centre in Europe. Belitsa was handed the award by European regional policy commissioner Pawel Samecki at a tourism forum in Brussels.

In total, 22 European destinations were handed EDEN awards, of which 20 were given to EU member states, with candidate countries Croatia and Turkey also particiapting.

The winning destinations were chosen by national juries in line with this year's theme - tourism and protected areas. The 2010 theme will be acquatic tourism.

A popular tourist attraction in Belitsa is the Dancing Bears Park situated in a forested area with rich natural water resources. Bears are allocated their own territory with plenty of trees and rocks for climbing, while the park rangers deliberately hide the food so that the animals will look for it themselves.

The park itself is part of a international project supported by the Four Paws Foundation, a non-profit organisation financed predominantly by charity. Belitsa local authorities support the project and hope that the bear park will turn into an attractive and lucrative tourist destination.

Meanwhile, in Greece, the EDEN award went to the island of Lesvos, while Romania was acclaimed for its Apuseni Mountains and the Apuseni Natural Park. In Turkey, the Kuyucuk Lake wild life reserve was also awarded. The full list of the 22 destinations is available on the European Commission website.