Sat, Nov 21 2009

Pamporovo, Chepelare to slash prices to attract winter tourists

Fri, Oct 16 2009 15:40 CET byNick Iliev 2581 Views 11 Comments
Pamporovo, Chepelare to slash prices to attract winter tourists

Hotels and restaurants in the Bulgarian ski resorts of Pamporovo and Chepelare were feeling the pinch of the global economic crunch more severely this time around than last year, offering prospective tourists packages that were up to 20 per cent cheaper than 2008, an association of hotel owners said, as quoted by Bulgarian news agency BTA on October 16 2009.

Bookings from the UK and Russia for the winter season have declined, but industry analysts say that Bulgaria relies mostly on last-minute bookings. Nevertheless, owners looked to ensure higher occupancy rates by offering cheaper packages.

"It is vital to control price levels and that price schedules should be made available to travel agencies early enough," Deputy Economy Minister Ivo Marinov told BTA at international tourism fair "Bulgarian Mountains - Four Seasons Hospitality", held in the southeastern town of Smolyan in the outskirts of the Rhodope Mountains.

At the conference, Marinov said he hoped that booking levels would not drop compared to last season, emphasising the importance of price control and avoiding the possibility of prices having to be re-adjusted and decreased midway through the season, which would harm the industry more.

The strategy envisages for prices in the Chepelare resort to be trimmed by 10 per cent on average, according to the head of hotel owners association Subi Madankov, with rates on three- and seven-day packages slashed further still. In Pamporovo, meanwhile, this winter season prices are expected to be reduced by between 15 and 20 per cent on average from 2008, Pantelei Memtsov, head of a regional tourist association told BTA.

Regardless of the cost-cutting measures, however, both hotel owners and Marinov expect that the number of British tourists this winter to be smaller than in previous years.

Comments

Anonymous Mark iow Wed, Oct 28 2009 21:03 CET
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Have been going to Bulgaria for many years and the last 2 years especially have shown that prices in resort are just a rip off. For the very first time we are travelling flight only and staying self catering, then a trip off the mountain to do our shooping at locals prices. I WILL NOT BE PAYING THE GREEDY BAR/RESTAURANT OWNRES THE PRICES THEY WANT

Anonymous expat Thu, Oct 22 2009 12:42 CET
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very correct Mikael! the lack of service quality will hit tourism very hard in BG. hopefully the crisis will be seen as an opportunity for change in business understanding. hopefully the fittest (or better the most clever) tourism companies survive, which will understand the link between customer satisfaction and business success - especially in service industry (including tourism)

Anonymous escortplius Mon, Oct 19 2009 21:33 CET

This comment has been removed by the moderator because it contained реклама & спам.

Anonymous Mikael/Sweden Mon, Oct 19 2009 04:31 CET
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I read travelers' reviews of various hotel in Stockholm Sweden on Booking.com and found almost no one complained about the service or staff. Why is it so difficult for Bulgaria to understand the link between good service and nice staff, with the earning power of the hotels? In Bulgaria is called the absence of tourists for "Creit crunch".

Anonymous Cosmos Sun, Oct 18 2009 21:33 CET
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Bulgaria has a very bad reputation for the lack of (service) poor food and overcharging anyone that is not a native of BG but the English will only get ripped of once and never return so suck on it.

Anonymous Mark Turner Sun, Oct 18 2009 20:12 CET
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I agree with everything but partially...Yet there are greedy hotel owners, however, hospitable and cozy hotels do exist. The point is that the overall image of Bulgaria and tourism is spoilt. About offers, mhm why last minute is the last resort, I don't wait the brochure to reach my door, but search myself and good offers tend to be found far from 906 GBP..

Anonymous stevie d Sun, Oct 18 2009 12:23 CET
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This is a slap in the face for all the greedy, short sighted bar/restaurant owners who thought that charging double/triple the price to Brits and expecting them to return. No longer will I have a meal in a bar and then be expected to PAY to use the toilet. What goes around...

Anonymous Mikael/Sweden Sat, Oct 17 2009 21:36 CET
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The average income of households in Bulgaria is 777 Lev.
To think that someone in UK would buy a trip for 1.945 BGN
in the UK is totally sick. They know that they get robbed and pay exorbitant.

Anonymous Peter Sat, Oct 17 2009 18:55 CET
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About time people are waking up in part of Bulgaria!! Prices have been way to high for a long time, being greedy and not thinking about the future isn't in my eyes very smart. People get better service and quality all around Bulgaria at a better price. Even Bulgarians prefer to go for example to Greece and Turkey.

Anonymous Cosmos Fri, Oct 16 2009 19:18 CET
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I saw an add in in our local holiday agents for ski Bulgaria 2 adults & 1 child b&b £906 for 1 week flying from Luton are they having a laugh ?.

Anonymous Dianne Hatton Fri, Oct 16 2009 18:50 CET
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I wouldn't rely on last minute bookings this year. Most people are spending xmas at home and saving the money.

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