Bulgaria’s three main winter resorts, Bansko, Borovets and Pamporovo, were overcrowded during Christmas and New Year’s Eve, Dnevnik daily said.

All hotels and private guest houses were booked in advance, despite the lack of snow in some places.

Nedyalka Sandanska, manager of the concessionaire of all Borovets equipment Balkantourist, said that nearly 5200 tourists stayed at Borovest during the holidays. The resort would be fully occupied until the middle of January 2007, she said.

Russian tourists will celebrate their Christmas in the resort on January 7 2007. Numerous groups of British tourists are expected later. Currently foreign tourists come mainly from the UK, Russia, Serbia and Greece.

Hotels in Pamporovo were also full, Dnevnik said. Tourists from the UK, Turkey, Greece, Serbia and Macedonia visited the resort.

Among Pamporovo’s problems were the lack of snow and the ongoing construction.

Bansko representatives said that almost all of the 10 000 beds in the resort were booked during the Christmas and New Year vacations.

Mostly foreigners had booked accommodation in the winter resorts, Dnevnik said. Only one fifth of the tourists were Bulgarians.