Bulgaria expects to resume flights with Russia by the end of the year

Bulgaria hopes to resume flights with the Russian Federation and begin receiving Russian tourists by the end of the year. Today this issue will be discussed at a meeting between Deputy Prime Minister of Bulgaria Maryana Nikolova and Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Dmitry Chernyshenko, a source in the travel industry said.

“The country really wants to open this year, because the winter ski season is ahead. Also, large tour operators are gathered at the Bulgarian Embassy to show the new tourism products. A number of initiatives are being prepared to promptly resume tourism between the countries,” the source said.

As Bulgarian media reported with reference to the Deputy Prime Minister of the country, negotiations on the resumption of flights are already underway between the Russian Federation and Bulgaria, but no results have yet been achieved.

In turn, a source close to the aviation industry does not expect an early resumption of flights between the countries. “The prospects for launching flights are unclear, because Bulgaria is a member of the European Union, and taking into account the new rules of the European Commission, Bulgaria must open together with Europe,” he stressed.

“It is very important for tour operators to resume tourism with Bulgaria this year, not only because the ski season is ahead and companies need sales, but also because of the start of early booking. If the country doesn’t launch it before the end of the year, then the summer season-2021 will be overwhelmed,” Intourist tour operator explained.

According to the Ministry of Tourism of Bulgaria, over the five months of 2020, the tourist flow from Russia fell by 60% compared to 2019. In total, over 450 thousand Russian citizens visited Bulgaria in 2019.