Borovets - 31st Jan....

I too went many years ago and have very fond memories of Bulgaria then especially the locals who were friendly and welcoming.

It certainly has changed.

I was there last month and had a wicked time. Instructors at the Albena school were fantastic and quite often our 4 hour lessons were 6 hours at no extra cost.
I'm going back in 2 weeks :D

snowb4ndit wrote:DO NOT whatever you do hire skis and/or boots from the ski depot under the Samakov...the equipment is very old and very poorly looked after.

I've never hired equipment from there but that's def. good to know.

[link spam removed - Admin]

In any case, there are plenty of hire places, just ask to see their kit before you commit.

snowb4ndit wrote:
The Alpina (bar) is run by an English couple ... It's very friendly and the food is pretty good. Everywhere else you'll find prices are much higher than they should be.

Yes, it was a favourite haunt of the MyBorovets crew, but unfortunately they won't be running it this year (2009 / 2010 season). Instead you can catch up with the upstair in Franko's bar. The food was excellent & yes, when you look at their prices the other bars are more expensive ... but perhaps that's why they're not running it this year??

snowb4ndit wrote:[The] pistes are poorly signposted and the lift system is basic and old.

Sorry, that just isn't the case.

snowb4ndit wrote:The Masala Path is fab for beginners but you do have to ski a blue to get it and there is a really tricky corner which is (IMO) equivalent to red/black.

Yes it is a great run. 10km from top of the gondola to bottom ... perfect way to end the day.

There is a green pathway across the bottom of the drag lifts (one of which is now a chairlift). Fair enough you do have to tackle maybe 100 yards of the bottom of a blue but it's hardly challenging as it is miles wide ... just traverse or sideslip.

snowb4ndit wrote:Instruction is poor...

Yes, it can be ... there is a Bulgarian instructors exam that any Bulgarian can take with no prior skiing experience... that's why every season we make sure we team up with the best instructors ... you've gotta know who you're booking.

MyBorovets use British instructors to ensure quality.

snowb4ndit wrote:If you have any youth with you make sure they don't accept free drinks from anyone working in the nightclubs. There are lots of stories about drinks being spiked and then security taking phones, cameras and money and chucking them out. Someone in my party last year was a victim of this and ended up in the medical center all night with his mum and dad watching over him scared for his life.

I haven't heard of this & am frankly horrified .... not calling you / them a liar but it does sound like the perfect excuse for a kid having one too many (from him I mean).... I'll keep an eye / ear open for this when I hit the resort & report back if I hear any stories...

snowb4ndit wrote:Lift queues at the Gondola are so long first thing in the morning (about an hours wait) providing your not a beginner you can get a cab up to the chairlift and then ski down a red and pick up the gondola mid station to avoid the queues.

Yes they can be horrendous - especially in high season. Grab that cab & we'll see you at the top!!

Thank you for your kind advice but there is no way I'll be returning to Bulgaria in the foreseeable future.

If you have a look on the 'bulgariaski' forum you will see there are many, many people singing from the same hymn book. You must have been walking around with your eyes closed.

My friends son and his mates are not 'boozy brits' and certainly not liars. There were also 'grown up' non alcohol drinking witnesses to the incident.

I hope you have a fab season.

I have read far too many horror stories about Bulgaria to ever think about taking my family there 8)