Bulgaria Tourist Entertainment Guide

Bulgarians are fond of eating and there’s ample evidence of the fact - almost every neighbourhood will offer more than one type of eatery. Most cities and towns, and even small villages, will usually have taverns which sell good, wholesome local food, along with beer, wines, and other drinks; larger cities will, on the whole, offer a much wider choice: cafés, specialty restaurants (many of them serving international cuisines like French, German, and even Oriental), fast food outlets and snack counters, pizzerias, and pastry shops. Most food and beverage outlets open all days from 11 in the morning to 12 midnight, but some may even work all 24 hours. Most menus, especially in more touristy areas, are printed in both Bulgarian and English.

Ever since the end of communism in Bulgaria, the country seems to have modernised with a vengeance- at least as far as entertainment and recreation are concerned. Large cities like Sofia (and even smaller towns) have a number of cinema halls, theatres, and concert halls where there are regular performances of traditional dances, music, jazz, rock, ballet and what-have-you. Keep an eye on the local newspapers for listings of events. A number of important regional festivals also showcase traditional performing arts, and can be great fun. Try the Koprivshtitsa Folk Festival (held every 4 years), the Pernik festival (a biennial event), the spring festival of Koukeri, held in the Rodopi Mountains, and the Festival of Roses, at Kazanlak and Karlovo.

For more `contemporary’ forms of entertainment, there are numerous pubs, nightclubs, restaurants and discotheques scattered across the country- especially in the cities- and most can keep you well occupied through the evening.