|
|
|
|
Borovets, Bulgaria - Beginners paradise
Borovets is the oldest and biggest mountain resort in Bulgaria situated 1350m above sea level, on the northern slopes of the Rila Mountain. It is located at the foot of peak Moussala (2925m), the highest on the Balkan Peninsula and is surrounded by age-old pine woods. The slopes generally have snow cover from November to May but this season has been an especially hard one for Borovets due to the 'European-wide' lack of early season snowfalls.
The closest airport to Borovets is Sofia which is about an hour and a half hours drive away. The route takes you directly through the town of Samokov (27 664 inhabitants, 950 m above sea level) which is situated in the northern foot of Rila Mountain. Samokov is the highest town in Bulgaria and only 10km away from the resort of Bororvets.
 The Skiing
We were there during the peak half-term week and because it was very busy, in order to help get my confidence back (having not been on a set of skis for a year) I decided to search out some slopes with plenty of space for my first runs. I ended up heading up to the top of the gondola and after a bit of a wait to get onto a gondola I got to the top and was pleased with the snow and the space in front of me. Despite the lack of snow and unusually warm temperatures there was still plenty of skiing to be done on the beautifully groomed runs.
The runs are usually well groomed and sign posted so that you don't venture onto a red or black run when, like me, you're only just thinking about taking on a blue. The lifts are well maintained and the queuing time isn't long unless it's snowed overnight and every skier and boarder wants to head up and enjoy the powder. Borovets offers great skiing for beginners and intermediates but not much for the advanced skier. There are a few blacks available but nothing very challenging. There are two ski schools in Borovets: the Samokov Ski School which is run by the Samokov hotel and Borosports based at the foot of the slopes within and by the Rila hotel.
There are loads of bars and restaurants for you to choose from, offering everything from live music in the evenings to a nice cup of 'warming' hot chocolate after a hard day on the slopes. A couple of the top restaurants to visit for me are Mamasita's, which had a live rock band in the evening, top notch service and the nicest food available throughout the resort. The other has to be the restaurant in the Samokov Hotel called the Panorama. This is situated on the top floor of the hotel and has views of the whole Rila mountain range. A large selection of food is available and for added novelty the food is cooked in front of you.
When the snow does fall in this resort it really comes down as we found out on Wednesday morning. We had been out in a couple of bars on Tuesday night when the snow finally started falling. By the time we got back to the hotel at about two in the morning there was a layer of snow covering the ground and the parked cars but it had stopped snowing. When we finally got ourselves up in the morning the sight that greeted us was amazing - a winter wonderland, and the snow showed no signs of stopping. It snowed virtually all day long and it really freshened the place up. Due to this snowfall, the skiing was greatly improved and made for a much better last few days and this was helped by the continuing snow and low temperatures.
More resort informaion and great savings on holidays to Borovets.
Report: Pinkesh Hindocha 2007
|
|
|
Add to favourites
Make ifyouski my homepage