BANK ON BANSKO
KATIE LUNN TAKES A SKI BREAK IN THE BULGARIAN WINTER SPORTS CENTRE OF BANSKO
WHILE countries such as France and Italy are among the most wellknown skiing destinations, it can pay to look further afield.
Bulgaria has now established itself at a major snow holiday centre – and Bansko is among its most developing rapidly resorts.
The resort held the Audi FIS Ski World Cup in 2015 and since my last visit three years ago, there have been major changes.
The three-hour transfer up to the mountains is still hard going, but once we arrived in Bansko itself, it was clear there had been some investment in the resort.
There were more finished buildings, new shops, bars, hotels, and traditional Bulgarian restaurants.
It is, however, still obvious that this is a developing country and there remains some room for improvement.
But it’s the skiing and scenery that bring people here, not the architecture.
Balkan holidays arranged our lift passes, ski hire and lessons. The first morning ran a lot smoother than arranging it solo. The friendly reps had all the passes ready and we were up on the slopes by 10:30am, ready for lessons with English-speaking ULEN Ski Team instructors.
The Pirin mountain mainly caters for complete beginners through to intermediate skiers. There are seven blue runs, six red and three black runs. The 10 km ski road is a nice, end of the day run back down to the gondola station, but check conditions because it can be treacherous when icy.
We found the gondola queues could be quite long at peak times, so opted for the shuttle bus some mornings. This departs from just behind the gondola station every morning and drops off at the foot of the slopes. It runs every half hour, all day, and is an alternative if you’re scared of heights or the gondola!
Meals on the mountain range from soup at 7 Bulgarian lev (£2.99) to spaghetti bolognese or a half chicken and chips for 20 lev (£8.53). Hot wine and Pirinsko beer are 7 lev up in the mountains, but we found the ski road bars to be cheaper, quieter, and have log fires!
The English-speaking Balkan reps offered a range of optional extra activities such as Ski-Doo adventures, bum boarding, snowboard taster sessions, Bansko bar hop and the pizza and quiz night, proving the resort is suitable for families and groups of friends alike.
I would suggest, in fact, that it’s best suited for families, or groups of friends in their mid-twenties upwards.
The nightlife is whatever you make of it, but is not forced on you by the reps. We learned that skiers and their instructors could all be found enjoying a refreshing beer on happy hour prices at the Happy End bar next to the gondola station.
There are some contemporary bars such as Penguin bar and Euphoria Bar & Grill, the latter of which serves great cocktails and has live music each night. For a more upbeat night, Amigo’s bar is the one for you, hosting fire displays from bars staff, and an excellent band.
There are also more traditional restaurants in the area such as The House as a cheaper option, and Salt & Pepper as a more expensive from-the-grill style meal.
Our Hotel was St Ivan Rilski which, on the whole, was a clean, quiet and relaxing place to stay. We were in the studio apartments, separate to the main building, with great views of the mountains. The hotel was about a 10-minute walk to the gondola station, but a shuttle bus ran every 15 minutes each morning.
We made use of the fantastic hotel spa facilities every day, among them a steam room, sauna, infrared room, ice bath, swimming pool and hot tub. We also paid extra to have a ‘recovery massage’ (78 lev) on the last day to relieve our aches and pains. Well worth the money!
The town of Bansko in Bulgaria has the best snow record of all the Bulgarian ski resorts