we had a great week spending 4 days in the pamporovo area and then 3 days in Sofia.
The Rhodophi area and in particular Smolyan blew us away - they are beautiful, Sofia is going to become a great tourist attraction for weekend breaks.
Food was wonderful, prices great and the weather was superb (i'm sun burnin march )
Two big disappointments - there is still a dual charging problem, we met up with an english guy and his bulgarian wife and when i ordered anything it was 50% more than when she ordered it- that is just wrong! even the lift passes were 48bgn for us, but when she got them for us the next day only 31. same in the taxis if you get in and speak english it's 5bgn on the meter, say a word or two of bulgarian and hey presto - it's 50 stols!!
We looked at a lot of property but just couldn't find the right thing. that leads me to my second disappointment agents are screwing both the western buyers and the Bulgarian seller. we saw places that went up 10,000 euros when they discovered we were Brits. Again our bulgarian friend helped a lot and we also found out that an agent was charging 5% to the seller, 4& to the buyer and there was a difference between what the seller expected and what the agent was telling us.
that aside it's a great country!!!
just back from bulgaria
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Re
Rip offs also happen in the UK. For example unsuspecting tourists get a taxi at Heathrow and are charged ridiculous prices.
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poppettreasure
- Senior Member
- Posts: 53
- Location: Bedfordshire
we went to Pamporovo area with a british agent who is starting to sell in the area, well any area he can find properties in to be honest, he tried very hard to over charge us by 10,000 euros on a property and even more to finish it off. As we had already spent long hours on the net i had seen same house with advertised with another agent, this one is bulgarian and am now in the process fo buying it 10,000 euros cheaper. Nice guy also offered to share his commission if i find him any more buyers in the pamporovo region. Not all locals are con artists but like us they have to make money too. 
Dual charging is not something bad for places like Pamporovo or Sunny Beach and so. When you go shopping in Metro, Billa or even the small local store you will not pay more than us. So I do not even think that we should use "double charging" in this case - it is the same all over the world. It is just that you pay the real price and we pay what we can afford 
overcharging
Hi guys, I agree it's something to look out for: we bought a year ago and by pure chance paid the lowest of three asking prices as I happened to pick the "best" agent. But I did get ripped off on a taxi from the airport: a ride which my now friendly local taxi driver does for 30 leva was 120!!!!! I refused to pay more than 80 and had to sign the driver's book so he could explain to his boss how the stupid Brit couldn't read the tariff on the car windscreen and door...
BTW dual standards for charging in hotels has been a hot topic in the debates about entry into the EU, and when it comes, you can be sure that the screws will be tightened by the Brussels Bureaucrats in other areas too!
BTW dual standards for charging in hotels has been a hot topic in the debates about entry into the EU, and when it comes, you can be sure that the screws will be tightened by the Brussels Bureaucrats in other areas too!
Re: just back from bulgaria
Hi - we've experienced the same frustration trying to buy in BG. One property we showed interest in had increased by 20000 pounds when we arrived!
I realise that it is the seller that dictates this, but I can recommend Stara-Planina for being very helpful. So far so good, and our house sale will be going through. However, be aware that good properties are selling like hot cakes and it is a gamble as to whether there is one there when you look. We were told to have at least 8 properties that we were serious on - in fact, I had 20 in all, with land as a backup. Anyway, it did take 2 visits before it came good - be prepared to come away with nothing and sit for hours on the computer emailing the agents for up to date information. Don't set your heart on any one property because that is likely to end in disappointment, and don't give up! Do the research and put in the hard work and it will come good. We've put an offer in on an old granite house in Gorna Vasilica - the photos on the advert were not great but the place is fantastic (so my husband says - I haven't been yet!).
Good luck!
I realise that it is the seller that dictates this, but I can recommend Stara-Planina for being very helpful. So far so good, and our house sale will be going through. However, be aware that good properties are selling like hot cakes and it is a gamble as to whether there is one there when you look. We were told to have at least 8 properties that we were serious on - in fact, I had 20 in all, with land as a backup. Anyway, it did take 2 visits before it came good - be prepared to come away with nothing and sit for hours on the computer emailing the agents for up to date information. Don't set your heart on any one property because that is likely to end in disappointment, and don't give up! Do the research and put in the hard work and it will come good. We've put an offer in on an old granite house in Gorna Vasilica - the photos on the advert were not great but the place is fantastic (so my husband says - I haven't been yet!).
Good luck!
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millomgirl
- Mega User!
- Posts: 1578
Re: overcharging
houseman wrote:Hi guys, I agree it's something to look out for: we bought a year ago and by pure chance paid the lowest of three asking prices as I happened to pick the "best" agent. But I did get ripped off on a taxi from the airport: a ride which my now friendly local taxi driver does for 30 leva was 120!!!!! I refused to pay more than 80 and had to sign the driver's book so he could explain to his boss how the stupid Brit couldn't read the tariff on the car windscreen and door...
BTW dual standards for charging in hotels has been a hot topic in the debates about entry into the EU, and when it comes, you can be sure that the screws will be tightened by the Brussels Bureaucrats in other areas too!
Same happened to us too, with the taxis. Apparently, it isn't unlawful for these rip-off merchants to operate in this way. In Sofia, 'Okay' taxis are very good and cheap, and they don't rip you off. Our taxi driver even apoligised for having to charge an extra couple of levs when our journey took a bit longer, due to the rush-hour traffic. We learned the hard way - always ask how much the journey will be before you get in!!!!
Orlin wrote:Dual charging is not something bad for places like Pamporovo or Sunny Beach and so. When you go shopping in Metro, Billa or even the small local store you will not pay more than us. So I do not even think that we should use "double charging" in this case - it is the same all over the world. It is just that you pay the real price and we pay what we can afford
Yes, we should use '' double charging'', because that is what it is. YOU pay the REAL price and we are charged the 'Stupid rich foreigner' price ! Do they charge the wealthy Bulgarians more than the poor ones ? I don't think so !
Trev.
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