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By Air

There are four airports in Bulgaria. The main airport is Sofia International airport located 15minutes from the city centre. The second airport situated south of Bulgaria is Plovdiv International Airport mainly used for charter flights and for the ski resort of Pamporovo.

The other two airports are located along the black sea coast. Burgas airport is towards the South of the Black Sea coast and Varna airport to the North. Both of these airports are mainly used by tour operators during the summer season.

Direct Flights to Bulgaria

• British Airways flys direct to Bulgaria every day from London Heathrow to Sofia. This summer 2006 British Airways will be launching a new route from London Gatwick direct to Varna twice weekly.
• The Bulgarian national airline, has direct flights to Sofia from Gatwick every day and direct flights from Manchester every Sunday and Thursday (www.air.bg)

Indirect Flights to Bulgaria

The other option is to fly indirect to Sofia via another country from the UK. This option works out cheaper but it could take you around 8 hours to reach your destination because of transfer times.

Wizz Air the largest CEE based low-fare, low-cost airline operates flights from London- Luton to Sofia via Budapest

• Air France Flights from Heathrow to Sofia via Paris.
• Alitalia Flights from Heathrow to Sofia via Milan, Italy
• Austrian Airlines Flights from Heathrow to Sofia and Varna via Vienna, Austria
• Lufthansa flights from Heathrow to Sofia via Frankfurt, Germany
• Malev Airlines flights from Heathrow and Manchester to Sofia and Varna

Internal Flight

If you end up in Sofia and you don’t fancy the 5-7 hour drive to the Black Sea coast then you can take an internal flight by Hemusair airways.

Make sure you reserve your seat online before you travel so that your seats is confirmed upon your arrival. Hemusair offices are located on the first floor next door to the entrance to the restaurant. Their offices are very small so you may need to leave your luggage outside with someone.

Recommended Company to use for your flights to Bulgaria

If you’re like me and you don’t want to spend hours surfing the internet trying to book a flight to Bulgaria then I recommend you speak with Mari travel. They are an independent travel agent based in London specialising in flights and accommodations to Bulgaria.

By Rail

It is possible to travel to Sofia by train by taking the Eurstar to Paris and from there traveling on to Sofia via Budapest, although it can be a long and uncomfortable journey.