Since in recent days there has been a sharp discussion about the quality of Bulgarian tourism, which topic found its very categorical illustration in the huge traffic jams to Greece, significantly aided by the insane repairs on our roads organized by the RIA, if we compare the quality of tourist services in Bulgaria and in neighboring countries, the result is desperately bad for our tourist business.
This is what Julian Voinov wrote on "Facebook".
The graph visually illustrates the deep structural problem of the Bulgarian tourist product. While Croatia and Greece have demonstrated rapid recovery and sustained growth in overnight stays after the pandemic shock, Bulgaria remains the only destination in the region that has seen sustained stagnation and even decline over the past year.
The decline in the number of foreign tourists from key European markets is a clear statistical indicator of the systemic problems in Bulgarian tourism.
According to the latest data from Eurostat and the National Statistical Institute for the beginning of 2026, foreign overnight stays in the country have decreased by 4.3%, putting Bulgaria in the Top 5 of the European Union countries with the largest outflow of international visitors. During the active summer months, the contraction of organized charter programs from Western Europe remains a persistent trend, while neighboring destinations such as Greece have seen double-digit growth. Even Bulgarian citizens themselves prefer to vacation abroad en masse, with the National Statistical Institute reporting record-breaking summer travel by Bulgarians to Greece and Turkey.
The main driver of this outflow is the progressive discrepancy between the quality of the offered tourist product and its final price.
Economic analyses show that over the past ten years, the growth of prices in Bulgarian restaurants and cafes has approached a shocking 110%, with an overall inflation rate of 43% over the same period. This drastic increase in prices is now completely incompatible with the real quality of service. While in Greece average accommodation prices offer a higher base value, including impeccable treatment and free beach areas, in Bulgaria the tourist is often forced to pay dearly for a product that remains at an amateur level.
This imbalance is exacerbated by the massive and uncontrolled overbuilding of coastal areas.
It has transformed the once green and peaceful resorts into concrete urban conglomerates, devoid of comfort, space and aesthetic value. The construction boom has outpaced the development of public infrastructure by decades. The lack of sufficiently modern treatment plants leads to periodic pollution of seawater and serious ecological crises, which immediately echo in social networks and the media. Problems with public utilities, such as frequent summer power outages, poor water supply during peak hours, and the broken road network around resort complexes, further worsen the stay of vacationers.
However, the basis of the poor quality is the deep crisis in the labor market. Businesses in Bulgaria are massively refusing to offer competitive wages for labor in the sector,
which is clearly visible when comparing the average gross salaries in the Balkans. While in Greece and Croatia, seasonal tourism staff earn an average of €1,000 to €1,500 net (and in many cases even more, including tips and food), and in Turkey, competitiveness is maintained by strong corporate packages, in Bulgaria, the pay of mass staff often remains anchored close to the minimum levels for the country. Savings on wages have driven qualified Bulgarian chefs, waiters and managers abroad. The attempt to compensate for this deficit by massively importing workers from third countries is being carried out without criteria for qualifications, language skills or professional experience. Since the budgets set for salaries remain low, they attract only unqualified staff who are replaced every few months. This approach is completely ruining the image of the sector, as tourists are faced with a lack of basic hygiene habits and professional skills.
This whole picture proves chronic managerial and entrepreneurial shortsightedness.
According to some industry and financial reports, the operating profits of a number of large hotel and restaurant establishments in Bulgaria have increased by hundreds of percent in recent years, driven by inflationary price increases.
The fact that this huge growth in profits is in no way transformed into an investment in human capital and an adequate increase in wages clearly reveals the priorities of local entrepreneurs. The main understanding of business in the sector is not to keep the client satisfied and build long-term loyalty, but to squeeze the most out of them financially within the short three-month season. The lack of a long-term vision and the aggressive charging for every additional service (from parking to umbrellas) naturally repel tourists, redirecting them to countries where the attitude towards the guest is elevated to a culture