Our tips picked up after spending three months in Bansko.
Read the full details below, or head straight to the tips at the end.
In December 2022 we headed to Bansko, Bulgaria to spend the winter months skiing.
Well, I went for the skiing. Jo went out of a sense of duty or similar.
We spent the first week, over the festive period, with our family in a large rented chalet.
In the New Year, after family had gone home, we moved in to a small one bedroom flat in the centre of Bansko.
We stayed there until early March.
This was another try at our slow travelling plans.
By spending a few weeks in one place we kept the cost of travel low and got to know the local area well.
We soon found our way around the local shops, restaurants and ski area..
Having so much time there, we were able to find coffee shops and cafes that catered for the locals rather than the tourist trade.
These served traditional Bulgarian food at very reasonable prices.
These were significantly cheaper than the tourist cafes.
Early starts to avoid the lift queues became a regular thing.
How much did it cost?
The main costs of the holiday were the flights, transfers, accommodation and season long ski pass.
We booked our chalet and flat through Airbnb but subsequently found Bansko Facebook groups that were offering a range of accommodation at cheaper prices.
Try searching for Facebook groups such as ‘Rental Property Bansko’, ‘Bansko Blog’, or similar.
They have are a range of flats on offer for short, and long term let.
Ski pass prices are much lower than those I’ve seen in the Alps.
Up to date prices can be found here…
We booked a private transfer from Sofia airport which was quite expensive.
For the return journey from Bansko to Sofia airport we used Traventuria.
This only cost us 20 euros each (2023 prices).
Check their website here for up to date prices.
This was the view from our chalet bedroom window.
Not a bad way to start the day.
The flat we stayed at – Knights Lodge – was clean, cheap, and located within an eight minute walk to the gondola station.
Sadly we weren’t allowed to drive this.
The traditional Mexhana were a welcome sight after a day’s skiing.
The coffee from the vending machines in the Old Town area only cost the equivalent of about 30p in UK prices.
Where we bought our ski gear.
Before heading to Bansko we bought most of our ski equipment, and winter clothing, in the UK.
Decathlon was our go to shop for jackets, salopettes, gloves and helmets.
I did however buy my skis in Bansko.
These were a pair of last year’s rental skis which I picked up for £50.
Amazingly they lasted the whole season so I certainly got value for money out of them.
If I had any advice to give about equipment it would be to invest in a decent pair of gloves.
Most of the time I managed with my cheap pair, but on a couple of days of minus sixteen degree temperatures I did want a better pair.
I would also advise getting a phone holder with a clip attached to it.
Similarly small carabiners attached to gloves can save you losing them too.
Virtually every night we would see appeals on the local Facebook groups asking for help to find phones.
Typically these had been lost on the slopes or fell off the ski lifts.
I was as guilty as the next person for photographing and videoing when on the ski lifts.
I often wished I had a clip/attachment for my phone. I almost dropped it a few times.
A few pounds spent before you go could prevent a ruined holiday.
If you look closely at my suitcase of gear you’ll notice the string and carabiner attached to the back of my helmet.
I know it doesn’t exactly look stylish but string saved me from losing my goggles and gloves several times.
I also used it to lace up the bottom of my salopettes when walking to and from the gondola.
Definitely a question of substance over style.
I saw plenty of people ruin the bottom of their salopettes by dragging the bottom of them along the road whilst walking to/from the gondola at the start and end of the day.
Time for a sit down, a drink of water, and a flapjack at my regular picnic spot.
What are the gondola queues like?
Most people who have read about Bansko will no doubt have seen horror stories about the gondola queues.
There’s no getting round the fact that this can be an issue, particularly for those only visiting for a week or two.
Those who are fortunate enough to have lift passes can walk around the back of the lower gondola station and access the gondola without queuing.
Season pass holders also get first access at 8am when the gondola first opens.
If you haven’t got a season pass, or priority pass (available at some hotels) then you could be waiting at the bottom gondola station for some time.
I saw the queues stretching across the car park on a number of occasions.
There are ways to avoid this though.
Taxis can take you to the top gondola station which is effectively the bottom of the main ski area.
It might seem to be an unnecessary cost to pay for a taxi having already paid for a lift pass but if it allows you an extra couple of hours on the slopes then it might be cost effective.
After all skiing/snowboarding is the whole purpose of the trip – not queuing.
Minibuses also shuttle people to the top gondola station but the queues for these can also get lengthy.
Minibus tickets can be bought from a small wooden kiosk in the car park.
My tip would be to find a friendly taxi driver, (or get your hotel to find one), early in your stay and arrange for them to take you each day to the top gondola station at a set time.
The earlier the better but bear in mind that the chair lifts don’t start running until 8.45am.
Otherwise, you risk scrambling for a taxi each day, competing with the crowd, and potentially being ripped off due to the laws of supply and demand.
You might think that hiring a car would be cheaper but in peak season the police closed off the road to the top gondola station and only allowed taxis and buses through.
Is food expensive?
Food was relatively inexpensive, and cheap compared to London prices.
Although we did often ate out we also used the local supermarkets – Billa in particular.
You can get an idea of the price of food on their website here.
It is written in Bulgarian but has plenty of photos and prices shown so it’s easy to follow.
Bansko, not surprisingly, has a range of restaurants, cafes and pubs to choose from.
As a general rule of thumb the nearer you are to the gondola area the more likely you are to pay tourist prices.
Head down Pirin Street in to the old town instead for better value and more traditional menus.
The traditional restaurants are known as Mexhana.
In our opinion these serve the best food.
The old town part of Bansko is quite picturesque and compact.
Walking tours are often advertised on Facebook groups and are worth considering.
In winter there is a constant, lovely background smell of burning wood from the log burners that heat most of the houses.
Piles of wood feature in most gardens, or outbuildings, and it’s amusing to watch the delivery trucks dropping their load off on their rounds.
This usually involved drivers simply dumping a large quantity of wood logs on the pavement or road directly outside the customers address. The customer then has to move it indoors or to its storage place themselves.
Whilst the burning of logs might not be environmentally friendly it certainly adds to the quaint old world atmosphere in the town.
Noticing how a pile of logs outside one particular house slowly reduced over the winter was a way to count the winter days passing.
The above photograph was taken in early January.
The same house in late February with fewer logs left.
What else can you do in Bansko?
But I did mange to try couple of new things whilst there.
One of these was to sign up for an introductory avalanche awareness course.
This was a two day (one evening, one full day) introductory course hosted by James from Avalon Hotel.
On the first evening we met in the hotel for a presentation on avalanche dangers.
The hotel, or more accurately a co- living space , was a great seeing and very welconing.
The following day was spent on the mountains at Dobrinishte.
Here our guide took us to a remote part of the mountain.
We were shown how to use to avalanche tranceivers, poles, shovel.
She explained search procedures and we conducted a number of search and rescue exercises using backpacks as ‘ trapped persons’.
It was a great day, hugely informative but also quite tiring.
I would highly recommend this course, Hotel Avalon and our instructor/mountain guide Milena from freemountains.com
Fancy something more even more tiring than skiing?
Another activity I tried for the first time was ski touring.
This involved attaching skins to the bottom of a set of touring skis which are adapted to allow the wearer to walk uphill.
The heel part of touring ski boots stays free whilst the toe area is locked in to the binding as with normal downhill skis.
It took me a few minutes to get used to this new way of skiing but I soon confident to set off for a long ‘walk’ uphill.
I walked up the side of a blue run, avoiding those coming down, then turned off on to a snow covered path in to the woods. This took me across the black run and further in to the mountains.
By now I was away from the crowds and had the area all to myself.
Stunning!
It was hard work walking up the mountain but well worth it for the isolation I found.
I walked for about three hours to the Vihren hut.
There I was rewarded with spectacular views, acres of untouched snow, and and incredibly peaceful, almost indescribable silence.
I could have stayed there for hours, if not days.
I spent an hour or more enjoying the solitude before reluctantly clipping my heels in to the skis, took off the skins and enjoyed the reward of skiing downhill back to the gondola.
This was truly the best day in the mountains that I have ever had.
The memories of this walk will stay with me for years.
I’d highly recommend ski touring but, unlike what I did, I’d suggest that you get a guide to accompany you.
Touring skis, skins and boots can be hired from Traventuria.
For further details of Vihren hut click here.
https://bansko.org/n-66689-Vihren_Hut
More information about ski skins here.
Ready to take it easy for a while?
After all the fresh air and exercise you might want to relax in a spa or sauna.
We spent a couple of days at Seven Pools Hotel where you can get access to the pools and sauna by buying a day pass.
It was an ideal break from the slopes and reasonably priced too.
A perfect place to ease the aches and pains acquired on the slopes.
Our top tips for Bansko.
Search for accommodation on Bansko based Facebook groups.
Arrange transfers through local companies such as Traventuria.
Eat in the Old Town cafes to save money.
Buy a phone holder with a clip attachment to save you losing your phone.
Wear a small rucksack on the slopes. (You can wear them comfortably on the chairlifts and are not asked to take them off).
Take a drink and snacks on to the slopes to save money. (I had a favourite picnic spot on the flat section at the top of the Mosta chairlift).
Buy a pair of thin gloves as spares for emergencies. (Gloves often fell off the chairlifts. A thin pair can also be used when taking those essential photos and videos for your Instagram updates).
Invest in a couple of small carabiners to clip items to your jacket or rucksack – phone, gloves, keys etc.
Use ski ties to assist in the walk to and from the gondola.
Put a spare pair of socks in your rucksack.
Try walking to the gondola in a pair of thin trainers and carry your ski boots to the gondola. (I kept my trainers in my rucksack all day without really noticing them. I would then change in to them at the top gondola on the way back. It’ so much easier and a comfortable end to a days skiing).
Have fun. It is a holiday after all!