Every time I've been to Bansko has been during the winter or on one occasion, a chilly autumn, and usually it has been primarily for the business of purchasing an apartment. Skiing in a great resort has been a welcome bonus.
If you like outdoor activities and the mountains, then unlike many mountain resorts in summer, you will not find a town that is in hibernation. It is a pleasantly active place that is not short of activities; cycling, mountain biking, hiking being some of the more energetic activities on offer. To wind down, you can relax in a spa, and take day trips to places like Melnik, an architectural reserve famous for wine production. This visit to Bansko also coincided with the Bansko Jazz Festival, music not necessarily to my liking, but full of atmosphere anyway. What Bansko has which many resorts do not have is very competitive prices.
If you are a foodie like me, then let's not forget about the Bulgarian food and wine, which in summer tastes even better than in winter. In short, a summer trip to Bansko will not leave you disappointed - snow is just so overrated.
This trip was the first time I had stayed in my apartment. If my time wasn't spent skiing it was spent inspecting the apartment complex and in talks with the management company. It turned out that what they say is not what they do. Adding to the difficulty is their claim to certain rights which cannot possibly be true. Hours of talks and negotiations turned out to be fruitless.
Being an owner of an apartment in a complex in a foreign country, it helps to know the other owners and if possible to form some kind of owners group rather than be ignored as an individual. In the months before this visit I helped to set up such a group and the exchange of experiences and ideas has proven invaluable. Since coming home and consulting with the owner's group and a solicitor our legal position has become much clearer. It is such a shame it has come to this as the complex is lovely.
On this trip I shared a few meals with the other owners but often went out alone. I love the traditional feel of the Bulgarian mexanas and the roaring fire which greets you when you step in from the snow lined, cold streets. My particular favourite tavern had nightly Macedonian songs and live music to add to the atmosphere and feeling of being somewhere deeply removed from my usual surroundings.
Back to Bulgaria for a spot of business and skiing. The world recession has been particularly cruel to world property but even worse to those who bought by overextending themselves and now find that they either can't get a mortgage or can't afford it. Fortunately I'm not in that position but the unfortunate ones are panic selling; that and the general reduction in credit, overdevelopment and underdevelopment of the infrastructure has pushed down prices. On the plus side, the infrastructure is catching up and the location is good. The resort is good but the representative of the management company is unprofessional and untrustworthy which was the business reason for my visit - made to coincide with the Alpine Ski World Cup.
The ski season in Bansko runs from December to April and during this period the resort is very busy. There is also an active summer season as which lasts from June to August. Outside of these times however Bansko is a quiet mountain town and if you want to enjoy the great outdoors plus have some lively evenings then this isn't the best time to visit though that is not to say you won't have a good time here.
Bansko isn't just a tourist resort but is also a town so this ensures that a still considerable number of bars and restaurants stay open though this is in no way comparable to when the tourist season is in full swing.
When I arrived at my apartment to inspect it I came across a furious English buyer. Furious because the apartment was not complete and buyers were led to believe that completion would be the end of 2007. Whilst this delay is annoying and seems to be another Bulgarian tradition - tradition being what I am fond of - the spa, gymnasium and swimming pool are not too far away from being completed. But the development is still over 9 months late.
No skiing since the 20th! Why? Being laid low with flu is the reason. As was Nick. Our room turned into a chamber of pain as we could only lie in bed and sleep such was our lack of strength, muscle pain and chills. An occasional foray out to buy some snacks, eat the awful hotel food and on one day endure a death march to a pharmacy was all we could manage. On one night we tried to go to a mehana but the steak meal which was so gorgeous to the taste buds last year just did not have the same effect. In the end, we only managed to regain our strength on the day of our departure.
Another day on the slopes and more glorious weather. Even Nick got himself out today but by the end he regretted learning to snow board instead of skiing because of the longer and steeper learning curve. If he had used skis he would have been getting about and skiing though perhaps a little gingerly. Instead, he spent a day on the baby slopes banging his knees and backside, taking his board off, walking up a hill and sliding or falling down it again. Eventually I persuaded him to accompany me on some easy slopes but one of the easy slopes wasn't so easy and it was a long and eventful trip back down to the gondola station, much of it involving close-ups of the snow. Well, at least he saw some mountain.
The first day in resort and the weather was clear and not too cold so you could say ideal ski conditions. My pal, Nick decided to stay in bed because of late arrival the night before so I skied alone. It was always going to be like this though as I can ski and for Nick it was his first time. He had no trouble going out that evening though as the final picture testifies. Lighting a cigarette with an aerosol; now that's a gamble. Like putting a grenade with a faulty pin next to your face.
Anyway, as is always the case for the first night in resort, a crazy night ensued and cannot be described in any further detail!
Its time to revisit Bansko to ensure that my apartment is being built in the place it is supposed to be; in fact to make sure its actually being built. Imagine shelling out all this cash to see that hole in the ground that I agreed to invest in is still a hole in the ground. Fortunately progress has been good so let's hope it continues.
This was also the last week of the ski season so it was either go now and at least see a bit of skiing or wait and then get here to nothing very much. Despite it being the last week, there was still plenty of snow but on the learner slopes the conditions did tend to get slushy by about 1pm. I have found out since that the ski season can continue into mid - late April but I don't know what the facilities and restaurants are like at about this time.
On the way down an interesting incident occurred; our coach was stopped by a policeman and I found out that our coach had been stopped because of a 'speeding' offence. I knew that wasn't true as this was the slowest coach I had ever been on. What actually had occurred was that the policeman saw an opportunity to make a quick buck by stopping the coach driver for 'speeding' and then accepting a bribe to allow him to continue.
I arrived in Bansko with the purpose of buying an apartment in this up and coming ski resort. Many agents appointments, lots of lies and much exploration of the area allowed me to eventually decide on my target but getting there was a lengthy process.
Like all property, location is king and in a ski resort the rules are: buy within 100m of the gondola, make sure it is high quality; ensure there are good facilities on site. So in the end that's what I did. There was plenty of cheaper property further away from the gondola but in the event of a downturn, these are exactly the types of properties that are going to suffer the most in value and rental potential.
As for getting out and about, the restaurants offered fantastic food at great prices and there were plenty of new sights such as the folk singers, boar heads and stuffed eagles on the wall. The world is a small place though. At my dinner table one night was another brit out here doing the same as me. It turned out we had a common friend from my university days so once the business was concluded I also had a drinking and skiing partner.
The last time I had skied was a year ago so it was good to get back on the skis again. Although I was a bit rusty I soon picked it back up and even took on the mighty Alberto Tomba black run. I also paid the price for doing this as I took a fall and carried on down about 40 meters on my stomach. Walking up such a steep slope to retrieve a ski is not fun. Two steps up, slide down one. But funny to watch I'm sure.
After you've experienced my delights or horrors of Bulgaria, see what the destinations below may have in store for you.
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