Primorsko

Aerial view of Primorsko

Primorsko (Bulgarian: Приморско) is a town on the Black Sea coast of Bulgaria.

Understand

Primorsko is mainly visited by Eastern Europeans on holiday from countries such as Serbia, Slovakia, Czech Republic and also Bulgarians themselves. There are a number of lovely beaches, nice restaurants and bars, clubs and even a water park in this coastal town where you will rarely hear a word of English, which makes communication a fun, yet slightly daunting, challenge if you do not speak a Slavic language.

Get in

By bus

The cheapest way to get to Primorsko is by taking a minibus with other people from the bus station in Burgas, further north up the coast. Burgas is easily reachable from anywhere in Bulgaria or surrounding countries by air, train or bus.

By taxi

A taxi from Burgas to Primorsko will be quite expensive. If you choose the wrong taxi as the drivers sometimes think it would be a good idea to overcharge you for the journey with a meter that increases in price at a very fast rate indeed! Be sure to negotiate a price before you get into the taxi and if there are a number of taxis then don't be afraid to get them into a price war with each other to see who will offer the lowest cost for a journey.

Get around

On foot

Everything in Primorsko is within walking distance and so there is no need to use any other mode of transport once you are there.

See

• 1 Primorsko Promenada. Seaside street, nice for walking. (updated Sep 2020)
• 2 Beglik Tash (Беглик Таш) (7 km north). A prehistoric rock sanctuary re-used by the Thracian tribes in the Iron Age. Archaeologists have found ceramic artefacts from the Early Iron Age (10th–6th century BC), classical antiquity, and the Middle Ages, as well as a man-made stone altar at the end of the natural cave which proves that it was used as a place of worship. Every day at noon, a ray of sunlight enters the narrow entrance of the cave, and projects itself on the back of cave. (updated Sep 2020)

Do

• Waterpark – While not in the same league as water parks in Western European resorts, this water park is certainly worth visiting as it has some flumes, a large pool and massive U-shaped slide which looks dangerously interesting!

• Beaches – There are a number of beaches to visit with shallow waters, making them safe for swimming. The summer weather is fantastic with temperatures often rising above 30°C, so make sure you have sun cream with you and look after your belongings on the beach.

• St. Ivan Island ("Snakes island") – Near the village, you can search for a boat or small ship for an excursion to there. It is called snake due to the number of water snakes that inhabit the island. Naturally grown cacti can also be observed there.

• Cyrillic Alphabet – If you want to be able to even remotely understand anything written in Primorsko it may be a good idea to learn the Cyrillic Alphabet. The same goes for Bulgaria in general as this is the alphabet they use there, i.e. the same alphabet they use in Russia. Once you have learnt this alphabet it will be easier to pronounce words, but then there is the new challenge of finding out what they mean!

Buy

• Shops – With Primorsko being a tourist resort it is not surprising that there are many shops on the main street that sell souvenirs, clothes and many other things.

Eat

• Banitsa – This is a traditional Bulgarian pastry with eggs and goats cheese in it, baked in an oven. It is sold as a snack in many restaurants, bars and bakeries in Primosko and is very cheap.

• Shopska Salad – Made from tomatoes, cucumbers, onion, peppers and goats cheese, it is cheap and great as a snack. You will be able to get it at almost all of the restaurants and bars in Primorsko.

Drink

• Zagorka Beer – Zagorka is one of the most popular types of beer in Bulgaria and is definitely worth a try if you are a fan of beer. The best thing is that it is very cheap in comparison to beer prices in Western Europe, as are other beers and alcoholic drinks in general in Bulgaria.

• Bottled Water – It is strongly advisable to drink bottled water in Bulgaria as opposed to tap water.

Sleep

A good way to find accommodation is to arrive at the bus station where there will be a number of people waiting to offer rooms for any number of nights. Do not expect them to be able to communicate very well in English, if at all. The best thing is to know a few Bulgarian phrases about accommodation in order to get the best price and do not be afraid to refuse a room if you feel it is below the quality you expect. Also, a suggestion would be to keep your passport and valuable belongings with you rather than leaving them in the room, just to be cautious.

As a rough guide you might pay as low as €5 per person per night for a room, or perhaps up to €15 a night depending on the quality of the room.

Go next

• Sozopol – Back up the coast towards Burgas is the town of Sozopol which has a lot of history and culture. It is certainly worth a visit as there are also some nice beaches, shops, bars and restaurants and a lot of accommodation, just ask the taxi drivers to find you a place to stay for the night.