Bulgaria has 4 main airports, Sofia (In its capital), Varna (On the coast in the East), Bourgas (To the South East of Bulgaria) and Plovdiv (South East of Sofia).

Bulgaria is big, with a population of just over 7 million spread over 42822 Square Miles(110910 Square Kilometres) so if youre planning on travelling within Bulgaria, take note of where the airport you will be landing in is in comparison to your final destination within Bulgaria. If you plan a holiday in Sunny Beach, but source cheap flights to Sofia, dont be too offended if you dont get much change from 100EUR!

Flying into Bulgarias airports are many airlines, many airlines fly direct from the UK, many airlines landing in Bulgaria contain passengers who have trasferred at other airports within Europe.

Sofia has the most passenger flights landing in Bulgaria each year, so chances are if you are flying into Bulgaria for anything other than a holiday, you may well be landing in Sofia. Plovdiv airport is mainly used for Skiers, and like Bourgas and Varna is only seasonal, during the summer Varna and Bourgas are flat out whilst in the winter Plovdiv does rather well given its location for winter sports. Sofia's airport is used all year round for both business, pleasure and for Bulgarian bargain property hunters (Thats why you're on this page right now?)

Below is a list of airports within Bulgaria, and airlines which use them* (*Note i may have missed some, correct me on this one!):

Sofia airport

Lufthansa, easyJet, Baboo, Austrian Airlines, TAROM, Cyprus Airways, Bulgaria Air, Olympic Airlines, Delta, Alitalia, LOT Polish Airlines, American Airlines, Air France, Aegean Airlines, Aer Lingus, SWISS, SkyEurope Airlines, Spanair, Czech Airlines, United, Rossiya Airlines, British Airways (BA), EL AL Israel Airlines, TAP Portugal, Turkish Airlines, MyAir, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Aeroflot, germanwings, Air Malta, MALEV, LASER Airlines, Finnair, Wizz Air, Aerosvit Airlines.

Bourgas airport

Air France, British Airways, Aer Lingus, Bulgaria Air, Lufthansa, Swiss, Malev, Austrian Airlines, Wizz Air

Plovdiv airport

Bulgaria Air, SkyEurope Airlines, Norwegian, Wizz Air, flythomascook.com, Aer Lingus, Austrian Airlines, Air Berlin, Monarch, Condor

Varna Airport

Austrian Airlines, British Airways (BA), Air Berlin, Bulgaria Air, LASER Airlines, Norwegian, MALEV, Wizz Air

Flying direct from the UK!

Many of the airlines above fly direct from the UK. Below, Im going to discuss the airlines that i know, because i use them regularly, i'll tell you the good things and the bad!

• Wizzair are a low cost airline which fly direct from London Luton to Sofia and Bourgas (Incidently whilst researching for this guide I noticed that you an fly internally from Sofia to Varna by Wizzair, thats the only place you can go with Wizzair from Varna!). Wizzair operate modern aircraft, which are kept clean, and well stocked with knowledgeble staff. You'll find on Wizzair flights, that its a free-for-all with the seats, the staff are generally good if you have children, but get to the front of the queue early if you have children over 3 to make sure you can all sit together! Food is expensive, and in my opinion poor quality, not to mind, leave room in your hand luggage before you leave home then grab some food before you get to the airport and take it on the plane with you.
• British Airways are a professional outfit, although not always on time, they have dedicated customer service desks at the airport (I didnt mention this with the one above..) and you know what you are getting when you book, incidentally you will also notivce how lighter your wallet is, because most of the time you will pay double what you would have paid for the Wizzair flight above!
• Bulgaria Air, nice staff and slightly older planes. Travelling with Bulgaria Air will make you feel at home if you are from Bulgaria, most passengers are Bulgarian, the food served is often Bulgarian, even if it is just a sandwich and some cold meat and cheese, i love it, a great airline to fly with. With flights flying from the UK into Sofia, Bourgas and Varna, last minute hunters out there should find a seat.
• Flythomascook are a holiday airline, but book last minute and you could find yourself a bargain bucket seat alongside those travelling to the likes of Sunny Beach and other summer destinations, dont expect to find many winter flights to Bulgaria with Flythomascook. I find the staff to be professional, and most of the time even thought you havent paid for a meal you will be issued it anyway. Times of travel very wildly and may not be suitable for kids due to nocturnal flying times of last minute bucket seat bookings!
• Air France/KLM are a pro outfit with surprisingly low prices, fly with KLM and you are pretty much guaranteed premium central airports and great multilingual staff who are accommodating and commmunicative, food is always interesting!!
• Lufthansa, my favourite! Lufthansa fly really comfortable aircraft and brilliant staff, nice food and punctual.
• Easyjet, great modern efficient airlines and friendly staff, overpriced food and beverages. I recommend because Easyjet are cheap!

Getting to our offices!

Sofia airport is easiest and best, and there is an abundance of flights into there, we can pick you up or you can hire a car from one of the car hire companies situated at the airport. When booking your car hire at Sofia airport, remember to book in advance. Sofia airport is best to get to our office in Vidin (North of Sofia) and Veliko Turnovo which is North East of Sofia.

Bourgas airport is only 1 hour from our Elhovo office, we can pick you up or again hire a car, the roads are quieter down in the South East of Bulgaria so a pleasure to drive. In the winter you may need to fly into Bourgas to get to Elhovo and Yambol as flights at Bourgas from the UK are still seasonal.

Varna airport is just under an hour from Shumen, so a great airport if you can get the flights.

Plovdiv airport is still relatively small, with passenger flights restricted mostly to the winter months catering for winter sports enthusuasts. Because of its location, Plovdiv is good for clients going to our Elhovo office in the winter where Bourgas airport is closed, and as an alternative to Sofia if coming to our Veliko Turnovo office.

DRIVING IN BULGARIA - REMEMBER TO READ MY GUIDE TO DRIVING IN BULGARIA BEFORE HIRING A CAR, THERE ARE A FEW HOME TRUTHS, AND SOME TIPS.

Happy travelling!

COPYRIGHT AND LEGAL INFORMATION: All information above is classed as intelectual property, and was written by Aaron Sneddon. Any attempts to copy the information above will result in legal action. This guide is rough, very rough, so use it with caution, contact airlines and companies directly to confirm any information before travelling.