Burgas is not the capital of Bulgaria, and is closer to Asia than to other European countries. Does it mean it's hard to get there?
Not at all!
Direct air flights
The easiest way to get to Burgas is by air, and Bulgaria's upcoming (partial) accession to Schengen zone in March 2024 makes it even easier.
Burgas international airport (BOJ) is recently renovated airport that has welcomed almost 1.5 million passengers in 2023.
Airport has direct regular connections to the following cities:
- Austria - Vienna International Airport (VIE)
- Bulgaria - Sofia
- Czech Republic:
* Brno
* Ostrava
* Prague - Denmark - Copenhagen Airport (CPH)
- Finland - Helsinki (HEL)
- France:
* Lille
* Nantes - Germany:
* Berlin Brandenburg (BER)
* Cologne
* Dusseldorf
* Hamburg (HAM)
* Stutgart - Hungary - Budapest
- Ireland - Dublin
- Latvia - Riga
- Lithuania - Kaunas
- Luxembourgh
- Netherlands - Amsterdam Schiphol (AMS)
- Norway:
* Oslo
* Trondheim - Poland:
* Gdansk
* Katowice
* Krakow
* Lublin
* Warsaw
* Wroclaw - Slovakia - Bratislava
- Sweden - Stockholm Arlanda (ARN)
- Turkey - Istanbul (IST)
- UK - London Luton (LTN)
Airports marked in bold (Brussels Charleroi, Sofia, Amsterdam Schiphol and Istanbul) are popular hubs that may help if there are no direct flights from your city.
Airport is located approximately 10 km away from Bourgas City center. Bus number 15 departs from right in front of the terminal, passing every 15 minutes. The journey to the city center takes around 20 minutes. For more details, please refer to the Bus Line 15 Schedule.
Varna
Varna is the closest big city to Burgas, and can be considered its "twin city". This is another popular tourist destination on the Bulgarian sea coast, and if there is no direct flight from your region to Burgas, there is a chance there is one to Varna.
Varna airport (VAR) is located 135 km from Burgas and adds a few destinations that do not have direct flights from Burgas:
- Bruxelles-Charleroi (WizzAir)
- Cyprus
- Brno, Ostrava and Prague in the Czech Republic
- Lille (hello DrupalCon 2023!), Nantes and Paris in France
- Dortmund and Carlsruhe in Germany
- Netherlands
- Norway
Full list of possible destination can be checked at the airport's website https://varna-airport.bg/en/destinations
There are shuttle taxis between the two cities, and we are in negotiations with the transportation companies that are ready to provide discounts for group travels. Trip from Varna to Burgas takes about 2 hours.
Regular bus schedule can be checked here
Train connection between the two cities is also possible, although it would require one stop (in Karbobat). Train schedule can be checked here
Sofia
The Bulgarian capital and the largest city is located in the western part of the country. It's airport (SOF) welcomes the flight from most European and some major Asian destinations (full list can be found here)
From the land transport point of view, Sofia is also the Western gate of the country, attached via highway A6 to Pan-European Corridor X via Belgrade and then Budapest to the North or Zagreb and Ljubljana to the West
You can get from Sofia to Burgas by air, train, bus or car (two cities are connected by A1 highway)
By air - check the flights on the websites of Sofia and Burgas airports
By train - check the schedule on the website of Bulgarian railways. Note: carriers are safe, but not necessarily new. Night routes have sleeping wagons and are generally preferred.
By bus - multiple carriers offer routes from Sofia Burgas:
- Flixbus (offers routes from international destinations to Sofia, route can be combined with the leg Sofia-Burgas)
- Union Ivkoni (offers routes from international destinations to Sofia, route can be combined with the leg Sofia-Burgas)
- or you can find other options on Bus radar: https://www.busradar.com/coach/burgas/sofia/
Bucharest
Travelers who prefer the land transport, and enter Bulgaria from the North but not from the West, Romanian capital sounds like a viable connection point.
Bucharest airport has traditionally good connections with the Baltics and Scandinavian countries (and obviously, other cities in Romania), but what's more important, Bucharest lies on the rail and highway corridors that pass only EU countries, making them faster for the travelers from the Northern and Central Europe.
International train routes to and from Bucharest can be planned on https://bileteinternationale.cfrcalatori.ro/en
You can travel from Bucharest to Burgas by bus (faster) or by train. There is also a combined option - privately operated train Bucharest-Ruse, and then bus Ruse-Burgas
Istanbul (IST)
Istanbul airport (IST) is one of the busiest hubs in the world. It is quite far from Burgas (~300km), and you need to pass a border. There are several night buses though connecting the biggest Turkish city with Burgas, so if you are up to a nighter, this option may be right for you.