Hi SCI,

DOA has given you some very sound advice and good information. I can only add that there are reviews of the hotel and resort below -

GS

Odessos

(I noticed on another post you said you are staying at the Odessos)

Peter

Can anyone recommend some good days out from Golden Sands and how best to go about booking them.

Is Varna far away and is it worth a visit?

Thanks

Hi donnaalcroft,

You will find many excursions available from Golden Sands, which can be booked through your holiday rep or one of the local agencies at the resort - there have been reports that some of the local tour operators may not have English-speaking guides on all tours, so it's worth checking before you book.

Varna is a short, cheap bus (or taxi) ride from Golden Sands (just over 18 km) and is well worth a visit (in my opinion) to get a feel of the 'real' Bulgaria away from the resorts and for cheap shopping in the markets & side-street stores.

Baldur

My wife and I are heading over from Shannon (Eirjet) to Golden Sands in late August. Whats the story with car hire? Are the Bulgarian roads in good condition? Is car hire popular ? Is it expensive?
Can I use my ATM card in the banks there or must I bring Euros and exchange them locally?

Hi celtictraveller,

You will find a 'sticky' thread on transport/car, hire, etc., at the top of this board here.

Major cards like Visa, Mastercard, etc., can be used at Bulgarian ATMs, a withdrawal limit of 400 Leva (around 200 Euro) per day usually applies - remember that your card issuer will probably charge for withdrawals in addition to their exchange rate. See here for more advice on monetary matters.

Baldur

Flying out in the early evening on 3rd August this year for a week.
Have a few questions that I hope you all dont mind helping with
I am going with my wife, 16yr old daughter, 12 year old son and 10 year old twin boys.

1. We are booked at the Atlas hotel in GS on a half-board basis. We are told we can upgrade to All inclusive when we get there. Would this be worth while? Quoted around £40 to £50 pp to upgrade. Now I have read about the prices over there and cant decide if it would be better to go AI or stay HB??? My main concern is my lads as when it is hot they drink and drink and drink. But would cost another £240 to £300 on top of holiday price to upgrade. Do I upgrade or keep it with spending money?

2. Food out of hotel..... What do you recommend that we can safely eat out of the hotel? I hear that McDonalds etc are to be avoided (What is the point of going there anyway? Have them in UK) What about street stalls? Beach Grills? Chinese restraunts I hear can be good. Any other tips? Just dont want to be sorry I ate something I shouldnt.

3. Water. Drinkable?

4. Spending money. Looking to take around £1000 for the week. Is this realistic? Or should we take more?

5. Varna. I think that is the nearest town to GS. Would it be worth going into town for a day? Would kids enjoy?

6. Exchange. I read that it is best to exchange money at banks when over there. Wife isnt too pleased about going with only GPB currency. How much would you recommend exchanging before we go?

7. Weather. What is the weather like at time of my trip on average? I read around 24 to 28 C. But I also heard of scary thunderstorms at that time of year??? I can of course tolerate some rain but wouldnt be happy if it was an all day downpour.

8. Beach. Wife and I like to go to the beach most days. What is the water like? Will kids be ok to go in alone if we kept one eye on them? Or are there any dangers?

9. Any other tips would be appreciated.

Sorry for all the questions but I have only been to Tenerife and although I enjoyed it thouroughly I thought it was a tad expensive to eat out etc. Want to be sure of what to expect when I get there.

Thanks to everyone and anyone that replies.

Hi Mark,

I won't answer your hotel/resort questions, as others will no doubt be able to advise you better:

3. Water. Drinkable? - water in the resorts is said to be safe, but may have a 'chemical tang'. I always stick to bottled water personally - at just over 1 Lev for 10 litres.

4. Spending money. Looking to take around £1000 for the week. Is this realistic? Or should we take more? - Depends what you want to do/buy, but should be more than enough (£1,000 is nearly 3 times the amount that a Bulgarian General earns in a month!)

5. Varna. I think that is the nearest town to GS. Would it be worth going into town for a day? Would kids enjoy? - Varna is a city, prices of everything will be much lower than Golden Sands, there are different things to see - whether or not the kids will like it probably depends on the kids.

6. Exchange. I read that it is best to exchange money at banks when over there. Wife isnt too pleased about going with only GPB currency. How much would you recommend exchanging before we go? - there are banks in the resort & your hotel will invariably have exchange facilities, so £50 for 'emergencies' should be more than enough.

7. Weather. What is the weather like at time of my trip on average? I read around 24 to 28 C. But I also heard of scary thunderstorms at that time of year??? I can of course tolerate some rain but wouldnt be happy if it was an all day downpour. Thunderstorms are usually heavy and over very quickly or occur at night but who can guarantee the weather?

9. Any other tips would be appreciated - if you browse through the posts on this board, especially the 'sticky' ones at the top of the page, you should find that most things are covered.

Baldur

Thanks for the help. I think questions 1 and 4 are sort of linked really.

If anyone gives advice on question 1 can you give me some idea of what sort of food to expect at the hotel?

And street food vendors? Are they safe if u watch food being cooked in front of you?

Mark, I would echo everything Baldur said, for starters. On the food questions, I have eaten food from street vendors in Sunny Beach, Nessebar, Bourgas, Albena, Balchik & Varna (sorry, not GS) and never had a problem.
As for AI, I have done that in Albena, and that was aminly for convenience, as my daughter was a bit younger then; costwise, it was probably more expensive, but I knew that before I went. I would suggest you just stay HB, & spend the money as you wish.
Bulgarian beaches tend to shelve gently, and have lifegaurds, so are quite safe. Most are Blue Flag, too.

Hi Mark,

I know Golden Sands, Baldur has the rest covered.

1. Hotel food is not as good as the many restaurants, and I would call it 'standard European holiday resort'. AI is often restricted as to choice of drinks with poor service.

2. There are many restaurants and grills to choose from, and we haven't been poisoned yet!

8. We don't really go near the beach, but it is supposed to be award winningly clean, as is the Black Sea at Golden Sands.

Stop worrying and have a good time.

Peter

Thanks for the replies.
It is hard not to worry

But I feel a lot better now.

Edit:- What about soft drink prices? Reasonable?

What about soft drink prices? Reasonable?

At wholesale prices (Metro in Varna) 12 x 500ml bottles of Coca Cola work out at 6 Lev 80 Stotinki + 20% DDC (VAT), so that's about £2.91 for 12 or 24 pence each - even if the retail price is double, they should be no more than around 1.5 Leva per bottle.

Baldur

Great
Now I am leaning towards staying on HB basis

Hello ihave justgota few questions to ask i am going to bulgaria golden sands i was just wondering if i could buy like designer clothes(diesel,armani,d&g,lacoste,nike)iwould be looking to buy jeans jumpers t-shirts theworks and maybe a pair of trainers.Has enybody been to golen sands and bopught deigner clothing if so could you tell me what kind of brands people sell and the average price for jeans and trainers etc.

Hi benno,

You'll almost certainly find fake 'designer' brands, of varying quality, almost everywhere in the resorts.

A trip down to Varna is likely to pay dividends, as the same items are likely to be significantly lower in price there, if you shop around.

Baldur

what so i can get like armani jeans and that but the problem is i can never get em in ma size im 34'waist ant 29/30L and you know the trainers are they the kind you would be buying in like jd and that i bought a pair of air max 95 a few month ago for £110 woulod i be able to get fake pair of em for a pritty cheap price.Also i am stayin in the hotel kristal golden sands just wondering has enyone been here is the food nice.

Hi Benno, I bought a pair of nike air max for £20 a couple of years ago,still going strong. You will be able to buy any amount of designer gear in the resort, but as Baldur says, Varna is a lot cheaper and with a bigger selection. I don't think your size will be an issue, they seem to cater for everyone, try before you buy.
Prices for trainers range from 25 leva( about £9 ) to 45 Leva,any make you like.
Tops are about £4( Nike,Adidas,Deisel etc )
This place is a fake designer paradise, but good quality.

The Toonman

ty for the infomation do you think it would be worth taking hardly eny clothes so i can stash up wid the designer gear

oh yeah 1 more questionis there a macdonalds nearif there is is it cheper in bulgaria