SOFIA Tourism in Figures 2015

1 ОП Туризъм Reference Source: SOFIA Tourism Administration SOFIA Tourism in Figures 2015 SOFIA Tourism Administration 2016 Edition ОП Туризъм Reference Source: SOFIA Tourism Administration CONTENTS 2015 I.

2 INTRODUCTION II. DEMOGRAPHIC AND ECONOMIC PROFILE p. 1 III. TRANSPORT Air, road, railway and city transport IV. ACCOMMODATION Supply, demand, occupancy, SOFIA s position in Bulgaria V. CATERING AND ENTERTAINMENT ESTABLISHMENTS Types and capacity VI. PRICES OF SOME COMMODITIES AND TOURIST SERVICES Comparison of prices in some European capitals VII.

3 MORE ABOUT SOFIA History Culture Nature Sports and leisure activities Discover SOFIA Free Walking Tour pilgrimage tours VIII. GLOSSARY Terms and abbreviations ОП Туризъм Reference Source: SOFIA Tourism Administration INTRODUCTION 2015 Ivo Marinov Director SOFIA Tourism Administration Dear consumers, Dear colleagues.

4 SOFIA Tourism Administration presents to you the fifth consequent edition of the tourist reference book SOFIA Tourism in Figures . The current information presents the opportunity to study in detail the development of Tourism and the tendencies in the field. 2015 was of strategic importance to the development of SOFIA as a contemporary European city with a competitive economy, part of which is Tourism . The strategic decisions and the grand scale work toward achieving competitiveness of the city would start to contribute to the development of Tourism .

5 In order to maximize the contribution of the management of the destination, as well as increasing the competitiveness of the city s economy, SOFIA has worked toward a based on knowledge economic and public development. In 2015 the Bulgarian capital became the core of innovations and start-ups in the country and set the course of the development of the successful destinations. On December 11, 2015 , the first science-technological park in Bulgaria SOFIA Tech Park was opened in order to connect science, business and technologies.

6 In unison with EU s policy, where innovations lead, a new Strategy for Smart Specialization of the Economy of SOFIA 2016-2020 was devised. Thus, SOFIA became the first city in Bulgaria with a municipal strategy for smart specialization a worthy example for the other cities and regions in the country. The strategy included two main directions the development of new technologies in the creative and re-creative industries and production and distribution of films in south-east Europe, thus strengthening SOFIA s position as a regional capital of the new digital market.

7 In 2015 SOFIA municipality worked effortlessly toward providing better infrastructure and system of public transport, new attractions, sports facilities, parks, rich event calendar. The applied green policy toward sustainable development of the destination s economy aims not only at preserving the resource but at providing favourable field for developing the tourist business and quality experience for the visitors. In this regard, in 2015 , two new tourist information centres were established Chitalnyata (the reading room) and Largo, thus adding to a total of five.

8 SOFIA municipality through SOFIA Tourism Administration continues to offer two free of charge products for citizens and visitors of SOFIA a free tour of the main centre s landmarks and four annual pilgrimage tours, visiting monasteries around the capital and the Rila holy cloister. ОП Туризъм Reference Source: SOFIA Tourism Administration 2015 saw two new attractions SOFIA History Museum and the largest science centre in Eastern Europe Muzeyko.

9 The capital also offered to its citizens and visitors one more step into the future the modern mobile application Farol City Guides, which is a contemporary city guide. The investments and the large scale projects brought prizes in the first INFRASTRUCTURE BULGARIA AWARDS 2016 national competition in the categories of Ecologic infrastructure and Metropolitan transport infrastructure, as well as special awards. In 2015 the tourist industry continues to grow keeping the sustainable tendency of previous years. Tourist growth in 2015 compared to 2014 is 9,72%.

10 statistics shows that 1 061 522 tourists have visited SOFIA in 2015 and the registered overnights mark a 8,49% growth and the figure is 1 872 978. The number of tourists from Germany, Great Britain and Italy has raised. SOFIA Airport has received 7% more tourists in 2015 compared to 2014 due mainly to international travelers, whose increase is The direct flights connecting SOFIA Airport to various international destinations in 2015 is 54 with Dusseldorf, Memmingen, Naples, Bari, Geneve and Koln being the latest additions.