Where Is Borovets in Bulgaria?
Borovets is a winter ski and summer walking centre south of Bulgaria's capital, Sophia. Borovets is Bulgarian for pine trees.
Where Are The Gondolas?
The bright orange gondolas, each seating four people, go from the base station in the centre of tiny Borovets. The gondola base station is opposite the huge Samokova triangular hotel which backs onto the equally huge Rila hotel.
Gondola at Borovets, Bulgaria. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
Be Prepared - Shopping for Sticks & Hats
In the shops up and down the two main streets beside the hotels and behind them, you can buy the basic items you are likely to need if you don't already have everything. Choose a rucksack to carry your water bottle, a pair of expanding walking sticks, or a hat, all at prices from about 10 leva, which is about 7 Euros - check the exchange rate. I bought a cheaper baseball hat for 6 lev in a supermarket down in Samokova, a small town a couple of miles away. But for 10 lev you can buy a hat with a neck flap which is removable.
Walking sticks, adjustable height. Photo by Angela Lansbury.
Gondola Plans
The gondola costs 15 lev for the return journey. Ignore the half way point used by skiers if you are walking because walkers go to the trails at the top to the highest point, or along a lower trail which skirts the peak like the hrizontal crack you make in the top of a boiled egg.
Gondola Seats
Sit facing the mountain if you don't like heights. It is a pity the windows are so scratched which spoils your photos and videos. The journey is really long, about 30 minutes. On the way up I was nervous. On the way back I was busy taking photos and absolutely loved it. I remembered the Japanese invention of the phrase Forest Bathing, letting the peace of the forest reduce stress.
There is a toilet at the top of the gondola exit. Maps show you the trails and give safety advice. the cafe above the gondola exit looks down over the gondolas coming up. The prices are reasonabe if you are looking for something inexpensive. Try chicken soup at 3.50.
The lower track which I took attracted a lot of young Bulgarian families with children and even toddlers. I would recommend taking sticks because a lot of the wide path is over uneven gravel and bit of rock.
The hut on the lower level is only one hour away, but that is one and a half hours at my speed. I stopped three times for water and moved my water from the rucksack to a large front pocket in my denim trousers. After an hour I could not see the end and turned back. I had referred back to the photo I had taken at the gondola exit I would have known that I was two thirds of the way towards my destination. The others intrepidly went off to the top, a six hour hike.
I saw one couple, a man carrying a rucksack, the girl with nothing to carry. I thought, I would have made faster progress like that.
Angela with a Brolly (British for Umbrella) as a Sunshade in Bulgaria. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
Brolly At Borovets
I got out my umbrella to shelter behind if I saw a good spot for a toilet. I decided that keeping my umbrella open like the Singaporeans who use umbrellas as sunshades, was a good idea. I felt a lot better, shielded from the sun and without the extra weight of the umbrella in my rucksack.
Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.
