Sofia

Sofia (София) is the capital of Bulgaria. It is also the biggest city in the country with about 1.4 million citizens (including suburbs). Today, Sofia is a dynamic Eastern European capital, distinguished by its unique combination of European and Communist-style architecture as well as many beautiful orthodox churches. Furthermore, it claims to be one of the few European capitals with beautiful scenery and a developed ski-resort so close to it – the Vitosha mountain.

Sofia was founded 2,500 years ago. Over the centuries, it has been given several names – Serdica , Sredetz and the remains of the old cities can still be viewed today. Because of its strategic location in the middle of Balkans for a while it had been selected for a new capital of the Roman Empire. Near Sofia is the Boyana church, one of the most valuable memorials of Bulgarian and European culture. The church has frescoes, acclaimed by specialists as “the best examples of Eastern medieval art during its twelve century history”.

The decline of Sofia during the Turkish Ottoman Empire was followed by the rejuvenation after the Russian liberation in 1878, when Sofia was chosen as the capital of Bulgaria at the First National Constituent Assebly, and followed by a brisk and straight-forward period of construction.

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Sofia Airport (IATA: SOF) (Template:I) is the busiest airport in Bulgaria and it was built around 1930. Its Terminal 2 is now the active one and was constructed in 2009. The airport is located only 10 km from the city center, in the eastern part of the capital.

Over 25 airlines fly in and out of the Sofia Airport with daily direct flights to/from Athens, Paris, Vienna, London, Rome, Amsterdam, Munich and other European cities.

Along with the traditional carriers, some low-cost companies traveling to Bulgaria are EasyJet (to/from London-Gatwick, Madrid, Manchester), Germanwings (to/from Cologne-Bonn), Wizz Air (to/from Paris-Beauvais, Barcelona, Brussels-Charleroi, Dortmund, Eindhoven, London-Luton, Milan-Bergamo, Rome-Fiumicino, Valencia).

Bulgaria Air, the national carrier flies to Alicante, Amsterdam, Athens, Barcelona, Beirut, Berlin – Tegel, Brussels, Bucharest – Otopeni, Frankfurt, Istanbul – Atatürk, Kiev – Boryspil, Larnaca, London – Gatwick, London – Heathrow, Madrid, Málaga, Manchester, Moscow – Sheremetyevo, Palma de Mallorca, Paphos, Paris – Charles de Gaulle, Rome – Fiumicino, Skopje, Tel Aviv, Tirana, Tripoli, Valencia, Vienna, Zürich.

There are a few domestic flights, from Varna and Burgas, including some charter flights.

• Airlines and terminals
  Make sure you check the terminal that you are arriving at or departing from carefully.

  Terminal 1 (T1) is used by budget airlines like EasyJet, Germanwings and Wizz Air; and by charter flight operators.
  Terminal 2 (T2) handles all ‘traditional’ carriers, and serves as a hub to Bulgaria Air, the national carrier.

• Facilities
  Terminal 1 (T1) has postal and banking services, a news stand, two coffee shops and one duty-free shop.
  Terminal 2 (T2) is larger and has more duty-free shops, three coffee shops with some food offers. Before passport control there is only one coffee shop and a news stand.

  Funded Airport Terminal 2 has one Moneyexchange Office in the public Area with rates that are acceptable for an airport (Feb 2012). There is also an ATM next to it. There is also one small and very expensive Money Exchange Office in the Arrival Area, after Passport Control and before Baggage Claim.

• Transfer between terminals
  There is a white shuttle bus running every 30 minutes between the two terminals, you should ask at the information about it. It is free. There are a few kilometers between the two terminals and they are not in a walking distance. Be aware that even if you decide to walk, you may get lost as the path is not marked and it could take you 20-30 minutes.

• Between the airport and the city
  • By bus
    Public bus line 84 travels to both terminals – the route is T2 -> T1 – Sofia University (metro station in the city center). Allow 30 to 40 minutes to reach the city center depending on traffic. You can get tickets from the news stands in both terminals, do not rely on buying tickets from the driver! Please make sure to purchase and punch your ticket after you board. You will need an additional ticket for any large piece of luggage/baggage (larger than 40/40/60 cm). If you forget to buy additional ticket for your large luggage/baggage, the fine is 20 leva or €10 (Feb 2012). The best place to change from bus 84 to the metro is Orlov Most (Sofia University metro station). There is also a transit bus line 384, on the route Mladost1 district metro station > T1 > T2 > Mladost I metro station. It takes only 10 to 15 minutes between Mladost and the airport as the bus makes only a few stops in the airport area. It is very convenient for transfers to Mladost and anywhere close to a metro station. The bus currently (Sept 2011) runs two to three times per hour between 5 and 9 am and 4 and 8 pm. The schedule can be seen here (only in Bulgarian).
  • By shuttle
    Various companies run shuttle services to the hotel and back. These can be found at the airport arrival halls.
  • By private Limo or Car Service
    A good way to avoid waiting for a shuttle or troubles with looking for a taxi is booking a pre-arranged car service. The number of visitors who choose this way of transportation is growing, though it may cost a little extra and is preferred mainly by business travelers. Check online for the exact terms on booking a private service. The professional Chauffeur will meet and greet at the Baggage Claim, assist with luggage and take you to your hotel or any other destination of your choice. As the driver knows the destination in advance, the best route will be calculated beforehand.
  • By taxi
    Taxis in the airport are “regulated” and there are only companies, that are allowed to service the airport :”OK Taxi and “91280”. The fare to the city center should be about 10-12 leva. Unfortunately there are many touts that will try to ask you if you need a taxi as you exit the departures area. These guys will seriously overcharge you.

    When you exit the customs/declarations door, turn to your right. You will see an office for OK Taxis in front of you. They speak English so the best thing is to give the person your destination. They will check it and then print out a slip with your taxi number on it. This saves having to explain to the taxi driver! The taxis are out the doors to your right. Go through these and a taxi controller will point you to your taxi. To reassure you, you’ll see a big queue of “OK” taxis lined up with “O.K. (973 2121)” written on them in blue writing with the two dots in red. However, if you go straight out to the roadway rather than right, there are unregulated taxis. You should be careful, because there are taxis, which imitate the logo of the O.K. and the phone number. Before hiring a taxi look at the right-front-door window – there should be a tariff. The normal tariffs are: initial fee (about 0.70 lv), daily price per km (about 0.79 lv), night price per km (about 0.90 lv), price per minute of stay (about 0.22 lv), price for ordering a taxi via phone (about 0.50 lv). Please, check these figures and if you see ANY figure greater than 1.00 lv, do not take this taxi!

• From the airport to the Central Bus/Train Station
  From the airport you catch bus #84 and get off at the Pliska bus stop (it’s a popular place, just ask someone in the bus, there is a building called Pliska). Then from the Pliska bus stop you should catch one of those buses: 404, 305, 413, 214, 213. Any of them will take you to the central bus/railway station.