Borovets known as Chamkoria (Чамкория) until the middle of the 20th century, is a popular Bulgaria

Bulgaria

Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...

n mountain resort situated in Sofia Province

Sofia Province

Sofia Province is a province of Bulgaria. The province does not include Sofia in its territories, but Sofia however remains its administrative center...

, on the northern slopes of Rila

Rila

Rila is a mountain range in southwestern Bulgaria and the highest mountain range of Bulgaria and the Balkans, with its highest peak being Musala at 2,925 m...

, at an altitude of 1350 m. Borovets is 10 km from Samokov

Samokov

Samokov is a town in Sofia Province in the southwest of Bulgaria. It is situated in a kettle between the mountains Rila and Vitosha, 55 kilometres from the capital Sofia...

, 73 km from Sofia

Sofia

Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...

 and 125 km from Plovdiv

Plovdiv

Plovdiv is the second-largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia with a population of 338,153 inhabitants according to Census 2011. Plovdiv's history spans some 6,000 years, with traces of a Neolithic settlement dating to roughly 4000 BC; it is one of the oldest cities in Europe...

.

History

Borovets is the oldest Bulgarian winter resort with a history that dates back to 1896. Borovets was originally established at the end of the 19th Century as a hunting place for the Bulgarian Kings, Borovets gradually developed into a modern ski resort of budget and luxury hotels, haute-cuisine restaurants and seedy bars and an average network of ski runs and lifts along the slopes of the Rila Mountains, providing excellent opportunities for a whole range of winter sports. The resort has twice hosted World Cup Alpine Skiing rounds(1981 and 1984), while the Biathlon track is one of the best in the world.

Super Borovets (on hold/cancelled)

The Super Borovets project is one of the largest and most expensive investment and development projects in Bulgarian history. It will enlarge Borovets town to encompass the nearby towns of Samokov

Samokov

Samokov is a town in Sofia Province in the southwest of Bulgaria. It is situated in a kettle between the mountains Rila and Vitosha, 55 kilometres from the capital Sofia...

 and Beli Iskar. The resort will be divided into three levels:

Level 1 or Low Borovets: A brand new development just outside of Samokov, this area will cater for the less economically well off tourists, but will have good connections and transport with Borovets and the main ski area. This project will provide around 5,000 hotel rooms.

Level 2 or Borovets: Consists of the existing Borovets with extensive investment and development. This will provide around 10,000 hotel rooms (approximately what Borovets currently provides) and will remain as the main accommodation area.

Level 3 or Super Borovets: This will cater for those looking for 5 star hotels and a luxury experience, however it will provide no more than 2,500 hotel rooms.

The project started in 2004 and was originally planned to be completed by 2009, however several setbacks have delayed the progress somewhat. The current plan from the architects (subject to review and acceptance by the ecology team) is to expand the number of pistes by constructing 19 new pistes bringing the total ski-able area to around 90 km. To cope with the higher demand for ski-lifts and gondolas, 12 new ski-lifts will be built. One of these lifts will be a multi-station gondola which connects Borovets to Samokov allowing skiers easy access to the slopes from the Lower Borovets development site. At least one of the new pistes to be constructed will take skiers back to Lower Borovets ensuring visitors can ski back home whichever portion of Super Borovets they reside in.
NOTE:The text above for Super Borovets has been put by estate agency and none of it is to be completed !!

Winter sports

The ski resort sits at an altitude of 1350 m. 58 km of marked pistes cover the generally north facing slopes up to an altitude of 2560 m, with many runs terminating near the village centre allowing skiers to ski almost to their hotel door. The longest run is a gentle 12 km return to the resort along the maintenance road.

Downhill skiing

Borovets Ski Slopes

Ski Run	Difficulty	Length (m)	Inclination (m)
Sitnyakovo ski track	Green	6000	0
Sitnyakovo 1a	Blue	5800	400
Martinovi Baraki 5	Green	5000	0
Sitnyakovo 1b	Red	4000	230
Sitnyakovo 2	Red	4000	250
Yastrebets 1	Black	2300	860
Yastrebets 2	Red	3000	650
Yastrebets 3	Red	2350	617
Markujik 2A	Red	1300	280
Martinovi Baraki 3	Red	1260	320
Markujik 3	Red	1240	390
Martinovi Baraki 4	Black	1240	302
Markujik 1	Red	1220	220
Martinovi Baraki 1	Black	1160	340
Martinovi Baraki 2	Red	1160	280
Sitnyakovo 3	Red	1000	220
Lavinata	Black	830	0
Yastrebets	Black	800	0
Markujik	Green	600	0
Borovets	Cross Country	0	0

Lifts

All ski lifts are open 9.00 am to 4.30 pm. Each lift closes for technical checks and maintenance for half a day each week and for 1 full day each month, see local signs for dates and times for each lift.

Borovets Lifts

Ski Run/Lift	Type	Length (m)	Elevation (m)
Gondola Yastrebets	Gondola	4827	1054
Yastrebetz Express	4-seat	1786	439
Sitnyakovo Express	4-seat	2050	609
Markudjik 2	4-seat	950	342
Martinovi Baraki	4-seat	1209	313
Markujik 3	Drag	1031	366
Markujik 1	Drag	903	223
Markujik 0 - beginners piste	Drag	500	42
Sitnyakovo	Drag	280	70
Rila	Drag	180	33
Iglika	Drag	196	50
Rotata	Drag	500	54

The lift infrastructure of the resort is very well developed by drag lifts, baby tows, seat chain lifts, plus a gondola lift. 1 six-seat Gondola lift, 2 High Speed Quad Chair lifts, 1 Fixed Grip Quad Chair lift, 10 Surface ski lifts and 9 tow lifts. As for the 6 persons gondola lift, it takes you to the Yastrebets peak on 2363 m above sea level. The difference in altitude is approx. 1046 m and length of route is 4827 m. The gondola lift has a capacity of 1200 persons per hour. The journey takes around 20 minutes. The total capacity of all tow lifts of Borovets is 8150 persons per hour.

A recently completed 200-meter carpet lift takes the skiers from ski center Markudjik to the upper station of the gondola lift "Yastrebetz"; and the widened 10 km long Musala Pathway provides an easy way to return to the resort.

Night skiing

For night skiing there is a special lift pass that has to be bought separately at the kiosks on the pistes. It is valid from 5 pm till 10 pm.

Cross-country skiing

Last year the International federation has cancelled the 35klm cross country run which is not up to standards and the Bulgarian Federation needs to improve the runs widen the tracks and apply again if there is to be re-instating. At the moment there are no approved facilities for the above winter sport in Borovets Bulgaria.

Ski-doo

2 person ski-doos are available for local rent in the resort. Tourists can be guided through the local forests by an instructor.

Ski jumping

Every Wednesday the local ski and snowboarding instructors put on a Ski Jumping show on the slopes in front of the Hotel Rila. The show is free for all that attended ski school during the week but there is a charge for those who have not attended ski school. There are, however, many bars in the local area where you can sit and enjoy a drink whilst watching the show for free.

Ski Instruction

Borovets offers a huge range of ski instruction for all ages and abilities, lessons tend to be 4 hours a day, with a lunch break splitting two 2 hour sessions, the lessons are taught by a number of instructors, among them is Ivan Stamboliiski.

Summer activities

Like most ski resorts, Borovets is quieter during the summer but there are numerous activities for the summer:
-kids club,
-Horseback riding,
-recreational fishing,
-Golf,
-Mini football,
-Volleyball,
-Badmington,
-streetball,
-clay pigeon shooting,
-off road tours,
-half day tours,
-full day tours,
-BOROVETS MOUNTAIN BIKE PARK over 20 km marked runs(THE BEST IN THE BALKANS)
-Family mountain track
-Mountain bikes and gear hire,
-lift operational to catter for the tourists and bikes,
--different grades mountain bikes tracks,