Quest Bulgaria Property and Lifestyle Magazine

This year most ski and snowboard lovers are on a budget and looking for new places. Bulgaria may be just the thing for winter activities on a shoestring. There are many quaint traditional ski, and new snowboarding, spots lurking in quiet corners of the impressive mountain ranges in the country.

A great answer for those with a property in Bulgaria needing cheap overnight accommodation in Sofia or even as a base for exploring Eastern Europe on a budget. easyHotel opens its newest property in the capital of Bulgaria, Sofia, on 12 January. The opening is heralded by a fab offer for accommodation at only 10 euros per room per night!

The Bulgarian ski resort of Bansko is all about value for money. In comparison with other ski resorts the cost of a holiday is significantly lower, especially when booking a self catering apartment and eating out in one of the many local restaurants in the town. Bansko is a mix of traditional mehanas, with Bulgarian folk music and wood burning stoves together with modern resort-style developments, many with luxurious spas. Those owning a property in the Bulgarian ski resort of Bansko and those seeking a rental for a value-for-money ski holiday, will enjoy visiting the website of rentinbansko, which is very informative and has introduced special new services on the site to help both owners and holidaymakers alike.

Quest Bulgaria member, Bryan Figg, shares his road trip experiences in the three countries. Its been only four months since I last drove the two lane route 79 from Bourgas airport to Elhovo, and I was prepared for it this time! It was 3am Tuesday morning, pitch black, having had a 2 hour delay on our flight and taking 30 minutes collecting our hire car. Having successfully negotiated the seemingly continuous flashing yellow traffic lights looming from the overhead gantries at every major road junction, the decision was always - do I stop or do I go?

In its latest report on ski resorts and family skiing holidays, the UK Post Office shows that Bulgaria is one of the most favourable in terms of value for snow lovers. The research looked into prices for winter 2009/2010 and was undertaken by Post Office Travel Services. It investigated the costs of lift passes and food within the top ski destinations across Europe and North America, for two people and a family of four. The data places the ski resort of Borovets in Bulgaria in second place out of 14 for value for money for ski passes and equipment hire.

If you find yourself in the Bulgarian capital of Sofia, it can be difficult to know where to grab a bite to eat or enjoy a more leisurely dinner. In no particular order, we offer a fistful of restaurants in Sofia which we particularly enjoy. Divaka was one of our first eating out experiences in the capital and really enjoyable it was too! There are three Divaka restaurants in the city, each with their own atmosphere. Usually they are packed with locals, young professionals and foreigner visitors. The restaurants offer good prices, nice food and fast service with lovely atmosphere. One of the best value-for-money in the centre.

The culturally rich city of Budapest in Hungary has become one of the most sought-after cities by the luxury traveller. Any number of splendid spas and thermal springs in downtown centre, the gloriously extravagent architecture, endless patisseries, the panoramic Danube and fabulous nightlife... all create a real "big city" atmosphere. This is a great time of year, with the weather still being kind, to pop over the border for a relaxing treat in Budapest. The city was created by the joining of the separate towns of Buda, Pest and Obuda in 1873 and it was from this moment that the city expanded into a world capital. The city is divided by the Danube and covers a 200 sq.m area divided into various districts, with around two million inhabitants.