Beware Bulgaria

LarrytheLantern · 06-07-2010 07:04PM

LarrytheLantern wrote: »

I visited Scummy 'er I mean Sunny Beach last year. My friend's parents own an apt. there.
Initially we booked 3 weeks, but changed it to 1 as quickly as I could.

The place is a complete dive, full of dodgy types, scammers and cons. The local police not only turn a blind eye to criminality, they themselves are active in it. I wouldn't trust anyone out there tbh. The local mafia are alive 'n well.

Bulgaria is effectively a 3rd world country, very corrupt and legally extremely dubious.

The countryside seemed nice, and the girls were ok, but nothing special.
I certainly wont be returning.

My friend's Dad has since sold up btw.

2 people! wow! now that's what i mean.:o

KevArno · 06-07-2010 07:08PM

Not that it hasn't already been said, but the place is grand. Yes, it has a strong mafia presence, but tbh the mafia there knows what side their bread is buttered on, and do their best to help tourism in areas like Sunny Beach.

I have been and I am going back again. It really is just like any other resort in Europe, and it is bloody cheap. Hot weather, €1 beers, cheap good food (when you stay away from the usual beech side rip off joints) and a smaller amount of Irish and English than the usual Spainish resorts. To be honest the majority of negative stories I have heard all wreak of people not having a bean of common sense, things like buying currency for a "great rate" of some geezer on the beach!! Like come on people, lets be real here, if someone was to offer you a financial transaction in a park in Dublin would you not be wary?! Are Irish tourists that naive?

The Aussie · 06-07-2010 07:13PM

Sounds like a massive fail of a thread, if we hold out we might get a third person to say its a dump, nice try though, BTW Ha Ha on Liveline, classic...

Damo 2k9 · 06-07-2010 08:20PM

Ive been to bulgaria twice now, stayed in the victoria palace the first time and the sea dreams the second. Yes there is a very high mafia presence, but its them who own the hotels so there only in it to make money and if u stay out of their business theyll stay out of yours and wont cause u any trouble. Just be sensible and stay in the main parts of the resort if your going to sunny beach, take your holiday reps advice (only change your money in the crown exchange, agree on a price BEFORE you get into a taxi etc). My da and my uncle and 2 others were pickpocketed by prostitutes when standing at a taxi rank while telling them to f*** off, i found it funny rather then it turning me away from the resort :P
Theres a lot of activitys over there and there very cheap which makes it even more affordable for familys to afford to let the kids try them out

Im going back next wednesday, cant wait

LarrytheLantern · 06-07-2010 09:17PM

Bulgaria=DUMP:P

Lando Griffin · 06-07-2010 09:25PM

Once you keep your drunk mouth shut and dont act the maggot then you will have a good holiday anywhere, once wor start getting drunk and loud mouthed anywhere you will probably get robbed and slapped round the place. I have been there and its a culture shock but so is many the place in Ireland to tourists.

ejmaztec · 06-07-2010 09:32PM

Lando Griffin wrote: »

Once you keep your drunk mouth shut and dont act the maggot then you will have a good holiday anywhere, once wor start getting drunk and loud mouthed anywhere you will probably get robbed and slapped round the place. I have been there and its a culture shock but so is many the place in Ireland to tourists.

Do you write travel brochures for Thomas Cook?

galwayrush · 06-07-2010 09:42PM

I blame the Irish developers building there.:rolleyes:

Absurdum · 06-07-2010 09:44PM

I got murdered in Bulgaria by lesbian gangsters. Don't go there.

caseyann · 06-07-2010 09:47PM

Sounds like an adventure what we all want Adrenalin:p

Augmerson · 06-07-2010 10:00PM

JONJO THE MISER wrote: »

On Liveline now, lots and lots of horror stories about people going on holidays in Bulgaria, one woman said that on her plane back nearly everyone had been robbed while there, not one person on said they will go back, apparently its Mafia run ****hole where cops turn a blind eye, a young Irish guy got kidnapped there last week at Gunpoint. And this backward country is in the E.U.
Anyone here have exeprience of Bulgaria?

Not to fret OP, I am sure anti-Bulgarian legislation is being rushed through the Dail as we speak.

Capt'n Midnight · 07-07-2010 02:02AM

sounds like a lot of sour gapes from people who bought apartments that were insanely expensive compared to the local wages

Tip if the only people who can afford something are ex-pats , it's a pyramid scheme

07-07-2010 06:28AM

Last time I was in Bulgaria, was in the late 80s, never had any problems!

Cypher_sounds · 07-07-2010 06:57AM

Was in Bulgaria last summer, had my phone robbed outta my pocket and didn't even know until i was back in the hotel, was just glad it wasn't my wallet gone.

Also got a taxi back to the hotel one evening after a long walk around the outer part of sunny beach, a 10 minute taxi ride back to the hotel and we were charged 150lev, i said to the driver no way was i paying that much and he said if we didnt pay up he would take us away to his boss, we couldn't leg it cause he locked the doors so had to cough up after bout 10mins of deliberations with the prick.

So from my experience of Bulgaria i wouldn't recommend it to anyone, some far better places that are worth going to like Turkey have been there and its a wonderful place to spend your holidays

El Siglo · 07-07-2010 08:44AM

Cypher_sounds wrote: »

Was in Bulgaria last summer, had my phone robbed outta my pocket and didn't even know until i was back in the hotel, was just glad it wasn't my wallet gone.

Also got a taxi back to the hotel one evening after a long walk around the outer part of sunny beach, a 10 minute taxi ride back to the hotel and we were charged 150lev, i said to the driver no way was i paying that much and he said if we didnt pay up he would take us away to his boss, we couldn't leg it cause he locked the doors so had to cough up after bout 10mins of deliberations with the prick.

So from my experience of Bulgaria i wouldn't recommend it to anyone, some far better places that are worth going to like Turkey have been there and its a wonderful place to spend your holidays

I think this chap would beg to differ...;)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSzuKx_o47s

Brendog · 07-07-2010 08:48AM

pmcmahon wrote: »

RABBLE RABBLE RABBLE RABBLE RABBLE

WE DON'T TAKE KINDLY TO FOLKS WHO POST SOUTH PARK QUOTES ROUND 'ERE!!!

Hersheys · 07-07-2010 08:50AM

The thing is if you're not careful, no matter where you go you're going to get stung. I've been robbed once on holidays and since then I've exercised extra caution and, touch wood, all okay since. And I've travelled all over the world to all different types of places.

And people who get fleeced with taxis etc - do you not haggle/shake on a price before you get in?

Lando Griffin · 07-07-2010 12:45PM

Cypher_sounds wrote: »

Was in Bulgaria last summer, had my phone robbed outta my pocket and didn't even know until i was back in the hotel, was just glad it wasn't my wallet gone.

Also got a taxi back to the hotel one evening after a long walk around the outer part of sunny beach, a 10 minute taxi ride back to the hotel and we were charged 150lev, i said to the driver no way was i paying that much and he said if we didnt pay up he would take us away to his boss, we couldn't leg it cause he locked the doors so had to cough up after bout 10mins of deliberations with the prick.

So from my experience of Bulgaria i wouldn't recommend it to anyone, some far better places that are worth going to like Turkey have been there and its a wonderful place to spend your holidays

You should have taken his details and reported him to the Mafia.

ScumLord · 07-07-2010 12:49PM

Lando Griffin wrote: »

You should have taken his details and reported him to the Mafia.

They would have given you an offer you couldn't refuse.. one nights stay knocked off your bill and a free fish supper. I'd love to see their advertising I hope they take full advantage of Mafia puns.

Cypher_sounds · 07-07-2010 12:59PM

Hersheys wrote: »

The thing is if you're not careful, no matter where you go you're going to get stung. I've been robbed once on holidays and since then I've exercised extra caution and, touch wood, all okay since. And I've travelled all over the world to all different types of places.

And people who get fleeced with taxis etc - do you not haggle/shake on a price before you get in?

Of course we haggled, didnt make a difference in the end.

Lando Griffin wrote: »

You should have taken his details and reported him to the Mafia.

Good chap stay in your Lando Griffin

syklops · 07-07-2010 01:32PM

Run_to_da_hills wrote: »

Romania Abbey Street in Dublin is worse than Bulgaria, you cant go anywhere without tripping over Gypsies.

Fixed your post.

uprising2 · 07-07-2010 02:23PM

I've been to Bulgaria a few times, it's not crime free but it's not lawless either, or any different than any other location in the world, including Ireland.
I've been to lots of places around the world and to be honest I don't think I've ever been anywhere where tourists were not robbed at some point while I was there.
I got the sh1t kicked out of me and robbed in Budapest, my Ipod robbed in Thailand, ripped off in Bulgaria by a policeman/taxi driver, robbed of €50 in Spain, pickpocket'd in Paris, but to be honest it was all my own drunken fault.
In every destination you are certain to find people who are willing to rob you and people who are willing to help you, so it's a bit unfair to single out Bulgaria as a place to avoid.
I wouldn't let these things prevent me from travelling back anywhere on my own, and maybe I'll be robbed again.
Maybe best just to stay home OP and stay scared of the big bad world.
Don't go to any of these places either!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cypher_sounds · 07-07-2010 02:51PM

uprising2 wrote: »

I've been to Bulgaria a few times, it's not crime free but it's not lawless either, or any different than any other location in the world, including Ireland.
I've been to lots of places around the world and to be honest I don't think I've ever been anywhere where tourists were not robbed at some point while I was there.
I got the sh1t kicked out of me and robbed in Budapest, my Ipod robbed in Thailand, ripped off in Bulgaria by a policeman/taxi driver, robbed of €50 in Spain, pickpocket'd in Paris, but to be honest it was all my own drunken fault.
In every destination you are certain to find people who are willing to rob you and people who are willing to help you, so it's a bit unfair to single out Bulgaria as a place to avoid.
I wouldn't let these things prevent me from travelling back anywhere on my own, and maybe I'll be robbed again.
Maybe best just to stay home OP and stay scared of the big bad world.
Don't go to any of these places either!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Just to let you know, i wasn't singling out bulgaria, i was just telling my experience of the place, i wasn't drunk when i got robbed of my phone or by the taximan i was completely sober, ive been to loads of countries and have never got robbed before, if i did i would have said it.

No offence but you must be fairly careless in other countries if all of that has happened to you

uprising2 · 07-07-2010 03:09PM

Cypher_sounds wrote: »

No offence but you must be fairly careless in other countries if all of that has happened to you

Yea you could say that, I was alone in Budapest, p1ssed on the metro and wanted to buy some marijuana from somebody/anybody and these 2 nice guys took me to get some, kicked the crap outta me and robbed me.

That was the most idiotic, the rest less idiotic, but idiotic.

But I've done a fair bit of travelling alone and never had a problem, and the above could have happened to me plenty of times in plenty of places but didn't, due to strangers just being honest.

EDIT:
You aren't the OP, my post was to the OP.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQZmCJUSC6g

Lord Derpington · 07-07-2010 03:16PM

Cypher_sounds wrote: »

Was in Bulgaria last summer, had my phone robbed outta my pocket and didn't even know until i was back in the hotel, was just glad it wasn't my wallet gone.

Also got a taxi back to the hotel one evening after a long walk around the outer part of sunny beach, a 10 minute taxi ride back to the hotel and we were charged 150lev, i said to the driver no way was i paying that much and he said if we didnt pay up he would take us away to his boss, we couldn't leg it cause he locked the doors so had to cough up after bout 10mins of deliberations with the prick.

So from my experience of Bulgaria i wouldn't recommend it to anyone, some far better places that are worth going to like Turkey have been there and its a wonderful place to spend your holidays

Are you serious? I have personally heard more stories about people being raped, robbed, beaten etc in kusadasi alone than anywhere else.

I have been to Bulgaria, had a fantastic time no problems what so ever. People all very friendly, and places were lovely!
Infact when Ireland played Bulgaria in croke park i was in the Bulgarian supporters section wearing an Ireland jersery and draped in the Irish flag.
No once did i have any problems or feel threatenedin any way.

IMO everywhere has horror stories, i mean ive heard them about basically everywhere in the country and then the next person you meet will say the exact oppiset.
Some people will always have a shit time or a bad expirence but you could get robbed in the middle of Leitrim.
My girlfriend almost got car jacked in the middle of the day in cork on Albert street while stopped at the traffic lights, the only reason she wasnt is beacuse she had her doors locked.
Does this mean noone should ever drive in Cork?

recylingbin · 07-07-2010 03:20PM

greenfly wrote: »

Does this mean noone should ever drive in Cork?

AH answer?

syklops · 07-07-2010 03:37PM

I was in Bulgaria about 15 years ago. While I was there my granny died.

Apart from that food was grand, people friendly, and weather was great(though it did rain a few nights). CDs were dead cheap too, though they were knock offs. I would highly recommend it. Though maybe not if you have elderly relatives.

Fizman · 07-07-2010 03:38PM

I've been to Sunny Beach in Bulgaria twice and had a good time. The one major problem for me was at the end of my first holiday, I got completely fcuked over by mosquitoes. I couldn't go out for the last 2 nights of the holiday as my legs were so swollen and sore.

Now don't get me started on the black hookers in Barcelona! Was staggering through the Ramblas one night on a stag and I had a pink cowboy hat on (we bumped into a hen party btw) when all of a sudden about 6 hookers charged at me. They all went for my hat, and I wasn't going to leave them have it. Unfortunately while both of my hands were clasped onto said hat, they managed to loot both of my pockets in my jeans. Let's just say I'm probably funding the education one of their daughters!

syklops · 07-07-2010 03:57PM

Fizman wrote: »

I've been to Sunny Beach in Bulgaria twice and had a good time. The one major problem for me was at the end of my first holiday, I got completely fcuked over by mosquitoes. I couldn't go out for the last 2 nights of the holiday as my legs were so swollen and sore.

Now don't get me started on the black hookers in Barcelona! Was staggering through the Ramblas one night on a stag and I had a pink cowboy hat on (we bumped into a hen party btw) when all of a sudden about 6 hookers charged at me. They all went for my hat, and I wasn't going to leave them have it. Unfortunately while both of my hands were clasped onto said hat, they managed to loot both of my pockets in my jeans. Let's just say I'm probably funding the education one of their daughters!

I dont understand all these people that say Sunny Beach is a kip/Dump/not a nice place etc. Did they go to a different sunny beach than I went to?

recylingbin · 07-07-2010 03:59PM

Maybe their criteria for 'nice place' are different to yours.

Beware Bulgaria

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