No local organizing company is involved in arranging the travel and accommodation of the participants. If you receive any e-mails with offers for that, they are 100% phishing and scam attempts!
Sofia Airport
There are several convenient ways to get from Sofia Airport to the city center.
- Public transport (both bus from T1 and T2 and metro from T2). Tickets can be purchased in the public transport itself with a credit card - you need to approach your credit card to the validation machines which are close to the entrance gates inside the bus. For the metro you approach you card at the access gates at the Metro station. Concerning the buses to and from the airport - there are regular checks so it is highly advisable to validate your ticket (i.e. your credit card) once you are in bus/tram. The ticket fee for a single ride is 1.60 BGN (~0.80 EUR).
- Taxi (Yellow! have contract with both terminals of Sofia airport, https://sofia-airport.eu/en/access/transportation/#by-taxi ), go directly to the operator terminal at the airport. The cost of the trip from the airport to the city center is of the order of 10-15 euro.
Keep in mind that the buses and the metro to the airport don't operate between 00h and 05h AM and during this time taxi is the only option.
When choosing the public transport connections - Sofia public transport is relatively regular and convenient and the information is also shared with Google Maps services.
Visa requirements
Bulgaria is a member of both the European Union and the Schengen Area. Schengen visa rules apply for entry in Bulgaria. You may check your visa requirement status at:
https://www.mfa.bg/en/services-travel/consular-services/travel-bulgaria/visa-bulgariaMost probably the necessary information is in "Information about the Visa Regime for foreigners with ordinary passports for a short stay (until 90 days)" section.
In many cases, depending on the country of citizenship, stays up to 30/60/90/120/180 days are exempt from visa.
If there is a visa requirement, let the organizers know and we will provide an invitation letter.
Currency
The official currency in Bulgaria is the Bulgarian Lev (BGN) with a fixed exchange rate of 1.95 BGN = 1 EUR. In many shops you'll find the correpsonding price in EUR but very few (if any) places actually accept purchases in cash in euro.
Card payments are widely accepted, however it is advisable to have a small amount of BGN in cash, especially if you want to buy things from small local vendors (e.g. street food). Exchange rates at the airport are usually unfavorable. You can exchange cash in the city, but please ensure that there are no extra commissions. We recommend withdrawing money directly from an ATM, as this is typically more cost-efficient and safe.
