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Archive for December, 2007

Bansko World Class Resort

Sunday, December 16th, 2007

Bansko Compared to Top Class Ski Resorts

Well, the ski season has officially started and it was a welcome surprise to read Bansko being compared to other high class ski resorts.

No doubt, the resort has loads of potential and can compete with the best of them but it was nice to read an article in the Standart News which carried quotes from Kjetil Andre Aamodt – a famous Alpine skier – who said:

I haven’t seen a wonderful opening like this anywhere in the world, not even in St. Moritz. Bansko resembles Colorado which is my favourite resort, but now I’ll change my mind and start skiing here.

Here’s the complete article:

Bansko Fascinates World’s Ski Elite

Eminent skiers arrived in the mountain resort, a start for the World Cup is expected next year

Thousands of tourists arrived for the opening of the ski season in Bansko hoping to take a snapshot with two of the most famous Alpine skiers in the world – Janica Kostelic and Kjetil Andre Aamodt

Gian-Franco Kasper, President of the International Ski Federation (FIS), and famous Alpine skiers Janica Kostelic and Kjetil Andre Aamodt arrived especially for the opening of the ski season in Bansko yesterday. It was snowing for a whole day, but the organizers from ULEN had taken care of the ski runs’ perfect condition. Over 2,000 tourists came to see the mega show. The white fairy tale started with the arrival of the starry trio, Kostelic, Aamodt and honorary citizen of Bansko Marc Girardelli at the Alberto Tomba piste in the resort. Kasper was extremely pleased to see the multitude of spectators at the end of the ski run.

“You have really wonderful conditions here in Bansko. I’ll come back next season to watch the start for the World Cup,” Kasper promised.

Many politicians, MPs and leading businessmen attended the opening of the season.
“You have built a classy resort in no time. I’m glad that I’m here to take part in today’s unique show,” Aamodt emphasized.

I haven’t seen a wonderful opening like this anywhere in the world, not even in St. Moritz. Bansko resembles Colorado which is my favourite resort, but now I’ll change my mind and start skiing here,” the Norwegian added.

“The presence of great skiers like Kostelic, Girardelli and Aamodt proves that our resort has a promising future, many prestigious competitions will be held here. I believe that as early as next season we’ll make true our dream to organize a start for the World Cup in Bansko. This wonderful resort is a stimulus for the development of the whole Pirin region,” said Mayor of Bansko Alexander Kravarov.

The completion of the current building work and the continued upgrading of the infrastructure in and around Bansko should continue to bring positive reviews from experts and novice skiers alike.

This time last year there was no snow at all so that yet more positive news from the best ski resort in Eastern Europe :mrgreen:

Tags:bansko ski resort, ski bulgaria, ski world cup, alpine skiers, top class skiing, International Ski Federation

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Americans for Bansko?

Thursday, December 13th, 2007

Americans for Bansko?

I just read a very interesting article in the New York Times on one of it’s reporters recent visits to Bansko Ski Resort.

Ok, the article in not all positive but gives an objective view of Bansko – a warts and all view.

It’s a quite long article and here’s a short sampling:

Is Bulgaria Really Skiing’s Next Hot Spot?

THE morning sky outside my window was gray with rain — the last thing I wanted to see at Bansko, the biggest ski resort in Bulgaria. A dispiriting mist hid the half-built hotels and condos that lay beyond the ugly Glazne River, and the Pirin Mountains were all but invisible. The town had been warm and wet the past two days, and conditions up on the slopes below the roughly 9,000-foot Todorka peak hadn’t been much better. I closed the curtains with a sigh and gave myself the day off.

Over breakfast, I planned an alternative schedule: first, I’d wander the cobblestone lanes of Bansko’s picturesque old town, then head up Pirin Street to check out my shopping options. By early afternoon, I’d be back here at my hotel, the boutiquey Villa Roka, for a swim in the pool, a shvitz in the sauna and perhaps a hot-stone massage in the spa. I was trying to decide how to test the mixological skills of the bartenders in the sleek, minimalist lounge, when my cellphone buzzed with a text message:

“Get up here now.”

It was from Luke, one of five Australians and New Zealanders I’d befriended the day before, and it launched me into action. I downed my espresso and raced upstairs to change into my snowboarding gear, and 15 minutes later I was climbing into a bright-blue gondola bubble. Over the next half-hour, as the gondola zipped me through thick pine forests, I fidgeted nervously — the trees had only a light dusting of white.

It was only when I reached base camp that I understood Luke’s message: a few inches of powder had fallen overnight, just the sight to cheer this despairing snowboarder. I jogged to a lift, and soon was cruising the easy trails, slaloming around beginners and pulling tiny airs off tiny bumps. It was bliss, but only for a couple of hours.

Before long, every last flake of powder was tracked out, and the lifts to higher altitudes — and virgin snow — were mysteriously closed. I was, I realized, done for the day. There would still be time for that shvitz.

As my friends and I rode the eight-seat gondola back down, however, I was confused. Over the past few years, hundreds of millions of dollars in investment had flowed into Bansko, a little town bordering Pirin National Park, about 100 miles south of Bulgaria’s capital, Sofia, itself a semifinalist for the 2014 Winter Olympics. The mountain boasted shiny new gondolas and detachable chairlifts built by Doppelmayr, an Austrian company, while in town dozens — if not hundreds — of vacation homes and hotels had gone up, including the five-star Kempinski Hotel Grand Arena, the surest sign that this formerly off-the-beaten-path destination had gone mainstream. The typical Bansko vista was now of construction cranes first, then the mountains.

:arrow: Get the rest of the article here.

So will there be a deluge of U.S skiers to the nether regions of Eastern Europe? Not likely unless global warming completely obliterates the yearly snowfall in Aspen.

It’s good though to see that Bansko is getting more exposure. When the New York Times sends a reporter then things must be looking up. If I’d known he was coming I’d have offered an apartment on the cheap.:wink:

Tags: bansko, new york times, ski bansko, bulgaria skiing, bansko ski resort

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Drunk Irish Breaks Into Store in Bansko

Tuesday, December 11th, 2007

Drunk Irish Breaks Into Store in Bansko, Falls Asleep

Looks like Bansko is fast approaching the standards of other touristy resorts like Majorca and Ibiza, according to a story I read recently in International Bulgarian News.

Drunk Irish Breaks Into Store in Bansko, Falls Asleep

A drunk Irish citizen was found asleep on a couch in a furniture store in the Bulgarian top winter resort of Bansko on Saturday, December 1, sofiaecho informed, citing mediapool.bg.
The previous night, the man broken into the store, breaking one of the windows and had fallen asleep on a couch.

The Irish tourist vomited in the shop and also caused damages to the furniture for about 5,400 BGN (2,700 EUR).

The tourist is under arrest and an investigation had started.

Given the amount of half finished buildings in Bansko, I’m sure there were easier ways to get the head down.

Tags:drunk irish, bansko, bulgaria, ski resort,

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