Alpine Valley

Location

Bansko is a small resort town of 10,000 situated in South West Bulgaria, 150km from Sofia. The area surrounding the Bansko resort is enjoying one of the strongest booms in Bulgaria currently, coming of age as a world class, year round holiday resort. According to the Ski Club of Britain Bansko is the “best developed ski resort in Eastern Europe” and was declared “the hottest new ski resort on the planet” by the Daily Mail.

For the Bansko and Razlog Municipalities the the growth in tourism has been even more pronounced than the rest of Bulgaria, in 2002 the resort welcomed 14,000 overseas visitors, five years later this figure reached 700,000, an increase of 5,000%! This figure is also expected to continue its heady rise as more and more people discover the area. All this will provide a fantastic rental return!

Key4 Bulgaria have years of experience in the local market and we are witnessing the rapid changes first hand, 65km of piste will become nearly 300km by 2012, two new gondolas, both less than 3km from Alpine Valley are to be developed and there is talk of a Winter Olympic bid in 2018, a testament to how far the resort has come in the last few years.

The Razlog Municipal government are also keen to escape the seasonality of traditional ski resorts, with seven of the finest alpine golf courses in Europe currently being built, including Ian Woosnam’s par 72 Championship Course, which is visible from Alpine Valley. Aside from this the region is forging a reputation for it’s natural springs and spa facilities with mountain biking, hiking and fishing making this a complete resort with almost limitless potential.

The huge governmental and international investment in the Razlog region points toward continued, consistent and significant capital growth and strong rental yields for years to come. Good examples of this investment are the new motorway due for completion this year providing Razlog with a faster connection with Sofia, and the proposed construction of a new airport in the valley next to Razlog. This new airport will be the closest airport to a ski resort in Europe.

All of these infrastructural improvements will further stimulate the local property market. Local activities include world class skiing, world class golf (including Ian Woosnam’s new signature course in Razlog) white water rafting, fishing, mountain biking, hiking and nearby spa towns. All this means that the Razlog Valley will be everybody’s discovery within the next couple of years and gives Alpine Valley almost boundless year round rental potential.