Varna

A total of 49 cruise ships have requested visits to the Marine Station in Varna, according to Bozhidar Chaparov, Executive Director of Port Varna.

Chaparov, as cited by mediapool.bg, pointed out that the average of requested visits of passenger ships in 2013 had been 20-25.

He explained the increase with the good reputation of the port.

Turkish Airlines will have a direct route Istanbul-Varna, starting from June 30, said deputy tourism minister Branimir Botev. 

According to him, the negotiations on the opening of the route were very hard. 

Botev expressed hopes that Varna would become an important access point to the Istanbul airport. 

Bulgaria's Patriarch Neofit will leave on a one-week official visit to Russia, said the Holy Synod of Bulgarian Orthodox Church. 

He will be accompanied by four bishops – of Lovech, Vidin, Varna and Ruse. 

A Bulgarian consular office will be opened in Yekaterinburg by mid-June, according to Deputy Prime Minister Daniela Bobeva.

Bobeva and Deputy Economy Minister Branimir Botev took part Sunday in a meeting with tourism industry representatives.

The French sports goods retail chain Decathlon plans to open two more stores in Bulgaria, reports the business daily Capital Daily. 

Currently the company has two stores in Sofia and is planning imminent expansion in Plovdiv and Varna. The plans of a third store in Sofia and a first one in Burgas also remain, but the company hasn't set a time frame yet.

Bulgarian millionaires have made a total of BGN 305.3M in 2013, according to National Revenue Agency's data.

There are 147 individuals who have filed declarations of their income for over BGN 1M during the latest tax campaign, Money.bg informs citing data provided by the NRA.

Bulgaria has proven to be an attractive destination for high-spending Arab tourists during the Arabian Travel Market in Dubai.

The exhibition held between May 5-8, 2014 is the most important international tourism event for professionals in the Middle East, Bulgaria's Ministry of Economy and Energy informed.

Intensive traffic is expected across Bulgaria on Tuesday, which is the last day of the 6-day extended holidays.

Starting Monday through Wednesday, an extra lane will be opened on the Hemus Highway in the direction Varna – Sofia, while there will be one less in the opposite way at the Bebresh viaduct.

Ukraine is expected to propose that Russia be excluded from the Black Sea Naval Force (BLACKSEAFOR) at a high-level sitting of experts to be held in Bulgaria.

The step was announced by a source familiar with military and diplomatic affairs in Moscow, according to reports of ITAR-TASS and the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency (BTA).

The city of Varna, also known as Bulgaria's sea capital, is for the second time host to the SCF Black Sea Tall Ships Regatta, a renowned maritime contest which started April 30.