Getting around Bulgaria: transport and apps

The road vignette

• The Bulgarian vignette is electronic and tied to your plate. No sticker.
• Buy it online at bgtoll.bg, at a petrol station or at the border before joining a national road.
• Rental cars usually have one - confirm it in writing.

Buses over trains

• Intercity buses are faster, more frequent and more comfortable than the trains on almost every route. This is the reverse of most of Europe and it is worth knowing before you plan.
• Sofia to Plovdiv or Varna is a bus journey, run by several competing companies from the central bus station.
• The train is cheap and slow, and scenic on the Septemvri to Bansko narrow-gauge line, which is worth doing for its own sake.

In Sofia

• The metro is modern and cheap and reaches the airport, the centre and the main stations.
• Buy tickets in the app or from a machine.
• Validate every time.

Driving

• Mountain roads are good but weather-dependent, and winter tyres are compulsory from mid-November to the beginning of March.
• Some passes close in winter.