Bor and Edelweiss Hotel

1 reader found this review helpful

A friend and I went to Bulgaria for our first skiing holiday and stayed in Hotel Edelweiss. It was perfect for what we wanted. It was clean and modern, the staff were friendly. It was disappointing that the pool wasn't open when we were there (Jan 2009) which I believe is in Hotel Bor. The hotel is basic and there is not much in the way of entertainment bar a pool table and telly but this did not bother us as we only used it as a base. We stayed half board and the food was nice but did however get a bit boring by the end of the week because there was not much variety. In the room the bathroom was very nice, a good shower needed for after a days skiing. Even though the hotel is on the outskirts of the main hotel area in Borovets it is really not that far to the main slope, maybe a 10 minute walk. I would recommend this hotel and would definatly return.

2 readers found this review helpful

Having been to Bulgaria before we knew what to expect - a cheap and cheerful though basic holiday. The hotel Bor was clean and the staff pleasant although the hotel was very smokey as smoking is allowed anywhere and most Bulgarians seem to chain smoke! The food is poor but edible and drinks are cheap to buy. It is a 15 minute uphill walk to the ski lifts and rental station where you can leve your skis/ski boots/shoes - no ski bus available. The rooms were cleaned everyday and were comfortable and warm. The ski instruction was fantastic and even though half the resort was closed due to high winds blowing the snow off the highest slopes, there was still a good variety of ski area with snow cannons topping up the slopes. Borovets itself is full of bars and strip clubs with men trying to get you into their bars, our hotel was far enough away not too expereince any noise and we tended to keep away in the evening. Qeues for lifts were minimal or non existent, it is definately cheaper to buy lift passes etc before you go. We enjoyed our holiday and would recommend Borovets and the Hotel Bor for a cheap no frills ski holiday.

11 readers found this review helpful

Stayed for 1 week at Hotel Bor; first time skiing for many years for us - stayed at Hotel Eidelweiss 30 years ago as far as I could see, it hadn't changed at all; however, that is part of it's charm; it is functional and and warm; not flash but basic and clean. The food is plentiful, again basic but our 2 picky teenage daughters were adequately catered for; the breakfast especially was a good start to the day. We had a suite comprising of a room with bathroom off; with separate bedroom with 2 beds and a lounge with setees and double bed - tip: take a compressed pillow if you can fit it in your suitcase; theirs are hard feather pillows. Our bathroom was a bit tired but clean with plentiful hot water and a bath (heaven after skiing).
The staff were charming; they couldn't do enough for any of the guests; the towels were changed every day and the bed linen changed 3 times in the 1 week that we were there.
Borovets was a great resort; we had good snow and our instructor with Borosports, Mario, was first class and became a real friend to the group. We went at half term and didn't find any real problem with queueing apart from first thing on the Gondola, but it moved quickly. We all went to ski-school as intermediates and the runs and tuition were excellent; the skis, boots etc were good and we couldn't fault the organization.
If you want a posey smart resort, Borovets is not for you. For a good family holiday, good skiing and a 'folky' feel with an insight to a very different culture, give it a go; you will be hooked - we are and are already looking into returning to the Hotel Bor next year.

6 readers found this review helpful

Fantastic holiday in a fantastic little ski-ing resort. The Hotel Bor was basic but served the purpose that we needed it for. Be warned that it is a short walk in to the town centre (about 15 minutes) but the area is well served by a taxi which costs about 10 levs (approx £4.)
When we arrived (after a delayed flight) we had missed the evening meal, so the staff had kindly provided us with a snack in our room which was greatly recieved after our tasteless plane meal. We were also relieved to find that the bar was still open at 2am....basically if you're drinking the bar is open. The bar is small, but well stocked up on the local ale and the barman may even try cocktails depending on your taste.
The rooms were cleaned daily by the maids whilst we were out ski-ing and towels changed on a regular basis. The hotel is quietly set back from the road and is set over 3 floors. It is not as bigger eye-sore as the larger hotels (Rila and Samakov) that you will find in Borovets centre. The staff were friendly and helpful at all times of the day.
The co-oridoors were very echoey as they were long and wide, but overall the hotel was very quiet and peaceful.
The rooms were fairly small, but adequate enough and more than served their purpose. Be warned that there is no bath which was very much needed after a hard day ski-ing!!
The only negative for us was the food. The Bulgarian's are trying to cater for the Westerners taste but are currently failing! There was plenty of choice on the buffett if you could work out what it was!! We found that eating out was cheaper than at home and the food on a whole was much better. Talking to people in our ski-school it sounded like the food was of a similar quality in the more expensive and larger hotels.
Overall we thoroughly enjoyed our stay in the Bor and in Borovets itself and will definitely be returning.