Rila Hotel & Studios

If you are reading this then you are probably considering a ski trip to Borovets...WARNING!!!!..read on,and learn of the reality of skiing in "Beautiful Borovets"...not as the brochures would have you believe but from our experiences this january.A group of 8 of us travelled,4 adults and 4 kids,and in that group 1 child was a learner,all others seasoned skiers,3 out of 4 of the adults advanced skiers,all others intermediates.On arrival at the Rila the first thing that hits you is the smokey atmosphere..everybody smokes and although non smoking bedrooms were requested there were none!Every fibre of the rooms stink..even the clean linen towels etc absolutely stank of stale smoke.The rooms were ok,but 4 star they were not!On the first night the waste fell off the sink,the toilet flush didnt work...after making 4 calls to reception and having the phone hung up on me twice they finally managed to get it sorted the following day.Anyway ,Sunday morning arrived and breakfast before a days skiing.Breakfast was an education....my dog wouldnt have eaten half the rubbish they put on display,the quality was very very poor,although the kids did like the burnt pancakes,after queing for over 30 mins each day for them.Next came the ski hire ....this was unbelievable...the gear was archaic..the worst hire gear i have ever seen in over 25 years of skiing ,no edges on skis,any old poles,any size,no weight taken for safety regarding bindings,some of these bindings were older than me and i aint no spring chicken!(just aswell i,ve got my own gear)..the saga continues...ok so we hit the slopes...and believe me you will que and wait around for ages...nothing opens on time,the gondola waiting time was over 1 hour,and the drags even longer when they are working,which isnt often as they are constantly breaking down.Back to the actual skiing...which was ok,when you could actually get to the slopes,but so frustrating as the lift attendants didnt seem to give a fig whether their lifts worked or not..we actually hung around at one drag for nearly 2 hours while they tried to fix the damn thing..we couldnt ski down as there was no snow to get down on...so with about 300 other skiers we just froze our buns off till finally they sorted the problem!The ski school for the learner wasnt much better...the attitude of the instructor was very unprofessional towards a little 9 year old who was frightened and needed confidence building,not to be ignored and allowed to stand around whilst ,Peter the poseur,tried to impresslittle girls and boys with his skiing prowess on the green runs....as you can guess the whole experience was a total fiasco!As far as Borovets the town is concerned....actually it is quite unique and to be honest its got everything a skiing resort could want,its just such a shame that the Bulgarians dont realise that if they dont buck up their ideas people will not go back there,certainly we never will,...Generally the people are friendly,but remember you are a tourist and they will take you for every lev they can squeeze out of you...i have never ever been so happy to see the shores of Blighty...thank god i,m off to Switzerland next month!!!

We have just returned (30.12.06) from a weeks skiing holiday at the Rila in Borovets. Having booked the holiday before checking this site I was very worried about what we were going to find but overall we were pleasantly surprised. We stayed in one of the studios which were clean, warm and spaceous and cleaned every day with numerous towels provided. The hotel is ideally placed for all the amenities. I personally thought the food was poor i.e cold, but my husband and sons managed to find something to eat on those evenings when we decided not to go out. As for breakfast there is cereal, bread for toast etc even if the cooked items were cold, although my eldest son thought the scrambled eggs were fine. Anyway It is so cheap to eat out it is a shame not to experience it and the service is brilliant. The Christmas Day Gala Dinner at the Rila was edible and I have never seen so much alcohol on a table - they had definitely made an effort to make it feel like Christmas! From a skiing point of view Dec is early for the snow, although we didn't realise this. A lot of the runs weren't open and the queues were long. As beginners that was Ok for us but my eldest son who is an advanced skier found the selection of runs limited, however, he still had a good time. We were told that when all the runs are open the queues are minimal. Our ski instructor was a bit miserable but we managed to defrost him eventually and he was a good teacher - I managed a green run by the end of the week and never thought that would happen. I guess it would be fair to say that he was ultra cautious about our safety. We went on a skidoo ride and thought it was fun, it would have been even better if there had been more snow! One of our friends had a massage at the Rila and thought that was good. We met people who had been to the Rila before and would go again. I don't think I would go again but that's only because there are other countries I would like to go to. As a beginner and to decide whether we liked skiing it was ideal. I agree with another reviewer It isn't a 4 star by english standards, probably a 2 star, but then we didn't pay 4 star prices. If you have booked a holiday at the Rila and you have read some of the reports and like me are worried, don't be, we went without any expectations and had a really fun time!

We have just returned from a weeks holiday at the Rila and i would highly reccommend it to anyone looking for a cheap place to learn to ski. I came onto this website to look for prices in feb and got sidetracked, this is the first time i have ever bothered to write a review. I looked up the Rila on this site after it was booked and was fairly worried about what we were going to find, although i have learnt to take them with a pinch of salt as some people seem to think you are going to get 5 star hotels for the price of a bag of chips and i'm mostly happy if it doesn't smell and i'm not afraid to walk to the car if it's cheap enough! Anyway i was expecting the ugliest hotel in the world, prison food, rooms stinking of smoke, cleaners stealing all your clothes (no valuables as these were all kept with us such was my paranoia that we would get ripped off with the safety deposit boxes) and finally two prostitutes to every guest ( we were quite diappointed to not even spot one despite being on the lookout most of the time, just out of interest, although we have lead very sheltered lives so perhaps we were missing them) We arrived to find that although the Rila may not win any architectural prizes it does not burn your eyes to look at it.The food was not the best i have ever tasted but we all managed to find something on the buffet we could eat (even the fussy kids and me with my quirky preferences)and some of it was reasonably pleasant. I did use the scented candle and ambi-pur that i brought but only because it made the room smell extra nice there was no smokey smell at all. Nothing went from our room at all except possibly my nightie but why anyone would take that is beyond me, i expect my husband chucked it out of the window it wasn't that nice! We were in a party of 14 and none of us had anything more than niggles with the hotel and for the price we were more than happy. The location couldn't be beaten, just walk out the front door to the nursery slope and we had a fantastic view from our balcony, although i guess the rooms at the back weren't as good so ask for one at the front. The staff were ok, a bit surly compared to everone else around the town but not too bad. This is only the third ski resort i have ever been to and the first full week so i don't have a lot to compare with but i found it really friendly and laid back. Not at all sophisticated and we didn't spot any royals but at least we felt relaxed there. I have never known english people so open with strangers, everyones just bursting to talk! (but it's not annoying and i'm a real grump) We had group lessons and our instructor was fantastic but i guess that's the luck of the draw. With hindsight we would have paid extra to have a group of 5 or less as there was a lot of waiting about but with 10 of us that was unavoidable. Also i would never book so early in the year again as we were lucky to have any snow at all and as we had no new snow it was very icy but that was our mistake. The only real disappointment was the skidoo tour booked as a neilson excursion, give it a miss if you are hoping for excitement but you might like it if you're a bit of a wuss. Can't think of anything else but for a cheap taster it was fab.

Borovets is ok as a cheap place to learn how to ski/ board. I went with a party of seven and the snowboard instructor we had was awfull - the Hotel Samakov instructors however, appeared excellent but I never looked at that hotel. Don't believe the rubbish about Borovets having a long season - we went in the third week of March and any later would have resulted in boarding on grass! The upper slopes are excellent but they are only accesable from the gondola which is not always running! Hotel Rila is probably a 2 star. The location was fantastic, you can literally board in through the front doors and the main lift is 20m away. Also all the lessons start outside it's door so from that point of view it is superb. We had four rooms and all had mouldy bathroom ceilings and as an example of how they fix things - when the guy came to fix our telly he literally unplugged it and plugged it in next door and plugged next doors telly into our room!!! Food was always cold and poor quality, same food every night. I am not being bitter about the place - I had an excellent time and if we had been bed and breakfast then it would have been ok. We had actually paid for half board but we only ate dinner in the hotel twice... food out is so cheap that that made up for the awfull hotel food. Last thing - if you are looking to learn to board then although the resort is cheap, the number of learner slopes is poor and they all have button lifts - not something you want to learn to deal with before you can even stand up on a board! If you are a fairly competent boarder then I HIGHLY recommend going to the top of the gondola and skiing offpiste between the trees/ bushes to the side of the blue run - awesome fun! Also if you are a good boarder then board down the something Masala run from the top of the gondola to the bottom of the hill - it is great fun, very challenging and took us an hour and a half. Don't be fooled into thinking its a green run - that is only for skiiers (snowploughing all the way down), the twists and turns combined with the narrowness probably make it at least a red run for boarders! Thats it! have fun but prepare to eat out every night if you stay at the Rila!

We have just returned from a weeks skiing holiday in the Rila Hotel, Borovets. our party size was 4 adults and 4 children, ages ranging from 9years - 40years old. I had read most of the reviews regarding this resort/hotel and was slightly worried of what we were going to? The rooms were clean tidy and big enough - there was always hot water and the maids cleaned the rooms every day. The Pool - The children loved the pool and Jacuzzi - great for the adults they can sit in the lounge and enjoy watching them through the glass while sipping a cold beer or warm wine? The restaurant was a buffet service which had a good range of food - the children loved brakfast time where they would que for the pancakes. The lounge has plenty of seating with waitress service, beer was around 300 levs and childrens drinks like a milk shake 500 levs. The skiing - we had booked a weeks ski school with the holiday package. My children and wife had not skied before and found the instructor (Mariana) very helpful and friendly. By the end of the week they were skiing down the green, Blue and a part of the Red slopes. The main 4 man chair lifts are situated 20metres from the front on the Rila Hotel and the gondala just 5 miniutes walk away. I would recommend this resort to anyone from a beginner to an intermediate skier. The hotel and resort has a friendly and comfortable feel, the few restaurants we went into were clean tidy and served some excellent food, dont be afraid to ask for something different, the locals are very friendly. If you are looking for a friendly, cheap, with good skiing conditions then this is the place. PS - I will be booking again.

We have just returned from a great holiday in Borovets, Bulgaria. If you are beginner/intermediate skier looking for a low budget holiday this is certainly somewhere i would recommend. In terms of the hotel, although basic, it was clean, tidy and the location at the bottom of the main piste was fantastic. You won't find a better situated hotel anywhere (We had a fantastic view of the main pistes). The pool and leisure facilities were also nice (no more slippier than your average pool). I'd also recommend a massage! The only down side of the hotel was the eating area. The sheer volume of people meant the queues for the buffet were often huge and there were a number of occassions when clean tea cups and cutlery were at a premium! My advice is to eat out, the food is really nice and fantastic value (£6 for steak and chips, beer £1-£2 approx). If you eat in the restaurant just oppposite the main hotel entrance, on the right, you will also see Jose Mourinho's younger brother who owns the restuarant!! The skiing equipment was excellent and the ski school was great value for money. The instructors spoke fantastic english and by the end of the week my girlfriend was a competent skier. Although, it was half-term week, the queues for the ski lift were fine. They did get a bit busy at 10am as the ski schools started but this can be easily avoided. In summary, the holiday was fantastic value for money and i would certainly go again. I read some of the reviews on this website before i went which made me a bit worried. However, the "horror" stories people talk about are being blown out of complete proportion. Don't worry! Just bear in mind that it's not a five star resort so adjust your expectations accordingly.

We really really enjoyed our holiday in Borovets staying in the Rila Hotel. There was a huge selection of food, not always boiling, but there is a microwave to heat the food up, or spoon the food from the bottom and it is lovely and warm. The room was big with a TV and the bathroom was clean and tided every day with clean fresh towels. Plenty of shops on the ground floor of the hotel with cheap ski wear etc. Our ski instructor Krassi was excellent, we learnt so much. Can't wait to go again!!!!

Food was cold and didn't always match the descrption on the cards, but there was plenty of choice. Eating out locally is cheap . Reception ok, but as stated elsewhere watch for the safety deposit box scam. Luckily I read about it and kept mine. I was asked twice to pay! Pool very slippy so flip flops are a good idea. It's lovely sitting in the Jacuzzi and looking out to snowy landscape. The ski instructor (Kiko) we had was great, the patience of a saint. He wasn't too worried about the time so we skiied for most of the day. The slopes are really good but were quite icy when we went. We did the skiddoo safari booked through the reps. I enjoyed it but could have got it cheaper, but then it's "are you insured"? There are the usual photographers for that holiday piccy and I was nicely suprised at the cost, £2 per photo (not like Alton towers £5-6) Overall a good cheap holiday. I would go back.

maid service excellent, food terrible, went to resturant once our children had a plate of food the carrots and sweetcorn was as cold as the snow. good location for ski-ing very basic more like a 2 star hotel, but it is so cheap you can go out to eat.

We stayed at the Rila 14-21 Jan 2006. We arrived about 1am but the restaurant stayed open and check in was quick, although some people on the same flight said they had to wait 2 hours to check in! Room was a fantastic size and the bathroom was nice, very clean, warm and beautiful views. We were overlooking the resort and it was extremely noisy like people were clubbing in our room until 4am!!! Other nights were not quite so late before I dropped off! If you don't think you'll be able to bear it request a room overlooking the car park with your tour operator. All the rooms stink of smoke and as an ex smoker I woke up feeling rougher than when I used to smoke 60 a day! By the way they are tight with toilet roll so nick as much as you can off the chambermaids trolley and hide it! Security is extremely heavy and threatening and some of our friends said they were "told off" for taking pictures in the bar and reception areas although some people took pictures and I didn't see the security getting shirty. Don't try to haggle in the shops, we were told "This is not Turkey" - my reply? "Well in Turkey they didn't sell weapons on the street, have whores approach any man regardless of whether they're with their wives, or steal my husbands gloves or underpants, so we're all disappointed"! No sense of humour those Bulgarians in the main! My husband had his pants stolen from his locked locker in the hotel sports centre (god knows why when they could have gone for our room key or his jeans and trainers!) He had his ski gloves stolen from ski depot 1 but people were constantly having things pinched from under their noses - sunglasses being very popular and a watch also from a locked locker in the hotel sports centre! Food was edible in the restaurant and I thought a really good selection for the evening, but I'm not at all fussy. We ate out most nights as it was exceptionally cheap and good food, I recommend The Blue, Winter House Snow Bear and the restaurant at the foot of the black slope by the chair lift nearest the Alpin Hotel. Mamacitas is a lovely place, a bit more pricey but excellent Mexican food, lovely service and an excellent house band. Don't be afraid to ask in restaurants to have your food served hot and they will oblige willingly. I got stuck in a hotel lift on the last night and the alarm bell wasn't working, I was on the 8th floor and rescued by a lovely Dutch guy called Bart and his friend, apparently people quite often heard people calling for help in lifts that had broken down in the hotel. The hotel has one hairdryer, ask at reception and it is given out for free. Channel 13 on the TV in the hotel shows free and graphic porn past midnight so beware of young eyes channel hopping in the night or getting too frisky after a hard day's skiing, your body may not be up to the strain! The receptionist and manager of the sports centre have no concept of customer care and had the audacity to shout at me when they messed up my booking for a massage - they were horrible and reduced me to tears, reception didn't really care but my husband managed to get an appointment for me and a discount. The masseuse Dani is lovely though and shows that Bulgarians are actually lovely people afflicted with a scary accent! For the price you cannot go wrong and overall I loved it and would gladly go back. If your ski instructor is Stojen (pronounced Stoyan) then send him kind regards, he can be a git but that's just his way, don't let him upset you just say oi no and explain how to get the best out of you - he's a pussycat and quite put upon by his boss so cut him some slack!!! I started the week never having skiied and was doing red runs by my third day, Stojen tried to get me on a black run on my last day but after mild concussion and what turned out to be a dislocated thumb I took the easy route and got in a swift hot chocolate and brandy! Don't be put off it's an experience - be aware, be assertive and remember some of us actually wish we were there!