This document discusses the role of tour operators in the sustainable development of Bulgarian winter resorts. It provides an overview of Bulgaria's main winter resort areas and the concentration of resorts and tourism in certain districts. It analyzes how foreign and Bulgarian tour operators can influence sustainable development by educating tourists, managing tourist flows, imposing sustainability standards on suppliers, and promoting cultural attractions alongside skiing. The document argues that tour operators need to play a more active role in sustainable tourism programs and management.

1. Role of tour operators for sustainable development of Bulgarian winter resorts
Stanislav Ivanov, Ph. D.
Academic Director
International University College
3 Bulgaria Str., 9300 Dobrich, Bulgaria
Editor: European Journal of Tourism Research
e-mail: stanislav.ivanov@vumk.eu
http://ejtr.vumk.eu

2. Role of tour operators for sustainable development of Bulgarian winter resorts
Tour operators and sustainable development of resorts
Overview of Bulgarian winter resorts
Role of foreign tour operators for the sustainable development of Bulgarian winter resort
Role of Bulgarian tour operators for the sustainable development of Bulgarian winter resort
The way forward …

3. Tour operators and sustainable development of resorts
Growing research (Carey, Gounta and Gilbert, 1997; Curtin and Busby, 1999; Budeanu, 2005; Wijk and Persoon, 2006; Schwartz, Tapper and Font, 2008; Sigala, 2008)
Tour operators and sustainable tourism (Sigala, 2008)
-Influence the volume and direction of tourist flows
-Integrate and affect attitudes and practices of suppliers and stakeholders
-Lead to widespread benefits due to their size
Sustainable chain management – product design, procurement, production, distribution, reverse logistic

5. Overview of Bulgarian winter resorts
Main winter resorts:
Rodope – Pamporovo, Chepelare, Gela, Momchilovtsi, Smolyan, Yundola
Rila – Borovets, Malyovitsa, Govedartsi, Panichishte, Semkovo, Belmeken
Pirin – Bansko, Razlog, Dobrinishte
Balkan – Uzana, Ribaritsa, Beklemeto, Karandila, Chumerna
Vitosha – ski zone Vitosha near Sofia

6. Overview of Bulgarian winter resorts
Concentration of major resorts in few districts – e.g. Blagoevgrad, Smolyan, Sofia
Overbuilding – construction of many new hotels and vacation homes
Medium distance from airports
Lower latitude and altitude compared to Alpine resorts – shorter season
Combination of skiing with cultural tourism, mineral springs
Popular during the summer season as well

7. Role of foreign tour operators for the sustainable development
Offer package tours to only few resorts – Pamporovo, Borovets, Bansko – geographical concentration
Sell medium to large size properties
Flights to Sofia or Plovdiv
Offer programmes only during the winter – temporal concentration
Promote the destination as a “cheap”, “discount”, “budget” destination
Promote the natural beauty and hospitality of local residents
Large reservation systems (e.g. Expedia) feature hotels in winter resorts for FIT bookings
Strict hotel inspections (Balkan holidays UK)

8. Role of Bulgarian tour operators for the sustainable development
Offer predominantly hotel accommodation to different resorts – FIT bookings
Sell all properties, including self-catering properties, guest houses, mountain huts
For package tours transportation is by bus
Winter ski and summer holidays in the mountains
Promote the resorts and hotels in them as both “best”, “exclusive”, “selected” and “cheap”, “budget” – “unforgettable holiday” in a “cheap” hotel in the “exclusive” resort of Bansko
Promote the natural beauty, eco tourism, active holidays, cultural sights
Include individual properties in Bulgarian online hotel reservation systems (e.g. Premier tours – www.premiertours.bg; Astral Holidays – www.tirs.net; NBTA – www.nbta.bg)
Contracts with hotels and inspections do not include environmental issues

9. The way forward …
Make mass tourism sustainable not move it elsewhere
Tour operators could stimulate the sustainable development of mountain resorts in Bulgaria by:
Educating tourists
Managing tourists’ choices
More even geographical and temporal distribution of tourist flows
Imposing sustainability standards on suppliers – certified suppliers
Promoting the cultural heritage and other attractions not just skiing
No arm twisting the hotels
Participation in sustainable tourism programmes
More active role of local representatives

10. References
Budeanu, A. (2005) Impacts and responsibilities for sustainable tourism: a tour operator’s perspective. Journal of Cleaner Production 13(2), 89-97
Carey, S., Y. Gounta, D. Gilbert (1997) Tour operators and destination sustainability. Tourism Management 18(7), 425-431
Curtin, S., G. Busby (1999) Sustainable destination development: the tour operator perspective. International Journal of Tourism Research 1(2), 135-147
Schwartz, K., R. Tapper, X. Font (2008) A sustainable supply chain management framework for tour operators. Journal of Sustainable Tourism 16(3), 298-314
Sigala, M. (2008) A supply chain management approach for investigating the role of tour operators on sustainable tourism: the case of TUI. Journal of Cleaner Production 16(15), 1589-1599
Wijk, J. van, W. Persoon (2006) A long-haul destination: Sustainability reporting among tour operators. European Management Journal 24(6) 381-395