BRODILOVO

The village:

Brodilovo is a lovely village, as many other villages in Bulgaria. However what makes it different is its location. It is a true mountain village, but only 10 minutes from the beach. A mountain, a river, authentic culture, forest, the sea and beaches- all that makes a unique mixture called Brodilovo.

The climate is Mediterranean- with a warm summers, nice autumns and mild winters. The village is situated at the South-West edge of Bulgaria, just 6 miles from Turkey. In the summer sometimes is really hot, but nights are always breezy. There is a gentle wind- in the morning from the mountain, in the evening from the sea.

Wikipedia says that Brodilovo is situated in the national park Strandzha mountain, near to the Black Sea- 7.5 miles from Tsarevo and 4 miles from Ahtopol. It is placed at the beautiful Veleka valley, on its left riverside. It is one of the three villages in Bulgaria which keep the ancient ritual Nestinarstvo- barefooted dance on smouldering embers.  

Around Brodilovo there are remains of three ancient fortresses, an ancient Thrace tomb as well as several chapels. The river is less 0.5 mile from the village, and the distance to the estuary of the Veleka is about 7 miles. There is a black road from the village along the river to the Black sea. 

Strandzha is on the way of birds’ migration from Europe to Africa called “Via Pontica”. In September and October the birdwatchers can observe the peak of the autumn migration of various species of migratory birds. Thousands of storks, Dalmatian pelicans, buzzards, eagles can be watched on their way to south.

The tourist sea season starts in the mid of May. Usually the hunting and fishing season starts in the beginning of September, when the sea one is coming to an end. With its forests, river and valley Brodilovo is also very popular destination for fishing and hunting. So, the active season in Brodilovo is from May to October or even November.

In Brodilovo anybody can comfortably ride to the shop, to the river, to the see or whatever he/she wants. It is really nice to ride around – there are a lot of black roads and small paths, river and springs. Brodilovo is a real balance between a wild nature and a civilization.

                                                                          The house: 

There are fully furnished a dining room, two bedrooms, a kitchen, bath and WC. There is a small stable for 2-3 horses with the possibility to use another one near to the house. There is enough room for hay, straw, oats etc, as well for saddles, tackles etc. There is also enough grazing.

BATAK

The town

Wikipedia says: Batak is a town in Southern Bulgaria, in the Rhodope_Mountains.  The distance to the capital Sofia is 87 miles, and to Plovdiv - the second-largest sity in Bulgaria only 37 miles. Batak is situated in the northwestern slopes of  the Rhodope mountains, at 1036 m above sea level. It is surrounded by many peaks, clad with century-old pine and spruce forests. There are five big dams on the territory of the municipality-  Batak Dam, Golyam_Beglik, Shiroka_Polyana, Beglik and Toshkov Chark. The climate is temperate continental with a characteristic southern warm wind.

Batak dam is the third largest in Bulgaria. It is really near to the town- just over the hill, less than a mile. The dam is very popular. The resorts Tsigov Chark , Dunoto, St. Konstantin offer a lot of facilities for tourists. The infrastructure is really very good and a lot of interesting places are easy to reach. Batak is very popular dam for fishing. Besides the classical summer fishing, the dam is also the best place in Bulgaria for winter fishing. When the surface gets frozen hundreds of fishermen might be seen there, squatting on the ice and checking their luck. For skiers there is a ski run on the slope next to the dam and 4 miles from the town.

The town is well known as a historical place. Every Bulgarian knows the April_Uprising in 1876. The town was totally burned down and most of the citizen were killed in the "Batak Massacre".  Nowadays Batak is a temporary town. A lot of tourists come here to see historical places related to the Bulgarian fight for independence.

There are a lot of possibilities for riding. Slopes around the town are not so steep, there are a lot of black roads and paths. Distance to the dam is just a mile, and 3 - 5 miles to the resorts.

 The house

The man who built the house in the beginning or 20^th century was a horseman. He made a reliable house with a big barn and penthouse, which formed a compact estate. The house is fully furnished, authentic and very interesting. For more pictures click here. 

ELENA

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The town

Although  Elena is situated in The Balkan_Mountains, the climate is very mild. That is why there are a lot of small villages and neighborhoods around the town. The region is well known as Elena’s Balkan. The so called rural tourism is very popular. There are more than 180 houses for gests in the Elena’s Balkan. One of the most beautiful dams of Bulgaria- Yovkovci is situated about 3 miles from the town.

The season is between May and October. During that time a lot of tourists stay at villages and neighborhoods around Elena. The municipality endeavour to develop the region as a ski resort. There are two ski runs with lifts as well as two small runs.

 

The infrastructure is good, the mountain is mild and suitable for riding. Here you can find more information about the region.

Kapinovo monastery

The microclimate is very good for animal husbandry. There are a lot of pasture and water resources here. Elena is a perfect place for horses, and perfect for tourists. There are a lot of interesting places to ride. But there is no a riding center around.

 

The house:

The house is situated near to the main road, in the neighborhood called Razpopovci. Pictures and more information coming soon

OFFER

The offer is for development of three small tourist riding centers, based in key tourist spots in Bulgaria. For us it is not only a business. It’s also experience exchange, a way of making popular our country and an opportunity to draw on the century-old UK equine tradition in action. We would like to establish a working and perspective partnership, combining the high standards in equine business with the eco tourism. We are open to discuss any ideas because we believe that “if there is a wish, there is a way”.

We offer two possible forms of negotiation: “rent” or “partnership”. Here there are some general parameters as well as some specific ones. Specific terms are negotiable depending on the capacity, wish and mutual interest of the parties.

General parameters  

• Long term contract
• Opportunity for getting support by European programme for development of rural areas
• Cooperation for:
• Contacts with local people and local authorities
• Help with translation
• Development of internet web site (design, text and edition)
• Popularization of the website
•  Ideas about expanding the business- new services, increasing the number of client.
• Expected initial expenses- for average prices in Bulgaria see Questions and Answers section
• For tack
• Helmets and protectors
• Buying or lending additional horses, if it is necessary. Information about average prices coming soon.

OFFER 1- A Long term rent of the properties and running your own business

• We offer one or two year period without paying rent. It is in return for initial expenses. For that period the properties will be using for free.
• After the free period the rent will be in accordance with the preliminary negotiated conditions..
• If one or all of the properties are not in use during the non-active period the rent will be ½ of the negotiated.

OFFER 2– A Long term partnership and joint running of the business according to the negotiated conditions.

• The parameters of that offer depend entirely by the mutual interest, capacity and wish of the parties.

We are very open for discussion of different kind of cooperation and partnership.

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

• Are insurances in Bulgaria compulsive?
• What about the license?
• Why to rent, not to buy?
• How to cope with the language barrier?
• What about the non-active season?
• How to register an LTD in Bulgaria?
• What about the taxes?
• What about the horses? 
• Average Bulgarian prices

Are insurances in Bulgaria compulsive?

No, they are not compulsive, neither for horses, nor for riders. But there is a possibility for both insurances.

What about the license?

There is no special license for equine business. You must have a registered LTD, in which registration are written all of the equine activities you are planning to do- for example touristic riding, equine business, eco tourism etc.  

Why to rent, not to buy?

It is a new business and as each new one there is a risk. If you rent our property (we offer free of rent period of 1-2 years) your initial investment will be low. It reduced the risk of loosing money and makes you more flexible in your strategy. When the business grows up and the profit becomes more stable, then there are a lot of possibilities of buying your own property and to expand a business.

How to cope with the language barrier?

Yes, there is a language barrier, but you can do some things. We can help with advertising and contacts with clients and institutions. It might be hired a worker/rider who speaks both languages. You can communicate with all English speaking tourists and expats who have the same barrier here.  It is possible to draw more UK tourists for riding holidays in Bulgaria. Ana finally, a lot of people, especially young people in Bulgaria speak English.

What about the non-active season?

If you are a good horseman you can do a lot of things in non-active season. You could train and “break” horses, work with problematic horses etc. There is also possibility to develop a project in the frame of EU programmes. It is possible to apply for education of the horse owners, introduction of the high UK standards in the equine field and professional exchange.  

How to register an LTD in Bulgaria?

To register an LTD in Bulgaria is simple. It takes about 2 weeks and the fees, including the lower, are about 200 pounds. There is no requirement about the initial (starting) capital of LTD, but usually it is about 500 pounds.

What about the taxes?

All LTDs in Bulgaria pay so called “flat tax”. That means that you have to pay 10 % of your profit as a tax. It is not depends on the amount of the profit.

What about the horses?

It’s better if you have enough own horses. But if you don’t have there are two possibilities: To buy horses here- the prices are reasonable. The second is to rent horses for the season. We check the opportunities and prices for renting riding horses. As soon as we receive information we will publish it here.

Average Bulgarian prices in Pounds and Euro

	GBP	EUR
Bread	0.35 – 0.42	0.41 – 0.50
Sausages	2.00 – 2.50	2.40 – 3.00
Cheese	2.00 – 3.00	2.40 – 3.60
Tomato (depends on the season)	0.30 – 1.20	0.36 – 1.45
A beer in a shop	0.38 - 0.45	0.45 – 0.54
A beer in a pub	1- 1.10	1.20 – 1.30
Cigarettes	1.80 – 2.35	2.20 – 2.80
Petrol	0.90 – 0.94	1.07 – 1.12

With relation to horses:

	Pounds	Euro
1 kg. oats (depends on the season)	0.10 – 0.18	0.12 – 0.22
1 bale of hay(depends on the season)	1.00 – 1.40	1.20 – 1.70