The resort is situated in the heart of the Rhodope mountains surrounded by pine forest and according to Crystal Ski is "like skiing in Narnia". It is a very pretty, Christmas card picture ski resort area. It is more Canadian in appearance than Alpine.

There are gentle slopes for the beginners. Pamporovo Centre has a small selection of shops, taverns, bars and restaurants and an inexpensive 
apres-ski scene

Pamporovo is situated in the heart of the Rhodopi mountains about 85km from Plovdiv (Bulgaria's second city) Airport PDV served by Ryanair and charter flights. Try Charter Flight Centre. Sofia (SOF) is bigger and about 250km distant. Sofia is served by many airlines including Easy Jet. Try the normal cheapflights.co.uk/easyvoyage.co.uk for price comparisons. Flights into Kavala (about 99km) (KAV) might also be worth considering.

Airport transfers to Pamporovo can easily be arranged and most establishments provide a ski shuttle service to the slopes. Many people hire cars, especially 4x4. Prices are competitive. Driving times from Plovdiv are about one and half hours, from Kavala about 2 hours, and from Sofia about 3 and half-4 hours.

Few people actually live in Pamporovo. The centre developed as a resort. This is the hotel/restaurant/tavern/bars/shops area. There is also a plentiful supply of apartments and chalets available for holiday lets winter and summer. Pamporovo experienced a building boom, but is quite spread out. It is much less developed than Bansko, but the supply of accommodation still exceeds the demand (except during the New Year period) so there are good deals available.

PAMPOROVO VILLAS is a secure community. There is a little drive to the hamlet - space for snowball play and ideal for children. A children's play area and Kindergarten are being completed.

There are plenty of places to visit nearby such as the Smolyan Lakes (take the chair lift). In summer visit the Wonderful Bridges and Bachkovo Monastery. There are wonderful waterfalls at nearby Smolyan and the Devin Spa is famous. There are also the Devil's Throat Cave
and spectacular Yogodina caves.

Pamporovo has a soft winter climate with an average of about 120 sunny days. Yet snow cover is generally good - especially compared to other value destinations outside Bulgaria such as Poina Brasov in Romania and Kranjska Gora or Bled in Slovenia. Snow cover in 2012 was exceptional (perhaps unusually) beating Bansko for most of the winter. It even beat the snow cover for the Swiss and Austrian resorts and those in the USA.

Resort stats

Size of ski area (km) 37km
Resort height
1650m
Highest lift 1926m
Lowest piste 1650m
Maximum vertical 276m
Green runs 5
Blue runs 4
Red runs 7
Black runs 3
Lifts 13