Burgas on the Black sea

Municipality of Bourgas is situated in Eastern Bulgaria on the Black Sea seaside and has a territory of about 48 200 hectare. Bourgas is the fourth largest city in Bulgaria. The municipality includes the City of Bourgas and other 14 small villages. The City of Bourgas consists of 8 housing regions with more than 226 000 inhabitants, an area of about 2800 hectare with a built housing area of 843 257 m2, 72 930 lodgings. For the first time the name of Bourgas appeared as early as 1306 in a poem by Manuel Phil, Bysantium poet, as Pirgos - the Greek equivalent to the Latin word Burgos, i.e., 'the Tower': a name preserved in local legends, and dating as back as 1st or 2nd century AD, when a Roman travel station was functioning at the place of the present-day harbour. The earliest life can be traced back to the Bronze and the beginning of the Iron Ages; while a 'number of finds, treasures and archaeological sites have witnessed to live activities during the Thracian epoch, that is to say the second half of 4 BC. Yoan Exarch, one of Bulgaria's pre-renaissance authors, wrote, 'The sea brings all that is distant together'. It is the sea itself that is shaping the appearance of Bourgas, the spirit of its people and the original atmosphere due to century-old contacts with various nations and civilizations Bourgas has always been open to the world and the world's economy and culture by means of its harbour, where more than 1,500 vessels and a large number of petroleum tankers are mooring each year. The Port of Bourgas is the biggest seaport in the country. The region is one with a best developed industry in Bulgaria - oil refinery, machines building, cables production, ship yards, food industry, harbour - totally 35 big industrial plants. One of the biggest industrial plants on the Balkan Peninsula, Neftochim-EAD, is located in the vicinity of the city. A Duty Free Zone was established in 1989 with the objective to create most attractive conditions for foreign investors. The city has an airport with the best weather conditions when considering the Balkan Peninsula and is a big railway and road traffic centre, too. As an economic potential, measured by activities incomes and durable assets in material production Municipality of Bourgas takes the second place among Bulgarian municipalities. With the most contribution is the industry, what forms 86,69 %, trade - 8,16 %, transport - 3,22 % of the incomes. On the municipal territory there are over 15 000 registered companies. The unemployment level is 4,3 %. Bourgas is not only an important industrial center in the country, it has also considerable resources for tourism. What attracts people here mostly is undoubtedly the sea. The city is a starting point for visiting the seaside resorts in the area - The Slantchev Bryag resort and The Elenite holiday village to the north and The Duni holiday village, renowned for its unique architectural composition, to the south. The climate here is temperately continental with a distinct impact from the sea. Every year Bourgas is visited by over 180 000 foreign and Bulgarian tourists. 7 state-owned and 11 municipal institutes foster Art and culture, together with propagation of cultural values. On the territory of Bourgas municipality there are 2 universities and 4 colleges comprising more than 6200 Bulgarian and foreign students. In Municipality of Bourgas there are 27 primary schools, 28 secondary and high schools. In the city are functioning 13 polyclinics and hospitals and about 220 private practices. Municipality of Bourgas with its' favorable geographic position and the existing potential of material and labor resources, nature characteristics and good developed communications has all conditions to be developed as a powerful finance and economic center.