Pamporovo ski resort, Bulgarian ski resorts

Pamporovo is the second mountain winter ski resort in Bulgaria after Bansko. It is located 1650 m above sea level in the Perelik range of the Western Rhodopes in one of the most beautiful places of the Orpheus mountain.

It received its name from the convoys of mules of the Raicho Belev, a man from the town of Smolyan, which followed one another as the wagons of a train (from the Turkish word for train - pampor) carrying goods. A man from Chepelare - Chichovski - built the first tourist hostel here in 1933 thus establishing the present resort.

The specific combination of natural conditions makes the resort beautiful in the summer and in the winter alike - the large spruce forests, picturesque meadows, strange rocky forms (the Orpheus rocks and others), beautiful high peaks Mt. Snezhanka (1925 m), Mt. Murgavets (1858 m), Mt. Orleto and others. The mountain where Pamporovo is located is composed of marble that drains the water and dries the whole region. The hill has a hunchbacked form and is very airy so the air is always fresh.

Due to the influence of the Mediterranean climate the temperatures in the resort have small daily variations. The surrounding high peaks keep it from the winds and in the winter preserve the snow cover on the northern slopes of the Snezhanka and Murgavets peaks. The area is abundant in natural slopes where many ski-slopes have been built with different category of difficulty, served by sophisticated technical equipment. The resort offers 5 chair lifts, 13 tow-lifts and 17 500 metres of alpine ski-tracks.

Pamorovo is 16 kilometres from Smolyan, 12 km from Chepelare, 35 kilometres from Devin, 83 km from Plovdiv and 240 km from Sofia. There is a regular bus line connecting it to these cities. The high transmission tower on Mt. Snezhanka helps the location of the resort to be esily indetified from far away. At the tower there ia a panorama coffee-bar, it could be reached by a chair-lift. Pamporovo offers many accomodation opportunities for tourists. The only 5-star mountain hotel on the Balkans Pamporovo Hotel is located in front of the church Sv. Uspenie Bogorodichno.

A number of cosy restaurants offer traditional Bulgarian (Rhodope) cuisine. An example is the Chevermeto folk restaurant (mehana) where the visitor should try the incredible Rhodope lamb shish-kebab.