Veliko Tarnovo and Bourgas - best for living

Veliko Tarnovo and Bourgas are the best cities to live in for 2013. For the first time in the seven-year history of the awards, the winners are two cities.

They have amassed the same number of points by the 20 - criteria on which the ranking is based on "the best city to live in", organized by the Bulgarian Darik radio and the newspaper "24 hours".

Veliko Tarnovo won the award for the first time in the history of the rankings, while Bourgas is designated as the best place to live for the third time and for the second consecutive year.

The prime minister Plamen Oresharski presented the grand prize to the mayors of the two cities-Daniel Panov and Dimitar Nikolov.

Burgas won the prize of the radio listeners and the readers of the newspaper, which unlike last year unanimously designated it as the best city to live in.

The awards ceremony started with a special award for " the most fast – growing city", which was presented to the mayor of Nesebar, Nikolay Dimitrov. The city is distinguished by a high birth rate, mechanical growth rate and the large number of concluded marriages.

Winner in the category "best small city" became Aksakovo, Varna province, who over the past 10 years has managed to develop, and is leading in the criterion most attracted funds of the chapter of the general population.

In 2013, Sofia was "the best business city" and "the best city in cultural life."

The sea capital Varna received the award "most promising city", because of the modernization of tourism zone and the plans for the expansion of the port.

As "the green city" was awarded Kyustendil.

The other special award this year was handed over to the Serbian Dimitrovgrad, for "the best Bulgarian city outside of the country."