General Info
HOW TO REACH SOFIA
By air: Bulgarian and foreign airline companies directly link the capital of Bulgaria, Sofia, to all major European cities. Most of the major low budget companies also fly to Sofia – WizzAir, AirBerlin etc. Our domestic company Bulgaria Air offers convenient flight daily from most of the European cities.
Tickets can be purchased through CIM or by your local tour agent.
By train: Bulgaria is linked to almost all capitals and big cities in Europe by train.
By bus: Most of the European big cities and capitals are linked with Sofia by bus.
By car: Sofia is accessible from the main border checkpoints via national and international roads. There is a vignette tax to be paid as entering the country, prices are reasonable.
HOW TO REACH CONFERENCE VENUE
BY PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION
• from the Airport There is a direct connection by Metro, Line 1
from Sofia Airport – Terminal 2, and conference venue (Joliet Currie
Station). Line 1 gets to the city center as well (Serdika Station).
There are also two bus lines available from Sofia Airport to Sofia City
Center – BUS 84 and second line – BUS 384.
• from the Central Bus or Railway station There is a direct
connection by Metro. You should take Line 2 from Central Railway Station
until Serdika Station and change to Line 1 until Conference venue
(Joliet Currie Station). Line 1 gets to the city center as well (Serdika
Station).
More information and detailed schedule is online at:
www.sofiatraffic.bg/en
Taxis are also available but the participants are advised to be
careful by ordering a car because of the high rates.
TRANSFERS
Transfers from the airport to the hotel and v.v. can be ordered to CIM
Ltd. Organized by a special logistic system CIM representative will
welcome each guest personally at Sofia Airport, lead him to the vehicle
and help if necessary to handle problems with luggage and tickets. For
the way back CIM will publish departure lists with exact set off time on
info board next to the Registration desk to prevent problematical
departure.
Prices are posted in the conference web site.
Transfers can be ordered from Sofia Airport, Terminal 1 and Terminal 2,
Sofia Central Railway Station and Sofia Central Bus Station incl.
Serdica Station.
PASSPORTS & VISAS
Only valid passports are required from all the EU countries.
Participants from countries where visa is normally required for entry to
Bulgaria are reminded that they will need to obtain one from the
appropriate Bulgarian Embassy/Consul.
Please check at the nearest Bulgarian Embassy all the documents required
for your country or visit:
http://www.mfa.bg/en/pages/109/index.html.
MONEY
The national currency is the Bulgarian Lev - BGN. Bank notes of the
following denominations are in circulation: 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 Levs.
1 Euro = 1,95583 BGN.
There are numerous foreign exchange offices and ATMs around the city.
It's always prudent to carry a little foreign cash, however, in case you
can't find an ATM or bank office nearby. You can always change cash at
the hotel, though the commission will be high.
Make sure you have enough of the national currency when you plan to
visit local markets and shops.
SHOPPING
Most shops open at 9:00 and accept visitors till 19:00. Large shopping
centres may work until 21:00, while supermarkets and food stores often
work around the clock.
TIPPING
When a gratuity is not included in your bill, which is usually the case,
10% is customary. If service is outstanding, you could go as high as
15%. With taxi drivers, you usually just round up the sum if you have
been happy with the ride or for the sake of convenience.
CLIMATE
Moderate climate: mild spring and autumn, hot summer, cold snowy
winters. The weather in September is warm and sunny. Daily temperatures
range from 20o to 25o C.
TIME
Summer time: GMT + 3 hrs. (April through September)
ELECTRICITY
220 Volts, 50 Hz, 2 pins plug-in system.
