Sun, Jul 05 2009
Investors in Bulgaria's coastal regions are failing to find buyers for their newly-built hotels.
Nearly 30 new hotels were offered for sale over the past year, 24 Chassa daily reported. Only 250 hotels were on sale in southern coastal regions. The hotels are being sold in all stages of construction.
The average price is 856 euro a sq m.
Most of the hotels for sale were in the resorts of Sveti Vlas (St Vlas), Slunchev Bryag (Sunny Beach) and Chernomorets.
Experts said that there was a lack of buyers in these resorts, because the most tourists there were foreigners, who preferred buying apartments in complexes, instead of staying in hotels.
The biggest demand for hotels was in Slunchev Bryag, Nessebar and Primorsko, 24 Chassa said.
To the north, the highest supply of hotels is in Zlatni Pyasutsi (Golden Sands) resort. Average prices were 1000 euro a sq m.
Demand was biggest in Zlatni Pyasutsi, Sveti Konstantin and Slunchev Den (Sunny Day).
The project will be financed by the Bulgarian Bank for Development, and the Joint European Support for Sustainable Investment in City Areas, or Jessica Programme, although the report has so far failed to reveal the total cost of the vast enterprise.
The strategic plan envisages the conservation of the nature "for decades ahead", and it was formulated by a municipal team headed by professor Ivan Nikiforov, backed by Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev.
Once the overhaul and reconstruction of the Sofia–Vidin line is complete, it will cut travel time to three hours, as the train will be able to reach speeds of up to 160 km/h, shortening the journey to three hours.
Marriott however has made it clear that is not interested in investing in construction, but rather to occupy and manage existing buildings. Its strategy is to obtain management contracts.
Investors realise that it’s not viable to have a building remaining empty over the course of a year – so it's better for them to employ more flexibility to offset that loss.