Money change office

One of the issues that first arise when you get to Bulgaria is where money can be exchanged because although Bulgaria belongs to the European Union, it has not yet adopted the euro as national currency, it has its own currency, the Lev'.

You can change money before you travel to Bulgaria but this means making a special request to our bank, waiting for the money to be received, etc., and these are tedious procedures, also in doing so the bank applies a commission that we can avoid if we change directly in Bulgaria, but that's where the dilemma begins, where do I change money in Bulgaria?

When you get off the plane in Sofia you have 2 possibilities, exchange offices ( not recommended, you will be charged approximately a 5% more as conversion fee) and bank offices ( go for them and wait patiently your turn!)! It's a liberal decision, but know you are advised!

BUT there is a point for exchange offices: they have longer opening hours than banks, that have the same opening hours as those in the city (closing is usually around 16:30 or 17:30) This mens if you will arrive later, only exchange offices will be opened. And do you know what is worst? If you will arrive early in the morning both of them will be closed!

Our recommendation is as follows: if you arrive during the opening hours of the banks (by the way, they close on Saturdays and Sundays all day), it is best to change banks. Calculate what you are going to spend in the next few days and change as you get off the plane at the first bank of the airport you see open. In the end of the trip, if you have leftovers, you do the opposite operation.In a Bank, you will lose only 0.005 cents for every euro returned, which is negligible.

And now the worst case: what happens if you arrive early in the morning and the next day is Saturday or Sunday? You'll find the city's banking offices closed... but don't despair, there is a solution! fortunately the banks inside the big shopping centres are open during the weekend!! In normal business hours until 4:30 pm or 5:30 pm, depending on the bank concerned. There are shopping centres in the city centre, you can check their location in advance and you don't have to go to the outskirts. However, the employees of the airport banks usually speak English but those you will find in the city offices assume that they only speak Bulgarian, so to exchange of money you will have to make yourself understand how you can....

If you have difficulties with the language and you don't manage well with English, we recommend you to hire one of the local guides, they will help you not only with the change of money, but also with others such as hotel registration, airport-hotel transfers, and of course as a tourist guide in the country, after all the vacations are to enjoy them, not to stress with banal management, right?

Levas