Bulgaria Loses Around 120,000 German Tourists After Airline Dispute Disrupts Charter Programmes

Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast has lost nearly 120,000 German tourists even before the start of the peak summer season, following a dispute between two airlines. Today, a meeting was held in Sunny Beach between the Ministry of Tourism and representatives of major German tour operators, airlines and travel agencies. The aim was to find a solution and restore charter programmes for the beginning and end of the season, when resorts depend heavily on the German market.

• Minister of Tourism: Bulgaria will begin negotiations with airlines for new charter programmes in an effort to revive the German tourism market

Beate is among the few German tourists who managed to reach Bulgaria by air at the start of the season. However, her friends encountered difficulties in arranging their holidays in the country.

Beate Voss, tourist from Germany:

“A friend of mine was supposed to fly from Leipzig, but the flight simply did not take place. Instead, their booking was changed to a flight from Berlin, but these were only early morning departures at 5.45 a.m.; there were no more convenient options.”

The inconvenient flight times have prevented the expected influx of tourists from filling the Black Sea resorts during the first month of summer. The organised charter flights from Germany, agreed between two major airlines for a period of three years, are not expected to take place.

Kalin Sutev, Bulgarian representative of a German tour operator:

“After the end of the 2025 season, it turned out that for some reason the figures did not add up for them, and they decided to withdraw from the partnership. For us, the decline in German demand this year is an extremely critical moment. In reality, we will record a decline of 25–30% compared to 2025.”

Unofficially, tourism circles suggest that Egypt offered a more attractive deal to one of the airlines, which led to the cancellation of flights to Bulgaria.

Ivan Groshev, Chair of the Association of Inbound Tourism Agencies:

“Regions or countries, depending on what we are talking about, encourage airlines in a certain way. The supply of airline capacity is simply greater than demand, and in this sense each country uses competitive tools to resolve the issue.”

According to the Minister of Tourism, who met with some of the largest German tour operators, there were indications of the problem well before the start of the season.

Ilian Dimitrov, Minister of Tourism:

“This was already clear in October 2025 and, unfortunately, I would say that this moment was missed. The tourism ‘intermission’ we had last year is over. Our task is to try to get the German market back on its feet as quickly as possible. Negotiations are starting with charter programme consolidators and air carriers. We are obliged to do everything possible so that next year we have a strong market.”

He added that efforts will also focus on attracting more Romanian tourists, while by the end of the year a decision is expected on whether visa requirements for Turkish tourists could be lifted, in order to increase arrivals from Türkiye.