Mobile communications and Internet in Bulgaria.
Cellular communications in Bulgaria are currently (in 2024) represented by three major GSM operators: A1 (formerly M-Tel BG), Yettel (formerly Globul BG, then Telenor BG) and VivaCom .
A1 (formerly M- Tel BG) is the oldest mobile operator. But its communication tariffs may be more expensive compared to other operators from the presented trio.
The A1 company’s assortment includes a line of tariffs (sim card) “Prepaid packages” without a monthly fee, which is designed specifically for tourists. The validity period of the SIM card is automatically extended for a year from the date of the last top-up. More information about the Prepaid Packages tariffs can be found here .
In the areas of the Black Sea coast of Bulgaria, the most popular among tourists are mobile communication services from the companies Yettel and VivaCom , as the companies provide a line of services with prepaid tariffs without a monthly fee at prices more favorable than those of A1 . The validity period of the SIM card is also automatically extended for a year from the date of the last top-up.
More information about prepaid tariffs from VivaCom can be found here .
More information about Yettel ‘s prepaid program can be found here .
The coverage of Bulgarian mobile operators is more or less the same. Communication in all major cities and on the Black Sea coast of Bulgaria is good and stable.
The country code for Bulgaria is 359. When calling to Bulgarian cell phones, dial the country code (+359) followed by the subscriber’s mobile phone number.
The local currency is the Bulgarian Lev. Tariffs from mobile operators are set in leva. For information: the Lev rate is tied to the Euro rate, 1 Lev is approximately ~0.5 Euro. To be more precise, 1 Euro = 1.95583 Leva (fixed rate of Lev to Euro). The exchange rate will naturally be lower.
In the summer of 2022 (August 2022) on the Black Sea coast of Bulgaria in Sunny Beach, in Sveti Vlas, in Old Nessebar, in exchange offices when exchanging euros for Bulgarian leva, the rate is set as follows: for 1 euro they give 1.90 Leva, in banks in the resort area the rate a little better: for 1 euro they give 1.91 – 1.92 Leva. In the city of Nessebar itself you can find exchangers at the rate of 1 euro – 1.94 levs, in Burgas the rate in banks is much better – for 1 euro they give 1.948 – 1.95 levs (close to the official rate in Bulgaria).
All mobile operators naturally have their own full-fledged websites in Bulgarian and English. In Bulgarian, information for a Russian person will not be difficult to understand. As a last resort, Google Translate is always at hand.
The purchase of Bulgarian SIM cards is carried out in branded showrooms of telecom operators. You can find out the location of the salons closest to your vacation spot on the websites of mobile operators. Connection in branded salons is carried out exclusively with a foreign passport. A written agreement for prepaid tariffs is not signed, although the information from your foreign passport is entered into the mobile operator’s database and after that you are given a kit with a SIM card in the operator’s branded packaging.
Outside the showrooms, SIM cards from mobile operators for prepaid tariffs in branded packaging can be found on sale at checkout counters in various markets. No passport required. There you can also buy a voucher to top up your mobile phone account. Usually vouchers are sold in denominations of 5, 6, 10, 20 leva.
A voucher is a card the size of a plastic card, on which there is a code under a protective layer for replenishing your phone through the service number of mobile operators. There are no fees for topping up your mobile phone account using a voucher. The price per voucher is equal to the face value and the entire amount is credited in full to your account.
The most interesting thing is that vouchers for topping up a mobile phone account are not always sold in branded stores. Although you can simply top up your mobile account through the salon’s cash desk without any problems. However, if you bought a cellular communication kit in the market, you will have to present your passport and after entering the data into the database, your mobile phone account will be topped up.
Basically, the tariffs of Bulgarian mobile operators are tariffs with a monthly subscription fee, the amount of which includes a certain number of minutes for calls and SMS. It is clear that such tariffs are suitable for local residents, and not for tourists who come to Bulgaria on vacation for one or two weeks.
For example, on the FREE2GO tariff with Internet from VivaCom, a minute of conversation costs 0.09 levs (~0.045 euros) for Bulgarian numbers, and for Russian mobile numbers (Bulgarian countries from the Second International Group – Russia) already – 1.29 levs (~0 .65 euros), the cost of SMS within Bulgaria is 0.25 levs (~0.13 euros) per message, and international SMS is 0.21 levs (~0.11 euros) per message. But this tariff has no monthly fee and includes 12,000 MB of Internet and 800 minutes for calls to Bulgarian numbers.
The cost of the prepaid FREE2GO package from VivaCom in 2022 is 10 levs (~5 euros), the balance after purchase will be 3 levs (~1.5 euros).
As for me, such a prepaid tariff with the Internet can be optimal for tourists if you come to rest for 1 – 2 weeks and talk on WhatsApp, Skype and other free Internet services for conversations, since 12,000 MB for calls on WhatsApp, Skype is enough for vacation.
All mobile operators charge for the first minute (60 seconds) according to the tariff, and the next minutes of conversation are charged per second.
4G mobile Internet is also relatively expensive, but more or less optimal. Basically, these are tariffs with a certain prepaid number of megabytes of Internet traffic for a certain period.
For example, in the summer of 2022, the cost of Internet on a tariff from VivaCom DATA2GO with 25,000 MB of Internet included for 30 calendar days was 20.00 leva (~10.00 euros), which is optimal for tourists.
The Internet access kit from VivaCom DATA2GO is a SIM card that will work on mobile phones and tablets. The SIM card is universal in size and can be used in devices as a standard SIM card (Standard SIM), mini-sized (Micro SIM) and nano-sized (Nano SIM).
If you use the Internet via a laptop, you may also need to buy a 4G USB modem or Mi-Fi modem (portable router).
There is no information on the cost of a 4G USB modem or Mi-Fi modem (portable router) when connecting to this tariff on the VivaCom website as of August 2022.
Not an advertisement, but as an example from my own experience of use. An Internet SIM card from VivaCom, connected to a Zyxel WAH7601 portable router , purchased in advance in Russia at the DNS store, works in Bulgaria in 2022 without any complaints.
It is convenient to take it with you, it weighs almost nothing, it lies in your bag, and you are always on the Internet, the operating time from the internal battery is approximately 8-10 hours without recharging. It normally distributes the Internet to your other devices via Wi-Fi, it works and charges when the router is connected to the computer via a USB port.
The kit naturally includes a universal device for charging the router via an electrical outlet or a computer’s USB port.