Hey guys,
In the blog today, we are going to write about one of our favorite hobbies – camping, whether in the mountain or on the seaside, we really enjoy it. We are going to present you our impressions on two camping locations on the Bulgarian seaside – “Campsite Zona Kraken” and “Offshore Camp”.
This year on the 1th of July (Monday) we grabbed the tent and hit the road. As we don’t really like to spend too much time on one place, we split the holiday on two. We have arranged to get together with friends in Gradina on Thursday, so we decided to spent the first 3 nights somewhere else. Stoil came up with the great idea to check Arapya and after some googling, and thanks to the well organized website created for the region (arapya.com), we decided to try the Kraken zone (grhhh… tentacles everywhere 😀 ).
“Campsite Zona Kraken”
The lady, who manages the camp is really responsive, and after single call we arranged our arrival. It is a small camp – around 2000 m². During our visit there were two campers, one cabin and the spare place is for around 15 tents.
- Hygiene – there was one small building with two sections (men and women). In each section there are two toilets and three showers. Each shower has its own electric boiler, so warm (even hot) water for everyone. All of the facilities were thoroughly cleaned once daily. In general we were very happy with all of it.
- Shadow – It is located in a pine forest, so there is nice shadow during most of the day. Our tent was mostly on shadow, so we could enjoy waking up even a bit later.
- Facilities – There is an outdoor kitchen sink, along with a place for BBQ and least but now last – a vending machine for coffee and hot chocolate. Cars are parked right next to the fence around the camp, just a few meters away from your tent. One of the greatest things – you receive a power outlet (220V AC) for your tent, included in the price.
- Region – The entire Arapya area resembles a small village of really nice beach bars, restaurants, some shops and booths for breakfast, pancakes, banitsa and so on. All the food from the different places we’ve tried was fresh, delicious and for surprisingly reasonable price.
- Price – The camp tax is – 10 leva per person for a night. Again – it includes all facilities.
“Offshore Camp”
Thursday came and we were about to move to Gradina (nearby Sozopol). The main camping there – named “Gradina” isn’t exactly our type of place, partly because the lack of much shadow. A friend came in help, and send us a link for the “Offshore Camp” – a couple of kilometers from the main camping.
- Hygiene – To be honest not really impressed. There are two buildings with several squat toilets, showers and sinks. While squat toilets are particularly good for such purposes, because you don’t contact the toilet, the cabinets are not cleaned very regularly and sometime the smell is… well, not flowers and roses. The major part of the showers use solar heated water. With the more people in the camp, most of the time the water is cold (you can often hear the refreshing joy of someone taking a “warm” shower). Showers are split for man and women with three shower divisions for each. Additionally you can pay extra for individual hot showers. It is somewhere around 3 minutes of gas heated, really warm water. You get a plastic card for a deposit of 5 leva, and additionally you add credits for shower. One credit for a 3 minute shower is 1 lev. Important notice is that can’t refund credits – so you have to take showers! :D. A bit of discomfort is that you have only fixed, top shower and no handshower.
- Shadow – It is located in a nice, pine forest, so shadow was good.
- Facilities – It is a big camp and there is plenty of place for everyone. One specific thing for this camping is that you can “Rent a tent” (Quechua). Just like in a hotel – you get a set up tent with a small mattress, two pillows and two sleeping bags. Fire is allowed in the camping area, but only in the barrels, which you’ll find spread around, and you can move. There is one shared fridge for everyone, right next to it – there is a power distribution panel, where you can charge your mobile phone, power cooler bag, etc. We were only using it for a cooler bag. You can park your car on the small roads in the camp, but you shall not enter the forest. You have to pay additional 5 leva for parking the car in the camping area. You’ll get a pass to put on your dash. Tents are marked with stickers as well and checks are regular.
- Region – There is one small shop at the camping entrance, where you can buy some snacks, cold beer and alcohol. There is no general store in the area or nearby. There are several beach bars/restaurants, which are a little bit pricey, but food is really nice. Main shopping – we did in Sozopol, where you can find Lidl and a few other large supermarkets.
- Price – Camp tax is 20 / 25 leva for a 3 person tent per night, respectively for Mon – Thu and for the weekend. Additionally 5 leva for the car and if you don’t enjoy the risk of refreshing showers – 1 lev per joyful warm shower.
A full week of camping on the seaside – we definitely had a great time. Having the chance to visit two places and spend some time on each, made our vacation seem even a bit longer. Camping appears to be getting popular again on the Bulgarian seaside, as on Friday we met plenty of new neighbors. As for the two camp we would recommend them both. As Arapya appears to be a little more relaxing and well organized, Gradina and “Offshore Camp” was more of a party place, but we really did enjoy them both.
Margi & Stilo