Is the Sea Clean in Nesebar? How to Check Bathing Water Quality Yourself
Every summer the sea around Nesebar is tested for bacteria on a fixed schedule, and the results are public, though mostly in Bulgarian. Here is who takes the samples, what the ratings mean, what the 2026 season showed from Sveti Vlas to Ravda, and how to check a beach yourself.
In short
- Samples are taken by the Regional Health Inspectorate Burgas (РЗИ-Бургас, part of the Ministry of Health): 445 samples at 49 bathing zones from Obzor to Sinemorets, 11 May to 21 September 2026.
- All 445 monitoring samples met Bulgaria's bathing water ordinance, and in the latest classification (2024) every bathing zone in Nesebar municipality is "excellent".
- In August 2026 swimming was temporarily banned off Sveti Vlas East beach (12–19 August).
Who tests the water and how often
The rules come from the EU Bathing Water Directive (2006/7/EC) and Bulgaria's Ordinance No. 5 of 30 May 2008. Each year before the season the inspectorate sets the zones and their season. Each zone has one sampling point and a calendar fixed before the season. The legal minimum is a pre-season sample, at least four samples per season and never more than one month between samples.
In 2026 the zones in Nesebar municipality were sampled roughly every two weeks: 11 times at each of the three Sunny Beach zones, 10 at Sveti Vlas, Elenite, Obzor and Irakli, and 9 at Nesebar and Ravda. The Sunny Beach season ran from 15 May to 30 September; 11 zones in the region had 15 June to 15 September and the other 35 had 1 June to 30 September. In July and August 16 samples from the highest-risk zones were also tested for salmonella and NAG vibrios; none were found.
What is measured
Two bacteria that live in the gut, E. coli and intestinal enterococci. Large numbers mean sewage or manure has reached the sea. The European Environment Agency (EEA) notes that swimming in polluted water can cause stomach upsets and ear, eye and respiratory infections, and more rarely more serious illness. Results are per 100 ml of water (cfu/100 ml in the law, MPN/100 cm³ in the inspectorate's tables).
The Directive does not cover chemicals such as nutrients, pharmaceuticals and pesticides. The ordinance does require visual checks for tar, glass, plastic and other waste, and extra monitoring where cyanobacteria ("blue-green algae") are a risk.
What the ratings mean
A rating is calculated from the last four bathing seasons (the current one and the three before it), using at least 16 samples. Limits for sea water:
| Rating | Intestinal enterococci (per 100 ml) | E. coli (per 100 ml) | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Excellent | 100 | 250 | 95th percentile |
| Good | 200 | 500 | 95th percentile |
| Sufficient | 185 | 500 | 90th percentile |
Below "sufficient" the water is "poor", and the authorities must find the cause, act and warn the public with a clear sign, such as a ban or advice against swimming. Because the rating is statistical, one high sample does not make a beach "poor": on 26 May 2026 E. coli at Ravda's NDK beach measured 433, yet the inspectorate reports all monitoring samples as compliant, and on 8 June the same point measured 15. The ordinance also recognises short-term pollution with a clear cause, expected to last no more than about 72 hours.
What the 2026 samples showed around Nesebar
Zones between Elenite and Ravda, their 2026 season, number of samples and highest E. coli result (the 250 "excellent" limit applies to four years of statistics, not to one sample):
| Bathing zone | 2026 season | Samples | Highest E. coli |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elenite | 1 Jun–30 Sep | 10 | 61 |
| Sveti Vlas, central beach | 1 Jun–30 Sep | 10 | 215 |
| Sveti Vlas, hospital beach | 1 Jun–30 Sep | 10 | 30 |
| Sunny Beach, zone 6 (north) | 15 May–30 Sep | 11 | 249 |
| Sunny Beach, zone 7 (centre) | 15 May–30 Sep | 11 | 94 |
| Sunny Beach, zone 8 (centre and south) | 15 May–30 Sep | 11 | 46 |
| Nesebar, South Beach | 1 Jun–30 Sep | 9 | 70 |
| Ravda, Akademika beach | 1 Jun–30 Sep | 9 | 234 |
| Ravda, central beach | 1 Jun–30 Sep | 9 | 249 |
| Ravda, NDK beach | 1 Jun–30 Sep | 9 | 433 |
These are scheduled samples. Some off-schedule samples in August were higher, for example 476 at the Sveti Vlas hospital beach on 14 August.
There is no separate zone for the small beaches around the Old Town peninsula: the profile of the Nesebar South Beach zone also covers the Old Town east and west beaches, and the sampling point is on South Beach, rated "excellent" every year from 2014 to 2024. In 2024 all 13 zones on the municipality's coast were "excellent": two in Obzor, Irakli, Elenite, two in Sveti Vlas, three in Sunny Beach, Nesebar South Beach and three in Ravda. For the 2025 season the EEA rated 93 of Bulgaria's 96 bathing waters "excellent", 2 "good", 1 "sufficient" and none "poor".
The Sveti Vlas East ban, August 2026
After a public complaint the inspectorate took extra samples on 5 and 10 August off Sveti Vlas East beach, part of the Sveti Vlas central zone, and found values above the mandatory limits. A temporary bathing ban was ordered on 12 August. A control sample the same day showed a marked drop, samples on 14 and 17 August met the requirements, and 20 more samples were taken to trace the spread. The ban was lifted from 15:00 on 19 August 2026. Over the season the inspectorate received 56 complaints about water, sewage leaks, sand and closed toilets, and you can file one too.
How to check a beach yourself
- Look for the information board near the water. Under the ordinance the inspectorate tasks the municipality (and may task the concessionaire of a concession beach) with keeping it up all season with the current rating, any ban or warning and where to find more.
- Open the inspectorate's page "Качество на водите" (Water quality): calendar, this year's results (Excel), ratings by year, the annual report and zone profiles. A browser translator helps.
- Read the results correctly: each point has a date and results for enterococci and E. coli; compare them with the limits above, remembering that the rating covers four years.
- Read the zone profile for pollution sources. The central Sunny Beach profile, for example, names the Hadzhiyska river, whose mouth is about 700 m from the zone's southern edge.
- Check the EEA interactive map, which rates around 22,000 bathing sites in Europe.
If you get a stomach upset, rash or ear or eye infection after swimming, see a doctor and say where you swam; our guide to emergency care around Nesebar explains where to go.
When the risk is higher
The EEA notes that sewage pollution often happens during heavy rainfall, and links climate extremes such as floods and droughts to more frequent pollution events. Zone profiles also name rivers as a possible source. After a downpour, check whether the inspectorate has announced a ban or warning, and if there is a ban, follow it. For flags, lifeguards and currents see our guide for beginner swimmers and families; for sea temperature and jellyfish, our article on the sea in Nesebar. Figures checked in November 2026.
Sources
- Качество на водите (bathing water, profiles, results) — Regional Health Inspectorate Burgas (read 12 November 2026)
- Summary regional report on bathing water quality in Burgas province, 2026 — Regional Health Inspectorate Burgas (read 12 November 2026)
- Bathing water monitoring results, sea, 2026 (tables) — Regional Health Inspectorate Burgas (read 12 November 2026)
- Bathing water categories by year — Regional Health Inspectorate Burgas (read 12 November 2026)
- Bathing zone profile: Sunny Beach – Hotel Globus — Regional Health Inspectorate Burgas (read 12 November 2026)
- Bathing zone profile: Nesebar South Beach — Regional Health Inspectorate Burgas (read 12 November 2026)
- Ordinance No. 5 of 30 May 2008 on bathing water quality management — Ministry of Health of Bulgaria (read 12 November 2026)
- Directive 2006/7/EC concerning the management of bathing water quality — Ministry of Environment and Water of Bulgaria (read 12 November 2026)
- European bathing water quality in 2025 — European Environment Agency (read 12 November 2026)
- Bathing water quality 2025: Bulgaria, country profile — European Environment Agency (read 12 November 2026)
- State of bathing waters in 2025 (interactive map) — European Environment Agency (read 12 November 2026)
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