Your Rights as a Tourist in Bulgaria: Complaining About a Hotel, Restaurant or Tour Operator

The room is not the one in the photos, the air conditioning does not work, the restaurant bill is higher than the menu, and the tour operator is not answering. It happens on the best-planned holidays. The good news is that Bulgarian law gives tourists clear rights and clear ways to complain.

This guide explains what a hotel, a restaurant and a tour operator must provide, how to make a complaint on the spot, what evidence to keep and where to turn if the business refuses to put things right. It is based on the Bulgarian Tourism Act, the Consumer Protection Act and the pages of the Commission for Consumer Protection (KZP, the national consumer authority), checked in October 2026.

What a hotel must provide

Under the Tourism Act a hotel may only operate in a categorised or registered establishment that meets the requirements of its category. Near the entrance there must be the category sign, the company's name and address, and the name and phone number of the manager. That helps when nobody at the reception desk can make a decision: you know whom to ask for.

Room rates and other prices must be shown on a price list in a visible place near the reception desk, written legibly, easy to understand and not misleading. Prices must be shown in euros, and in another currency if needed. This information must be given in Bulgarian and English.

You can check whether a hotel really has the stars it claims in the National Tourist Register of the Ministry of Tourism. It has separate registers for accommodation, for restaurants and entertainment venues, and for tour operators and travel agents.

What a restaurant must provide

A menu with prices and portion weights: a food menu and a separate drinks menu.
You get the menu twice: before you order and when the bill arrives, so you can compare what you ordered with what you are charged.
The menu must be in Bulgarian, and in another language where requested or needed.
One price for everyone. Menu prices are the same for all tourists, and the law forbids refusing a service or offering worse terms on the grounds listed in Bulgaria's Protection Against Discrimination Act.
A fiscal receipt for every sale. The law is explicit: a fiscal receipt is issued for every tourist service sold.

How to complain on the spot

The Consumer Protection Act says a service must match the contract: its description and quality, what the advertising said, and what you can reasonably expect. If it does not, you can complain to the business.

Say what is wrong and what you want. You can ask for the service to be brought into line with the contract (another room, for example), for a price reduction, or to end the contract and get your money back.
State the subject of the complaint, how you want it settled, the amount if you want money, and a contact address.
Attach the documents: the receipt or invoice, and any reports or other documents showing what was wrong.
Ask for a complaint document. The business must keep a complaints register and give you a document with the date, the register number, the type of service and the signature of the person who accepted it.

Do not wait until the end of your stay. The business is liable for a problem that shows up within two years of the service, but no later than 14 days after you discovered the problem. So complain within that time. A complaint made in time must be accepted, and you can make it at the establishment, on the website where you booked, or at the company's registered address.

Package holidays: what the tour operator owes you

If you bought a package (flight and hotel, or hotel and excursions sold together), your rights are stronger.

The tour operator is responsible for every service in the package, whether it provides them itself or a hotel, carrier or other supplier does.
Tell the operator without undue delay about anything that does not match the contract. You can also send your complaint to the travel agent who sold you the package; the date the agent receives it counts as the date the operator received it.
A price reduction is due for the time the services did not match the contract, unless the operator proves the cause was you.
Compensation is due for financial and non-financial damage. The time limit for these claims is two years.

The KZP advises that if the problem is not solved on the spot, you complain to the tour operator within 14 days of discovering it, and keep any report signed on the spot and all receipts for extra payments.

How to complain to the KZP

If the business refuses to solve the problem, the next step is the KZP.

Online: through the electronic form at kzp.bg, after registering with an email address or signing in with a Google or Apple account.
Through the KZP mobile app for Android and iOS.
In person at a regional office. For Nesebar and Sunny Beach the nearest is Burgas, 18 and 18A Garov Square, tel. 056/841 246 (as of October 2026). The national hotline is 0700 111 22.

Attach the receipt or invoice and any documents showing what was wrong.

What happens next: you get a reference number, which you can use to follow your complaint by phone. If it leads to an inspection, the KZP must decide within one month, which can be extended by one more month in complex cases. You get the answer through the channel you used to complain.

If the business will not budge: the conciliation commission

Conciliation commissions administered by the KZP settle disputes between consumers and businesses out of court.

You must first have tried to settle the dispute directly with the business.
The application is made in writing to the KZP, including online or by email.
The business takes part voluntarily. If both sides accept the commission's proposal, it has the force of an agreement between them.
It is not required before going to court, and the limitation period stops running while it lasts.

If you live in another EU country

If the business is in one EU country and you live in another, the European Consumer Centres Network can help; it covers the EU, Iceland and Norway. Contact the centre in the country where you live. ECC Bulgaria gives free information and advice on cross-border consumer issues. Package travel rights across the EU are explained on Your Europe.

For emergencies rather than complaints, see emergency contacts and useful numbers for Nesebar. What your travel insurance covers when something goes wrong is in our guide to travel insurance for the Bulgarian coast, and paying and avoiding money scams in what visitors need to know about the euro.

This article is general information. For a specific dispute involving a large sum, ask a lawyer or contact the KZP.

Sources

Tourism Act (consolidated text) — National Assembly / Ciela Norma (read 28 October 2026)
Consumer Protection Act (consolidated text) — National Assembly / Ciela Norma (read 28 October 2026)
How to submit a complaint — Commission for Consumer Protection (read 28 October 2026)
What happens after a complaint — Commission for Consumer Protection (read 28 October 2026)
Useful advice: tourism — Commission for Consumer Protection (read 28 October 2026)
Consumer Protection Commission home page — Commission for Consumer Protection (read 28 October 2026)
Complaints in person at a regional office — Commission for Consumer Protection (read 28 October 2026)
Contacts — Commission for Consumer Protection (read 28 October 2026)
About us — European Consumer Centre Bulgaria (read 28 October 2026)
European Consumer Centres Network (ECC-Net) — European Commission (read 28 October 2026)
Package travel and linked travel arrangements — Your Europe — European Union (read 28 October 2026)
National Tourist Register — Ministry of Tourism (read 28 October 2026)