Black Sea Tourism Forum 2026 in Varna: 'smart destination' plans to 2035

The 19th Black Sea Tourism Forum takes place on 30–31 October 2026 at Hotel Cherno More in Varna, under the theme “Smart Tourism Destinations – Innovation and Sustainable Development”. It is organised by the Varna Tourist Chamber with Varna Municipality and the Ministry of Tourism, and closes its main day with a debate on Varna as a smart tourist destination by 2035. The forum ended on 31 October; this archive page adds what Varna Municipality presented.

Who organises the forum, and who is it for?

The Varna Tourist Chamber runs the forum in partnership with the municipality and the national Ministry of Tourism, according to Visit Varna, the city’s official tourism portal. The programme is aimed at national and local authorities, the tourism industry, academia, technology companies and international experts. The official page does not list a registration fee or a sign-up link, so ask the chamber directly if you want to attend.

What will be discussed?

The first day (30 October) has four panels:

Time	Panel
09:30–11:30	The smart tourist destination: management with a vision for the future
11:45–12:45	Data – the new capital of tourist destinations
13:45–14:45	The role of the tourism industry in building a smart destination
14:45–16:00	Smart management of the tourist experience

Topics include EU policy, sustainable-tourism observatories, big data, GIS and digital twins, smart hotels and mobility, AI travel assistants, integrated ticketing and managing visitor flows. Moderators include academics from the Varna University of Management and the Agricultural University of Plovdiv. On 31 October students and vocational tourism schools present ideas in the Varna Smart Destination Challenge.

What does “Varna smart destination by 2035” mean?

For now it is a discussion title, not an adopted plan. The closing session (30 October, 16:15–17:00) is meant to pull the day’s ideas – data, technology and partnerships – into a long-term direction for the city. No targets, budget or official strategy document had been published as of 26 October 2026.

How did the 2026 season go?

The forum comes after a mixed summer. In August, hotels in Varna region counted fewer nights but higher revenue than a year earlier – see our report on Varna region tourism figures for August 2026. For next spring’s biggest event on the coast, see Eurovision 2027 in Burgas, with Varna as a base.

Up the coast in Balchik, BNR Radio Varna reported on 19 October that the Balchik Historical Museum had weaker attendance than in the two previous years, director Radostina Encheva said, with mostly Bulgarian visitors. The Teke at Obrochishte again drew the most visitors of the museum’s sites and grew year on year. Organised Scandinavian groups, which came in past years, were absent this season. No exact visitor numbers were given.

Practical tips

• Hotel Cherno More is at 33 Slivnitsa Blvd, a short walk from the Sea Garden and the city centre.
• Check the programme on visit.varna.bg before you go; times can change.
• Planning to attend the 31 October student session? It starts at 09:30 and the forum closes at 11:30.

What did Varna Municipality present?

On 30 October 2026, according to Varna Municipality and an official message published by BTA, deputy mayor Snezhana Apostolova used the first panel to present the municipality’s current and planned policies on digital marketing and the tourism offer. She said the city is working to become better known and to promote its tourism resources more widely on international markets. The concrete steps she named were a renewal of the official Visit Varna portal, better marketing channels and more partnerships with bloggers, vloggers, travel influencers and travel agencies. A municipal presentation, “Destination Varna – from digital visibility to a smarter tourist experience”, reported 507,000 active users of the digital platform and more than 2.6 million views for advertising campaigns. It named year-round content, themed routes, walking tours and seasonal products as priorities for the portal, which is published in five languages. These figures come from the municipality and were not independently checked. As of 1 November 2026 we had not found published conclusions of the forum or adopted targets for 2035.