Bulgarian currency

Revolut/Monzo/Wise card, either or and take out from a regular cashpoint like UBB that dont charge. Pound is doing well at the moment and on one of those cards you will get around 2.28 leva to the GBP, with the official rate being 2.29. Euros are fixed to the leva anyway if your bank account is a Euro account.

Update, rate is now 2.30 to the GBP, highest its been for quite a while.

@grumpyoldbird

Having arrived on Tuesday, Birmingham airport had no lev so had to use Sofia airport.

As you said not a great rate.

With hindsight I should have loaded a Revolute, Monzo or Starling card to use at ATM.

Or you can suck up the bank charges of ATM on own card, 🙄

Or finally, for pre-order of lev Waitrose (strangely)had a good rate before I left.

Hope you enjoy it as much I have.

Back in the very late 1900s ,I visited Bulgaria for the first time Borovets hated skiing but loved the country, and I was getting 63lev to the pound, people were suffering but coping

Yes 97 or 98 the government had collapsed. The entertains at the hotel hit the buffet during their break because it was the one chance of them getting to eat that day I think.

@grumpyoldbird: Like others mentioned, I have a Wise card and keep a leva balance on it (I also have GBP, and EUR, and USD, and AUD, it's super-useful!). It can be used as a Debit Visa card in person or online, and can be used at ATM machines to take cash out.  The exchange rate is good and there's no fee for 400 GBP per month in one or two withdrawals. As you're looking to move, this or a similar card might be a good idea anyway.

If I know I'll need larger amounts of leva I use one of the online travel money services that deliver to home, if might be worth doing an online search and I'd be surprised if there aren't similar services in France. Alternatively as you probably won't be needing a huge amount of leva, it might be worth just living with the poor exchange rate at the airport as the amount you'd gain by shopping around probably won't be worth the hassle.

Are there money exchanges at both Sofia terminals now? It's been a while since I flew into Sofia, but last time, only the new terminal where the more expensive flights arrived had an exchange. The old terminal the budget flights arrive at didn't.

As others have suggested, Wise or Revolut and then withdraw cash from ATMs.  If you have a UK debit card, with a UK bank, don't forget to notify them that you're travelling to Bulgaria, or you may find your card doesn't work!  I had to do this with Virgin Money.  However, challenger banks like Wise and Revolut, don't require this, as their cards can be used worldwide.  Many banks now have apps that allow you to change the areas your card is accepted. 

If you can't get cash before your arrival, just use a mainstream bank's atm in the airport - Sofia and Varna have UBB and Sofia also has a FI Bank, to get enough cash for your transport, then withdraw from an ATM in a town or city.  All the major cities have currency exchange bureaus, but shop around, as rates and fees can vary!

Most places accept cards, but there are some that don't and only take cash.  Virtually everything in Bulgaria is paid for in Leva, except property, which can be either, depending on the seller's preference of receiving funds.

Good luck! 

Ian

I use wise, the exchange rate is good, and even if you go over your monthly cash allowance the fee is less than some banking ones.

I have used Western Union in VT for changing sterling to leva which was very convenient no id or documents needed. I seem to recall the rate being favourable.

There was one occasion when we needed to change cash in Sofia at the weekend. We used a bank, the rate was poor, and the paperwork involved seemed excessive. My partner (Bulgarian) dealt with this. I'm sure I wouldn't have managed on my own.

We were told in Bulgaria that banks would only change money if we had an account with them.

Thankfully there are quite a few money exchanges! Even the small town nearest our village has a Western Union one, and it's a very small town!

@grahamstark1 2.30 Blimey the pound is going up!

    Back in the very late 1900s ,I visited Bulgaria for the first time Borovets hated skiing but loved the country, and I was getting 63lev to the pound, people were suffering but coping
   

    -@Kath948381

your chatting about the old lev the BGL. I remember it when we went to golden sands youd get over 100 changing it on the street. Had these proper shifty blokes offering to change cash on every street.

1000 old Bulgarian Levs BGL got swapped for 1 new Bulgarian Lev. The BGN what you get today.

Tavex got the best rates in Bulgaria

Www.tavex.bg

Every time I land I make a beeline for Tavex from the airport. If your swapping a decent sum like over a grand, they sort you out with a better rate than whats up on the board. Did it with 5k once they had to ring up some manager and got me a top notch rate. You need your passport for 5k and they make you fill in a  form where you got the money from. They were proper helpful about it.

Its a breeze and you get way better rates than the banks out here. Its less of a faff if you stick to cash do it like the locals.

@maureendevine

Thanks for that, bit I'm not in the UK, I'm in France.

@mickeyhart

We don't land until about 9.30pm and we need to be on a train next morning for about 8am, so we're a bit limited for options. I'm not sure if it will be cheaper to use my French debit card, or my UK one, but we'll only need a couple of hundred lev as we're only there for 2 days. My friend had a Wise card, but she has no idea how it works. I've told her to find her pin, just in case that turns out to be the best option. 🙃

@grahamstark1

So a Wise card is a good option? My friend has one, but she doesn't know how to use it. Do we just transfer funds from another account and then draw lev out at an ATM?

@grumpyoldbird

Yes exactly that, or you can open a revolut account and have a card within a week. I use Revolut and Monzo, Monzo i use for instant access savings as they pay 4.6 % interest.

@janemulberry

Thanks Jane. If my friends pin number turns up in time, I think that's the best option. 🙂

@grahamstark1

Thank you 🙂

    @janemulberryThanks Jane. If my friends pin number turns up in time, I think that's the best option. 🙂        -@grumpyoldbird

Can she log into the Wise app or the Wise site? If so, there's an option to see the PIN number - under Card in the menu and then Show PIN. I hope she can find it! If she does, she needs to transfer in however much money she thinks she'll need from her main account to her GBP or EUR balance (whichever she has set up and her main bank account uses). Then open a BGN balance (in the app, that option is "Open" and then there will be a list of the available currencies. And then once she has the BGN set up, transfer the money from the EUR or GBP balance to the BGN balance. Then just use the Wise card in ATMs or to pay bills like she would a debit card at home and it will take the money from the BGN balance. That way minimises fees. It sounds more complicated than it really is!

Alternatively there's sure to be a cash machine at the airport or near the train station (be careful around there, apparently the main bus and train station area is popular with pickpockets, though I've used the Sofia bus station multiple times with no problems) one of you can use to withdraw BGN using your UK or French debit card. There'll just be the usual inflated bank fees, but for the small amount you need it's probably only going to cost a few pounds more and might be simplest. Haskovo also has plenty of banks with ATM machines -  at least a dozen according to Google Maps.

@grumpyoldbird

You can still pre order at any travel agents. but for 200 lev I would just save yourself the stress and get it at airport it will be pennies on the rate and cheaper than bank charges for ATM, if you don't get the Wise card sorted.

@grumpyoldbird don't exchange at the airport.

Depends on time of day..but go to a bank..never exchange anywhere in the world..at an airport

It's the lowest rate ever

I agree with wtruckyboy.

any idea please about a loyale constructor an hour 15 from sofia?

best regards

Joseph

@maureendevine

Hopefully my friends new card and pin will arrive in time.

As far as I know, you can't do currency exchange at a Bulgarian bank unless you have an account with that bank. Using an UK or French debit card in an ATM at a bank is an option, though they tend not to give the best exchange rates either. There are ATMs at Sofia airport, but some do charge a fee, so for a small amount it's  probably going to be much the same whether the airport money changer is used or an ATM.

But I don't know that there are exchanges at both Sofia terminals, there definitely didn't used to be one at the older budget airline terminal. As you'll need money to get to wherever you're staying the night and then the train station in the morning, just  taking money out of any ATM will probably be easiest. Do check what fee they'll charge first!

@janemulberry

If my friends Wise card and pin come in time, we'll use that. If not we'll have to think again. 🤔

@janemulberry

I regularly change pounds into Bulgarian Lev in  the coop bank and postbank, or you can change in moneygram bureau, rates are quite favourable. Hope this helps.

@Powley

Good to know. 🙂

I usually use TravelFx to get  currency before leaving the UK if I need a lot of leva or my Wise card for regular use in Bulgaria.q

    @janemulberry
I regularly change pounds into Bulgarian Lev in  the coop bank and postbank, or you can change in moneygram bureau, rates are quite favourable. Hope this helps.
   

    -@Powley

You should already have a "virtual card" that you can view in your online Wise account or in the app; you can use that before your physical card arrives for online purchases; if you use Google Pay, or a similar facility, you can put the details of your virtual card into that - all the big supermarkets, and lots of smaller shops (mostly in the cities) accept Google Pay without you needing to have the card with you.  Quite a few ATMs here have contactless terminals and you can also use Google Pay in those to withdraw cash from your virtual Wise card...HTH.

@grahamstark1

Never ever exchange at an airport..any airport..

Go to the nearest international bank and exchange there....if you feel you want it in your pocket when you land..try either a travel agency..or a local bank before you fly...we have two exchange offices in Chatham where I live..

@JimJ I think it was the OP's friend who was waiting for a physical card.  I have my Wise card linked to my Google Pay, easy for online shopping. But accepting card payments at all is quite a new thing in the small rural town I shop in, I'm not sure they will accept Google Pay. I make sure I have at least some leva and my physical card with me as well.

@wtruckyboy, which banks have you used in Bulgaria that will do currency exchange for someone who doesn't have an account there? It would be very helpful to know as I thought most wouldn't do it.

@janemulberry

hello

this might help with  currency exchange I have used Postbank, Bulbank and Coop Bank also if you have Moneygram bureau they change Sterling and Euro's with a favourable rate

@wtruckyboy

this might help with  currency exchange I have used Postbank, Bulbank and Coop Bank also if you have Moneygram bureau they change Sterling and Euro's with a favourable rate