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Added by Jopie, at 29 December 2016
Opening Hours
- Monday Open 24 hours
- Tuesday Open 24 hours
- Wednesday Open 24 hours
- Thursday Open 24 hours
- Friday Open 24 hours
- Saturday Open 24 hours
- Sunday Open 24 hours
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13 Reviews
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06 November 2017
Terrible organisation. The airport is unable to handle the negligible amount of passengers that pass through it (there are only 2 security checkpoints for all passengers). Waiting times are ridiculous. If there is more than 1 flight leaving within the same hour, I would suggest you get there 3 hours early. International Airport? No way.
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05 November 2017
This is one of the few European Airports that is easily accessible (Its not far from the city and can be reached by public transport. The subway/underground ticket to the airport cost less then 1 Euro!!
Nearly every week I commute to Berlin via Sofia airport and I my impressions are relatively positive. IF you are flying with a LOW COST company you will be boarding from the old terminal, which indeed is small and not so modern. I have lived in America for a few year and I noticed that most of the airport terminals for short-middle range flights are as good as the Sofia airport. The new terminal is in good condition, cleaned regularly and due to good organization, the ques are not so long.response / report this review -
07 October 2017
Worst airport for international travelers! It’s empty, it’s dirty! Personal speaking with you like you Have to know their native language! There is no smoking room and no possibility to get outside if you want to!
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07 September 2017
I traveled to Sofia in early July. I found the airport experience to be "interesting" to say the least. First, our arrival was right on time. We went to get our luggage at a rather outdated but working luggage claim area and as luck would have it our bags were among the first off the plane. So good news: no lost bags!
We then proceeded to the passport check/customs area. I looked at the signs, noted choices for EU travelers and for "All other passports". Traveling on US passports we got into the line for "All other passports". After waiting in line for about 15 minutes I got to the counter and was told by the agent at the counter, "You in wrong line!" I said, "Oh, I'm sorry! I thought it said "All other passports". She replied, "Sign is not lit up!" Apparently the 5 watt bulb behind the specific "All other passports" line on the sign was not on. I said "Sorry! Where should I go?" She responded, "NO! Okay this time!", stamped my passport and off I went. No questions, no "why are you here" or "how long are you staying", and away I went. Meanwhile my wife was asked several questions after also being informed of being in the wrong line (maybe she doesn't possess my level of charm!), but she got thru rather quickly and now off to the customs desk. Customs was unmannedyepnot a person there, so off into the terminal we went. I could have had a trunk full of ivory or a live hippo but since there was no one to check.
The terminal is outdated and very basic. There are some shops, though very few, and a couple of money exchange spots. One of them had posted exchange rates that were.shall we say.very much in favor of the folks running the business? Still, overall the terminal reminded me of those encountered in smaller US cities.except for the bathrooms. The one I used might not have been cleaned since the fall of Communism.
So now we waited for our host, a native of Bulgaria. He arrived to pick us up and after our greetings we headed to his car parked in the parking structure. BTW, the parking structure is in need of repair, with concrete having fallen off sections of the walls and ceiling, and what could almost pass for potholes in portions of the floor. On the way, our host fed his parking ticket into the machine and was told he owed nothing due to his short stay in the structure. So we loaded our luggage and drove off. When we got to the gate, he fed the ticket into the ticket scanner and was told he DID owe money. He waved down an attendant who basically told him, "Nothing I can do. You need to go BACK to the terminal, pay at the machine and get a validated ticket". So we turned around, headed back against traffic in the single exit lane, he paid, got the ticket validated, and on round 2 we were able to exit the airport.
Don't take this as a knock against Bulgaria. It's not! We had a great time, the country is beautiful, the people were very friendly, and yesI'd go again. Just beware that the Sofia Airport is in need of some real updating: bureaucracy included.response / report this review -
05 September 2017
Terminal 2 is more modern and good looking but sometimes staff is too rude and "bored of life" so they don't know why they work.
Cleaning is not the best of its standards and if the airport wants to be leading in the Balkans it should improve it.
At passport control there aren't any lines so people queue however they want. Sometimes it gets very crowded and messed there. Don't to forget that the border agent doesn't say anything to you. They just give you your passport and tell someone else to come. I find this is very unfriendly.
However the terminal is small and you can check your bag , pass trough security and go to your gate in under 45 minutes. As the airport is small there aren't any major delays and traffic on the tarmac isn't at all heavy to delay your flight.
Overall I would give the airport 3 stars.response / report this review -
27 July 2017
Possibly one of the dirtiest airports in the world. The toilets are disgusting to even look at, nevertheless use. Stinky covered in yellow residue Is there anyone actually cleaning them?
You can count the number of the duty free shops, just by using one of your hands.. Queues are horrendously long with no priority lanes.response / report this review -
27 June 2017
I've pretty much given up coming launching BG about Sofia airport (T1) but even by usual standards today was rubbish. Very slow lines st security (both entrance and x
-ray) totally compounded by the rubbish system of letting all crew go through the same screen rather than distributing them between the 2 queues (yes just two but at least halve the problem). Just as slow at passport control - the lady was obviously at the "jolly phonics" speed of reading passports. Additionally, not that I had time today, thanks to all the slow queues but the fact that the lounge opening time was recently postponed to 9 am says all you need to know about the usefulness of this terminal for anyone flying on business. One smallish duty free shop, a couple of tiny tourist shops selling rose water etc and a cafe at either end with drinks, sandwiches and pastries. Not one of the more interesting airports but no need to be quite so abysmal.response / report this review -
14 April 2017
Prehistoric airport. Considering how many long-transit stopovers go through Sofia airport, you would think management would have incentive to provide adequate comforts. But no.
No stores open for refreshments nor adequate seats. Main doors kept forcibly open all night in Winter.
Extremely rude and racist customs staff. God forbid if you aren't "white"!
Clearly these guys don't know how to capitalise on an opportunity.
Avoid transiting through Sofia!response / report this review -
11 April 2017
One of the worst experiences in an airport as one of the stuff at security was very rude and and abrupt while taking honey from my suitcase. Laughing very loud like if he was enjoying taking stuff from me as I argued it is not liquid but paste. I ask his name to conplain about his attitude and he wouldn't give it to me as he was "the boss".
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03 April 2017
Be aware of taxi scams upon your arrival. Look for the official taxis in order to avoid double/triple fare price. T1 and T2 vary in both quality and user experience. One is modern and the other bery outdated. The metro only goes to T2 and you have to take the airport transfer bus in order to go to T1.
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11 March 2017
Terminal 1 is just outrageous. Facilities are far outdated, and staff there have no etiquette. Male security went through my carrier taking out every single piece of my underwear, even going through my pouch that had tampons and pads in it. When I pointed that out, they said this is their job and continued rummaging through my underwear and spoke amongst themselves in Bulgarian looking at me. Absolutely disgusting. Amazing how their main international airport manage to operate like this. It leaves an impression of Bulgaria as a country that has a lot to learn and improve. Please, learn to have some respect.
Also, their duty free is much more expensive than supermarkets.response / report this review -
02 March 2017
It all seems very backwards. The waiting areas are overcast by the loud music coming from the bars. It's all very dark. They ask you to take off shoes and watches. The guy at the security was amongst the unfriendliest I've experienced at an airport.
The woman at check-in was at least nice.
Compared to some African airports this place is great. Compared to anything in western Europe or Asia it's not a nice place at all.
By the way, if you get a taxi on the way to town be warned that the odds are high that it really stinks inside.
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05 January 2017
Have always been pretty content about Sofia airport, especially terminal 2 is very modern but if you are flying with a budget airline you will fly to/from terminal 1 which is pretty old and not very clean. Our most recent experience of the security check at Terminal 1 of Sofia airport on January 4, 2017 was however horrific. Because there are no decent facilities for the crew members to pass the security check they insert all of them in between the passengers in one specific lane. This caused us to be stuck in the security check for over 1,5 hours with young kids and to almost miss our flight. In our case there were about 10 teams of 5 - 7 crew members that suddenly needed to pass in between while all the passengers were waiting in line. So, if you are travelling from terminal 1 I would STRONGLY ADVISE AGAINST using the most right queue of the security check on the right hand side (as seen from the entrance of the airport)!
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