Sunny Beach (Slânchev Bryag)

Bulgaria’s biggest and brassiest seaside resort, the naff-sounding Sunny Beach is the Black Sea coast’s hyperactive answer to the Spanish costas, with several kilometres of sandy beach that attracts more international sun worshippers than any other resort in the country. The beach is one of Bulgaria’s finest, with every imaginable activity from minigolf to parasailing, and multilingual restaurants and pubs abound. If you’re just looking for a dependable, no-worries resort to top up your tan, this is the place to come. You won’t even notice that you’re in a country called Bulgaria.

Sunny Beach can feel a bit insular and few people stir from the sun beds to go any further than nearby Nesebâr, but public transport connections are good if you want to explore. This is probably the most expensive place in Bulgaria, so a holiday here might not be the bargain break you envisioned: bottles of water cost as much as 3 lv on the beachfront, and restaurant prices are close to what you’d pay in Western Europe.