Burgas - car rental

Burgas is the fourth-largest city in Bulgaria and the second-largest on the Black Sea coast after Varna, sitting on a wide bay surrounded by lakes and wetlands. Despite the size, the centre stays easy to find your way around on foot.

It works well both as a beach base in its own right and as a starting point for the string of resorts and old historic towns further down the coast. A car is what turns those day trips from an idea into something you actually do.

Why rent a car in Burgas

Summer brings a sharp rise in both traffic and the number of people relying on buses, and getting around by public transport during peak season is rarely a relaxed experience.

A rental car removes that pressure entirely. You decide when to head to the beach, when to visit a lake reserve, and when to drive out to one of the coastal towns nearby, rather than working around a bus timetable.

This matters just as much outside summer. Business visitors, and anyone in the city for reasons other than a beach holiday, generally find a car far more practical than relying on local transport between meetings, particularly once appointments are spread across different parts of the city.

Burgas also sits at a convenient distance from several other well known destinations along the coast, which a car turns into an easy half day trip rather than a separate booking each time.

The same applies inland, where the lakes and wetlands around the city are best explored at your own pace rather than on a fixed tour.

What to see in Burgas with a rental car

Much of central Burgas is genuinely walkable, so the areas below are really about what a car adds once you are ready to look further afield.

Sea Garden and the seafront

The Sea Garden runs along the coast for several kilometres and has been the heart of the city since it was first laid out in 1910.

Shaded paths, sculptures, an open air summer theatre and views straight out over the bay make it the natural place to start a first visit to the city.

At its edge, a pier reaches almost 300 metres out into the sea, ending in a viewing platform that gives one of the better vantage points over the whole bay.

A car is not needed for the Sea Garden itself, but it does make it easy to combine an evening walk there with a day spent further along the coast.

The Burgas Lakes and Poda nature reserve

The city is bordered by three lakes, Burgas Lake, Atanasovsko and Mandra, together forming one of the most important wetland areas on this side of the Black Sea for migrating birds.

Atanasovsko Lake in particular is known for its striking pink colour, a result of the salt works that still operate around it, and it draws birdwatchers as well as visitors simply curious about the colour.

Poda, a smaller reserve just south of the city, is an easy short drive and a good stop for anyone interested in birdwatching without committing a whole day to it. Herons, egrets and pelicans are among the species regularly seen from its boardwalks.

Day trips to Sozopol, Nessebar and Sunny Beach

Sozopol, one of the oldest towns on the coast, sits about 35 km south of Burgas, with a walkable old town of wooden Black Sea Revival houses, and is an easy return trip in a single afternoon.

Nessebar, a UNESCO listed old town built on a small peninsula, and the resort strip at Sunny Beach a short drive further on, lie in the other direction and suit a similar day trip north along the coast road.

Having your own car for these trips means arriving before the tour buses and leaving whenever you are ready, rather than fitting the visit around a fixed excursion schedule.

Practical information for driving in Burgas

Burgas sits close to 390 km from Sofia and around 130 km from Varna, so most first time visitors arrive either by air or after a fairly long drive.

Coastal roads in and around the city are generally in good condition, though traffic near the centre and the beach approaches can slow considerably on midsummer weekends, particularly around the main junctions leading to the beachfront.

A Bulgarian vignette is required on motorway sections, and it is worth having this arranged before setting off rather than leaving it for the last stretch of the journey. Fuel stations are frequent along the main coastal routes, so running low is rarely a concern.

For city driving and short coastal hops, a compact class car is usually sufficient, while a minivan is worth considering for larger families or groups travelling together with beach gear and luggage.

How to rent a car for Burgas with SpeedyCars

SpeedyCars does not run a permanent office in Burgas itself, but delivery to the city can be arranged for an additional fee, including to the local airport.

Most guests instead collect their car at Sofia Airport and either drive down themselves or book our transfer service to reach Burgas the same day.

If the trip continues toward the Turkish border further south, our travelling to Turkey guide covers what to check before crossing with a rental car.

Travellers combining the coast with other regions may also find our guides to Varna, Stara Zagora and Yambol useful for planning the wider route.

Demand for cars in and around Burgas rises sharply through spring and summer, so booking as soon as your travel dates are confirmed is worth doing rather than leaving it to the last minute.

This applies just as much to a specific class of car as to the car itself, since popular categories sell out first in peak season.

Current rates for every class are listed on our prices page, and you can reserve a car for the Black Sea coast online with SpeedyCars once you are ready to book.