British tourists flock to Bulgaria

Rental investors in Bulgaria are seeing a surge in demand for tourist accommodation this summer, it has emerged.

Online travel agency Lastminute.com revealed that the number of June bookings for the country is 151 per cent up on 12 months earlier.

This means that some owners of holiday accommodation in Bulgaria will see higher occupancy rates this year, as well as greater rental returns.

According to Lastminute.com, the increase in the number of bookings is partly because consumers in the UK want to avoid Euro 2008, which kicks off in Austria and Switzerland this weekend.

John Bevan, managing director of the firm, commented: "It would appear that it is too painful for fans to stay home and watch Euro 2008 without their team competing."

This comes after the Times said that Bulgaria is a much more affordable holiday destination than places such as Italy, Portugal, France and Spain.