Albena (Bulgarian: Албена) is a major Black Sea resort in northeastern Bulgaria, situated 12 km from Balchik and 30 km from Varna. Albena is served by the international airport of Varna.
Albena is one of the purpose-built resorts on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast and has a uniform and unique architectural style. Many of the hotels are situated on the beach itself, exposed to maximum sunlight and providing direct access to the beach and sea. Albena is located close to other tourist, cultural and commercial centres and in the same time remains within well-preserved natural surroundings. Although it was built on an empty ground in the 1960s, now this is in fact a small resort town with its own downtown, streets, squares and even internal public transport — dedicated little “trains” circulate on schedule along their routes within the resort.
The resort is remarkable for its 5-km long, 150 m wide beach with very fine and clean sand; the sea water is usually crystal clear, calm and warm.
Sea depth does not exceed 1.6 metres at a distance up to 100–150 metres from the beach. Visitors can choose from one of the 43 modern hotels (two to four stars) offering more than 20 000 beds and many amenities. Most of the hotels have swimming pools.
All rooms feature views of the sea or the Baltata National Reserve — a rare combination of dense wet forest and a seashore. The specific sea climate is mild and pleasant with clean air, rich in ozone and optimal humidity of 63-65%. The tourist season lasts from May till October, when the use of the sea and the beach is guaranteed. In addition, there is year-round accommodation for the users of the biggest spa and wellness centre on Bulgarian seaside. It uses exclusively local mineral water — hypothermal with 30 °C temperature, slightly mineralised, containing hydrocarbonate with calcium and magnesium.
The resort offers visitors numerous sport&recreation activities including football pitches, multiple tennis courts, indoor stadium, golf courses, bowling, jet-ski, an equestrian base and many more. Albena hosts many cultural events and conferences.
The resort is named after a female character from a tale by Bulgarian writer Yordan Yovkov. Albena is a Bulgarian female given name.
Albena Peninsula on the Brabant Island in Antarctica is named after Albena.
Source: Wikipedia