17^th Advanced Scientific Programming in Python

© Valentin Dzhigovski, 2016

Plovdiv, the oldest continuously inhabited city in Europe, is a hub of history and culture. The city is famous for its well-preserved Roman ruins, Thracian heritage, and architectural monuments. Located along the Maritsa River and spread across seven scenic hills (tepeta), Plovdiv has maintained its unique charm since antiquity. As Bulgaria’s second-largest city, Plovdiv boasts a lively nightlife and a distinctive culinary scene.

In case you are visiting Bulgaria for the first time, this website might be useful.

Bulgaria is a member of the European Union and part of the Schengen area.

Please check if you need a visa to enter Bulgaria. In case you do, please apply as soon as possible: we have lost a few students already in previous years because of visa issues

🛫 SOFia airport (Летище София)

To reach Bulgaria, the easiest option is to fly to Sofia. There are flights from all major airports in Europe, including some low-cost airlines.

Organized transport

On Sunday 21 September at 17:00 there will be a shuttle-bus from Sofia Airport (SOF) to our accomodation in Plovdiv.

Tips for reaching Plovdiv independently

🚌 Direct bus from Sofia airport
Check the bus schedules at Busradar or Omio or | Citylines
Advice: Prices vary a lot, due to tourist traps. If possible, look for a bus from Union Ivkoni, Karat-S or Group Plus. The more expensive options are FlixBus and Traventuria.

🚌 Bus from the Sofia, Central bus station
If there isn’t a direct bus from the airport at the desired time, it’s recommended to catch a bus from the central bus station. Tickets can be purchased online. The busses to Plovdiv run every hour, or so.

Ⓜ️ Public transport SOF Airport to SOF Central bus / railway station:

• price: 0.8 EUR, contactless bank card payment possible inside vehicle
• From Terminal (T1): catch the free airport shuttle to T2. They run every 40 minutes.
• From T2: Take yellow metro line M4 direction Obelya/ Slivnitsa (Обеля/ Сливница) for 12 stops
• on station Serdika (Сердика) transfer to the blue metro line M2 direction Obelya (Обеля) for 3 stops
• Reach the Central Railway station
• Follow the signs towards the central bus station. If lost, ask somebody for directtions. Bulgarians are friendly.

🚕 Taking a Taxi SOF Airport to SOF Central bus / railway station:

• price: around 15 EUR
• safest option is to get the TaxiMe App
• don't follow a person offering you a taxi in the airport building
• go to the proper taxi stand outside. Or call a taxi
• Reliable options:
• Yellow Taxi, Tel.: +359291119
• OKSupertrans OKSupertrans, Tel: +35929732121
• ! Check the phone numbers properly, scammers usually change 1 digit.

🚆 Train to Plovdiv

• Follow the directions above to reach the Central Railway Station
• Train tickets could be purchased online. Get the РЕДОВНА ТАРИФА (regular price). There might be works on the tracks, that’s why we don’t recommend this option

Reaching Sofia airport on Sunday Sept. 28

• there are hourly busses available from the main bus station in Plovdiv to the one in Sofia
• the road between Plovdiv and Sofia might be busy on a Sunday
• Plan at least 3-3.5 hours of traveling time between the two destinations to make sure you catch your flight
• It seems that not all bus schedules for September have been announced. Check the ones for August or July for reference of the departure times.

Important stations

Sofia (София)

• 🛫 SOFia airport (Летище София)
• 🚆 Central Railway Station, Sofia (Централна ЖП гара, София)
• 🚌 Central Bus Station, Sofia (Централна автогара, София)

Plovdiv (Пловдив)

• 🛫 Plovdiv Airport (Летище Пловдив)
• 🚆 Central Railway Station, Plovdiv (Централна ЖП гара, Пловдив)
• 🚌 ‘Yug’ (south) Bus Station, Plovdiv (Автогара 'Юг', Пловдив)
• 🚌 ‘Rodopi’ Bus Station, Plovdiv (Автогара 'Родопи', Пловдив)

We secured a deal with the Grand Hotel Plovdiv in the center of Plovdiv: https://grandhotelplovdiv.bg/en/

Participants will be accommodated in twin-rooms (two gender-matched persons share one room with separate beds) with a breakfast buffet and private bathroom for 36€ per night per person.

If you have declared that you don’t want to participate in the deal you’ll have to take care of accommodation yourself. Please note that there is a fair going on in Plovdiv at the same time as ASPP, so most hotels and AirBnBs are full already.

All lectured will take place in the Plovdiv branch of the Technical University of Sofia located at ul. “Tsanko Dyustabanov” 25, 4000 Plovdiv (ул. “Цанко Дюстабанов” 25, 4000 Пловдив).

This map will soon contain all important landmarks. Click on the markers to show a description:

See bigger map