CLIMATE

The summers are hot and the winters very cold.
The summer season lasts around five months from May to September.
The skiing season lasts around three to four months from December to March.

A Mediterranean climate of dry summers and mild, humid winters prevails in the valley of the southwestern Rhodope Mountains. The Balkan Mountains are the northern limit of the climatic zone. The average annual temperature is about 13°C (55°F). Average rainfall is about 635 millimetres (25 inches) per year, ranging from a low of 193 millimetres (8 inches) in the northeast to a high of 1,905 millimetres (75 inches) in the Rila Mountains. The wettest period is early summer throughout most of the country, except in the southern valleys, where most precipitation falls in autumn or winter.

Unless you visit for skiing, summer is the most comfortable time in Bulgaria, with low humidity and temperatures averaging 75°F (24°C); winter temperatures average around 32°F (0°C).