From polyglot playgrounds to tourist traps? Designing and redesigning the modern seaside resorts in Bulgaria

Abstract: Between the mid 1950s and early 70s, the People’s Republic of Bulgaria planned and built four large-scale holiday resorts on the Black Sea Coast – for domestic ‘social tourism’ as well as for international holidaymakers. According to fordist principles, sun, sand and sea were turned into an all-round ‘tourist product’, including architecture and urbanism as essential components. The seaside resorts were testing grounds for an uncompromisingly modern architecture, urbanism and lifestyle – with comfortable hotel complexes, restaurants and leisure facilities in a wide variety of architectural styles and design themes. Modern spaces par excellence were created, interfaces for professional exchange across the Iron Curtain and places of encounter between tourists from East and West. Tourism became an important sector for the Bulgarian economy under state socialism and has remained so under present-day capitalism. However, the shifts in organizational structures and property relations sin

Object Details

• Alternative title: Vom Polyglot Playground zur Touristenfalle? Bau und Transformation der modernen Küstenresorts in Bulgarien
• Location: Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Frankfurt am Main
• Extent: Online-Ressource
• Language: Englisch
• Notes: Veröffentlichungsversion ; begutachtet ; In: Europa Regional ; 22.2014 (2015) 1-2 ; 27-38

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Architektur

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (where): Mannheim
• (when): 2015
• Creator: Hagemann, Anke

Further information

• URN: urn:nbn:de:0168-ssoar-456885
• Rights: Open Access unbekannt; Open Access; Der Zugriff auf das Objekt ist unbeschränkt möglich.
• Last update: 15.08.2025, 7:38 AM CEST