This eagerly awaited development is now available and we believe will be extremely popular with our investment clients.

28 apartments in Smolyan Lakes near to Pamporovo Ski resort. 700 metres from the ski-lift, in breathtaking countryside on the outskirts of the town of Smolyan.

Prices are from 60,000 Euros (£40,500) mortgages are available. This represents excellent value per square metre compared to other properties in the region.

Completion Jan 2007

A high quality build and finish, all apartments with incredible views of the mountains and surrounding countryside, ranging from 47 M2 to 102 M2. Studios, 1 beds and 2 beds. It is possible to ski from the top of the Rhodope Mountain right to your apartment.

This is a family orientated destination and has something to offer for skiers and non skiers alike. It is very close to the Greek border and therefore benefits from a very warm climate in the summer. It will soon be easy to reach the Greek Aegean coast via the new highway.

Jacuzzi, sauna, steam room and spa, communal reception area, each apartment has separate individual security rooms for personal possessions (skis, suitcases etc) for more space when using the apartment, or somewhere to store your gear when renting out the apartment.

Flights into Plovdiv are available during the ski season, Plovdiv is c.85 km - about an hour and a half away. Sofia airport has flights all year around from the UK, and is around a 3 hour drive away. There will be a shuttle bus service provided by the Pine Lodge reception from the airport, with a car hire service also provided.

On completion all apartments will have:

- Use of the onsite spa centre.
- painted walls and ceilings.
- flooring - laminated parquet and terracotta.
- wiring - lights,switches and wall-plugs.
- fully fitted kitchen.
- telephone fitting.
- internet.
- satellite TV.
- fully completed common parts.

Skis and skidoos will be available to hire and excursions can be organised to the nearby lakes, walks, hunting trips, mountain biking, fishing, clay pigeon shooting, shopping, top class spa facilities at Devin and local places of interest. Making this an ideal all year around venue. Work is well underway on a highway that will go from Smolyan to the coast in Greece just 60kms away. This means that you could ski in the early morning and be on the beach in the afternoon!

Smolyan has some fantastic facilities which many larger towns do not have. There are the usual bars and restaurants, but also a first class large theatre, library, cinema and planetarium. The Olive Tree team were very pleasantly suprised that this relatively undiscovered area has so much to offer all year around.

Pine Lodge is ideally located at the bottom of the mountain close to two lakes and the town of Smolyan. The nearby ski lift takes you to the top of the Rhodope Mountain, with green, blue, red and black runs. Alternatively you can ski over the other side of the mountain to the ever popular up market resort of Pamporova, which was one of the resorts in contention for the 2014 winter Olympics.

Pamporovo has around 200 days of sunshine per year, making it one of the sunniest mountain destinations in Europe.

Average snow cover is 140 - 150 cm with ski tracks of various difficulties. The alpine tracks are 17 kms long and the long distance running tracks are 34 kms. The resort has 18 ski lifts and 5 chair lifts and 13 surface lifts with an average capacity of 8,500 people per hour.

There are excellent ski kindergarten and ski school classes with 24 hour mountain rescue services.

Plovdiv airport is just 85km away, with new air carriers flying directly from the UK and Dublin.

Olive Tree really like this development because it's in an up and coming area close to the ski-lift, not far from the very popular Pamporova. Prices are good, quality of build is very good and this is 'in early' to an area that's on the outskirts of a lot of development, but remains relatively unspoilt countryside.

The rental market may well be a while in coming, but capital growth looks assured based on fundamentals and nearby higher prices for lower quality. Two large plots of land very close by have been bought by an internationally renowned professional footballer and high profile oil tycoon. These are clues to the potential future value of this region.

The due diligence looks good on this exclusive Olive Tree investment opportunity.

Please follow this link for our microsite to this development

The following is a review from Crystal Ski Holidays on Pamporovo follow this link for their site

Flights

Available via Hemus Air and British Airways. Prices from £125 return. 

Transport

Pine Lodge offers an airport transfer service and then daily car hire services.

Bus transport is the most popular for Smolyan. There are regular bus lines to Sofia, Plovdiv (every hour), Kurdzhali, Devin, Assenovgrad, Chepelare, Pamporovo (every hour) and to other smaller villages within the region. Public bus stations: Smolyan Bus Station (located in Smolyan Quarter, at the western end of Bulgaria Blvd., tel.: 0301 34251). Bus Station Iztok (East) (in Ustovo Quarter, tel.: 0301 45161). Bus Station Yug (South) (tel.: 0301 45826). Private buses servicing long-distance lines start 7:00 a.m. from the car park opposite the Planetarium. 6 public bus lines are regularly functioning within the boundaries of the town. Radio-cab is also available (tel.: 0301 35059).

Surrounding areas

15 km to the north, up above the town is one of the biggest Bulgarian winter resorts - Pamporovo 10 km west of the centre of the town is the region of Smolyan Lakes, known as the "emerald eyes of the Rhodope Mountain". There are 7 lakes the largest one of them - Bistroto Ezero, the so called "clear lake" - is also the deepest and the most beautiful. The whole region forms a natural park of forests, meadows, hotels, a chalet, chapels, lanes, chair lift to Mt. Snejanka (Pamporovo), picturesque vertical rocks. Smolyan Waterfall - on Kriva (Curved) River, which is the left tributary of Cherna River. The waterfall is 20 meters high and is in the immediate surroundings south-west of the town.

Ultsata (Uhlovitsa) Cave (3km east of the village) is noted for its miraculous cascade lakes. The international road to Kavala, Greece will pass through Smolyan. Smolyan is only 60 km by air from Aegean Sea and the Greek Sea coast. The area of Smolyan will become an important stop on this international road. Apart from the excellent tourism opportunities in this area, this is another reason for the property prices in the area of Smolyan to increase over the next few years.

Southern Rhodope Mountains

The location of the Rhodopes in the south eastern part of the Balkan Peninsula determines to a great extent the climate there. It is influenced both by the colder air coming from the North and by the warmer breeze from the Mediterranean.

The mild climate combined with some other factors works in favour of the development of recreation and tourist activities.

The Pamporovo resort is an excellent example, where the microclimate permits a heavy snow cover to be preserved for a long time - a real Paradise for skiing.

To the North is the valley of the Maritsa river, to the South - the White sea plain, to the West the valley of the Mesta river, the Avramovi Kolibi saddle, Lyuta Reka, the Yundola Saddle and the river Yadenitca, to the east - the valleys of Borovitza and Arda rivers.

Temperatures of -15 degrees Celsius are common, and due to this, the Rhodopes are the southernmost place in the Balkans where we can see trees such as Norway Spruce and Silver Birch. The Rhodopes is a refuge of wild life. Human presence is negligible.

The Rhodope are spread over 14,737 km of which 12,233 km are on Bulgarian territory. The mountain is about 220 km long and about 100-120 km wide with an average altitude of 785 m. 15 reserves have been established, some of these are included in the list of UNESCO. There are many mineral water springs, the most famous are in Velingrad and Narechen.

Another perspective in this region is the climate. In this part of the Rhodopes is extremely favourable compared to other mountains in the country. The winter is long but mild, with lots of snow.

The average mountain temperatures for January are between 7°C and -2°C. The snow lasts until the end of May on the northern slopes of Mt. Perelik and the highest ridges, providing excellent conditions for winter sports.

Summer is cool, with the highest average temperatures for July can reach 18-19°C. Compared to other mountains, the Rhodopes have the least number of days with strong wind and fog.

The region boasts the highest number of sunny days and clear nights. This is the reason for the building of a national astronomic observatory near Rozhen in 1981.

A large part of the resort of Pamporovo and the village of Stoikite, experience a unique natural phenomenon - a negative air ionization, which is extremely favorable to human health, believed to give strength and energy. Thick coniferous forests on the mountaintops produce the so-called phytoncides, which makes the air especially good for people suffering from asthma and chronic diseases of the upper respiratory system.