The Bulgarian currency is the Lev. This is the Bulgarian money used in day to day transactions although be aware that as Bulgaria is now part of the EU it is common to actually pay in Euros for large purchases such as property or land.
If you are going on holiday in Bulgaria then the currency you will want is the Lev. However the common question concerns where you will get the best exchange rate to change your money. You typically have four options in general:
Your home country
Your departure airport
Bulgaria arrival airport
Bulgaria (resort)
Let's rule out three of the options straight away. Never buy your Bulgarian currency at home, or either airport. The airports always offer a terrible rate. They know they have a captive and poorly-informed market and they prey on this. I have seen airports offer rates as poor as 40% lower than the best rate offered which is obviously a massive difference and will make a huge impact in your spending power and effectively what you spend on your holiday.
That leaves us with one main option - To purchase your Bulgarian Lev in Bulgaria itself (other than at the Bulgarian airports).
However, you will soon find that in the tourist areas there are all types of places offering you Bulgarian currency. if, for example, you visit the tourist trap of Sunny Beach in Bulgaria you will literally pass somewhere selling Bulgarian Lev every 100 meters on the main strip. From little exchange Boothe's, to banks, to shops you'll see varying offers and exchange rates.
It is important here to learn how to work out the Bulgarian exchange rate. It is essential that you look at the 'Buy' rate and never the 'Sell' rate. The biggest scam is to publish the wrong rate.
If you are looking to change money into Bulgarian Lev, e.g. you wish to change Sterling into Bulgarian currency then you want the 'Buy' rate. The 'Sell' rate is only if you wished to change back your Bulgarian Lev into your own currency. Seeing as you are on holiday and are looking to spend your money it is unlikely you will ever want the sell rate.
The trick some of the less desirable exchange Boothe's (and there's a massive amount of them!) is to publish their 'sell' rate and not a 'buy rate'. The rate often looks very appealing as it is often higher than most of the other rates you've seen offered, but the problem is that it is only the rate you would get if you were to change (or 'sell') your Bulgarian Lev back into your own currency and not the rate that you will actually get when changing your currency into Bulgarian Lev (which is what you're expecting). The rate you'll actually receive is their 'Buy' rate which is often massively lower than other places and up to 50% less than the going rate.
As it can seem quite complicating let me make it clearer using an example of what I have often seen:
Let's assume that the standard exchange rate is £1 Sterling = 2.50 Lev
You see a booth offering a rate as follows "GBP STERLING = 2.50"
You assume this is a fair rate but carry on to find if you can find a better rate.
You see a second booth offering a rate as follows "GBP STERLING = 2.58"
You automatically assume that this is a better rate as it is higher than the first and therefore change your money up here.
The problem is that the first was the legitimate place selling at a fair rate and the rate they published was their 'BUY' rate. They therefore were 'buying' £1 off of you for 2.50 Lev.
The second place was the place to avoid. The rate they advertised was a 'SELL' rate. They were therefore 'selling' Sterling back to you for Lev - Something you probably didn't want to do at all because you wanted money to spend in Bulgaria, not money for home!
With these places you will be drawn in by a high 'Sell' rate assuming that it the rate you are getting for Bulgarian currency. The reality is that you will hand your money over, get your Bulgarian Lev and walk off and realize too late (or possibly never realize at all) that you have in fact only received a rate much lower that what you expected.
An example to show you how much you would lose out is the following example I've seen very recently:
Legitimate booth offering a 'Buy' rate (the correct and applicable rate to change your money INTO Bulgarian currency) of 2.37. Meaning £100 sterling would convert to 237 Lev.
Illegitimate booth offering a 'Sell' rate (that they hope you assume with be the 'buy' rate) of 2.45, therefore seeming to offer better value. However, their 'Buy' rate that was unpublished was only 1.61 meaning that £100 sterling would convert to just 161 Lev.
Despite thinking you were getting a better rate this actually represents a loss of 76 Lev, a substantial sum. If you're changing up substantial amounts of spending money this can amount to a very significant loss, much less spending power and essentially having to change up more money, more often.
The 'scam' is legal as they are clearly stating this is the 'sell' rate. However, they know that most people don't know or look for whether it is a 'buy' or 'sell' rate or which each term means. They simply assume that each rate published on the boards outside is how much Bulgarian currency you will get in exchange for your home currency.
This is a massive problem in Bulgaria and in my estimation at least 50% off exchange Boothe's use this ploy. I have always found 'Crown' to be a trustworthy brand offering a fair rate and publishing their rates in an honest manner. If you can't find a Crown exchange booth then the advice is very simple:
Seek the 'BUY' rate and never look at the 'Sell' rate unless you are looking to SELL your Bulgarian currency back to change into your own home currency.
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