Burgas will host the 2027 Eurovision Song Contest, marking the first time Bulgaria has staged the competition and bringing Europe's largest live music event to a Black Sea resort city known for its beaches, vibrant summer festivals, and affordable access for fans across the continent.
The announcement follows DARA's historic victory with 'Bangaranga' at this year's Eurovision in Vienna. Martin Green, Director of the Eurovision Song Contest, said: "We are delighted that Burgas will be the Host City for the Eurovision Song Contest 2027." He added: "For the first Eurovision Song Contest ever to be held in Bulgaria, we want to create something that feels truly Bulgarian while also being unmistakably Eurovision – a celebration that brings people together through music."
The Grand Final of the 71st Eurovision Song Contest will take place on Saturday 15 May, with two Semi-Finals on Tuesday 11 and Thursday 13 May.
A City Built for Festivals
Burgas, Bulgaria's fourth-largest city, won the hosting competition ahead of Sofia, which many Bulgarian sources had tipped as the favourite. The EBU praised Burgas for its "uniqueness" and said the city has built a strong reputation for its beaches, parks, cultural life and vibrant summer events, including music, arts and international cultural festivals.
The Sand Sculptures Festival runs from the beginning of July to the end of September and showcases international pop culture. The Spice music festival is another highlight, with 'Despacito' singer Luis Fonsi having headlined earlier in August.
Burgas sits about 400 kilometres from Sofia and just under 150 kilometres south of DARA's hometown of Varna. Burgas airport is 10 kilometres from the city centre and welcomes direct flights from many European hubs including London, Rome and Berlin. A frequently-running bus route links the airport and the city centre. If visitors combine Burgas with Sofia, trains run about eight times a day, with the fastest journey taking just five hours and 43 minutes. Buses are faster, taking a minimum of five hours from Sofia to Burgas and running on average six times per day. In the city, e-bike rental is everywhere and Burgasbus is the easiest public transport option to navigate.
Accessible for Fans Across Europe
Burgas is usually affordable for hotels. A spot check by the Euronews Travel team found private rooms from €32 per night in August, four-star hotels from €67 a night, and a one-night stay at the five-star beachfront Hotel Residence Promenade for €130. Food and drinks are described as remarkably inexpensive: Numbeo data put an inexpensive restaurant meal at €12.39 on average, half a litre of local draft beer at €1.79, and a meal for two at a mid-range restaurant at €40.90.
The city's beaches include Central Beach and Northern Beach, which are described as buzzy and packed with restaurants and bars, and Sarafovo Beach and Kraymorie Beach, which are more laidback and known for their natural beauty. The Pier of Burgas offers views of the city and a place to watch the sunset. Nearby, the Sea Garden is a 5km-long route of paved walking trails through a vast public park, suitable for bicycling and offering exotic plant species, cultural monuments and some of the most impressive Balkan architecture in the region. Burgas' Old Town is pedestrianised and has restaurants, bars and shops, as well as the Orthodox Church of Saints Cyril and Methodius.
Local food specialties include midi po burgaski, local mussels cooked in their shells with onions, tomatoes, peppers and savoury herbs, and Black Sea turbot, which is served grilled. Other dishes mentioned include strandzhanski dyado, a traditional cured, spiced meat, and Shopska salata, made with diced tomatoes, cucumbers, onions and peppers and topped with grated sirene, a white brine cheese. Drinks include Burgas 63, a rakia made with local grapes, Bulgarian wines including the well-bodied red Mavrud, and local lagers Burgasko, established in Burgas in 1971.
New Security Rules After Years of Boycotts
The EBU said the contest is organised each year by the broadcaster from the country that won the previous edition and is a co-production of public broadcasters belonging to the European Broadcasting Union. Under new rules, the winning broadcaster will automatically be ineligible to host the contest if an armed conflict, a sensitive geopolitical situation, or any other situation materially affects the security, safety or stability of their state or immediate region. The EBU said it could commission an independent security assessment before deciding whether a winning country is capable of hosting the event safely. If a winning country is found unable to host the contest, the EBU will appoint another host nation. Under the new rules, that country will organise the concert "in its own right" and "will not be required to stage the event on behalf of another Member."
The EBU did not mention any country by name, but Israel came close to winning the competition in both 2025 and 2026, ultimately finishing second on each occasion. Five countries — Spain, Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Iceland — boycotted the 2026 edition in Vienna, saying they could not take part alongside Israel because of its war in Gaza, triggered by Hamas' 7 October 2023 attack on Israel.
Ukraine hosted Eurovision in 2017 despite its ongoing conflict in the country's east between Ukrainian forces and Moscow-backed separatists. After Ukraine won the contest in 2022, it was unable to host the following year's edition because of Russia's full-scale invasion, and Eurovision 2023 was instead held in Liverpool in the United Kingdom on Ukraine's behalf.
Why This Matters:
Burgas represents a deliberate choice to bring Eurovision to a city that's affordable, accessible, and culturally vibrant — a welcome shift after years of political tension around hosting rights. The new security rules reflect the reality that Eurovision can no longer ignore geopolitical conflict, but they also raise questions about consistency: Ukraine hosted in 2017 during armed conflict, and the EBU's decision to hold the contest in Liverpool on Ukraine's behalf in 2023 set a precedent for flexibility. The choice of Burgas — a mid-sized city with strong cultural infrastructure and low costs for fans — signals that Eurovision can be a celebration open to all of Europe, not just capital cities with mega-budgets. For Bulgaria, hosting Eurovision for the first time is a moment of cultural recognition and an opportunity to showcase a region often overlooked in European cultural life.