Bulgaria is part of the European Union but doesn’t have the Euro yet. The currency is the Bulgarian Lev (plural Leva; code BGN). Lev means lion and one lev is divided into 100 stotinki. The exchange rate of Lev to Euro is 1.95583 – a magical number for all Germans, a strange number I’ll never forget in my life. It was the exchange rate of Deutsche Mark to Euro. As the Lev was initially bound to the Deutsche Mark, it has the same exchange rate.
For me as a German who grew up with Deutsche Mark (DM) it was therefore very easy to convert prices, I simply recognized them as DM. In 2024 the Euro is supposed to come to Bulgaria and than this becomes history as well. Should you convert money before coming to Bulgaria or when you’re there? Clear answer: It is superfluous. You can pay nearly everywhere by card and you can also withdraw cash at ATMs using your VPay debit card or classic credit cards. Absolutely hassle-free.
Bulgarian Lev
Bulgaria
Loading map...
