ORTHODOXY IN BULGARIA AND RELATED RELIGIOUS AND CULTURAL EVENTS AND THEIR USE FOR THE NEEDS OF RELIGIOUS TOURISM IN SOUTHWESTERN BULGARIA

Abstract

Religious tourism, both everywhere in the world and here in Bulgaria, is the oldest type of tourism. The people of the past were extremely religious, so by undertaking pilgrimages, they hoped to be healed physically or mentally, to be purified, and thus to come closer to God. Drawing a parallel with today’s practice of religious tourism in the country, it should be noted that it is becoming more and more profane and alien to true worship. The spiritual and material cultural heritage of Orthodoxy in Bulgaria as an object of pilgrimage tourism provides great opportunities for development in the country. The purpose of this study is to present the results of a study on the communication policy of monasteries in southwestern Bulgaria as a factor in the development of religious tourism in southwestern Bulgaria. The survey was conducted among visitors to monasteries in southwestern Bulgaria through the use of questionnaires and structured interviews on site when entering or leaving religious sites.