Organized child trips to be conducted under contract between tour operators and headmasters of educational institutions, requirements to child camps are introduced

Tourism trips organized within the systems of preschool- and school education will be conducted based on contract executed between a tour operator and a headmaster of a kindergarten, a school, or a personal development support centre, within the meaning of the Preschool- and School Education Act. The objective is for each such trip to be organized professionally and check all of its related components. This is envisaged by the Draft Ordinance on the common-price child- and student tourism trips, as initiated by kindergartens, schools, or personal development support centres, which is published for public discussion purposes. The document was jointly elaborated by the Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of Education and Science.

The Ordinance sets out in detail the responsibilities and duties of headmasters and tour operators. Accommodation of children and students will only take place in categorized facilities, and their feeding will only be provided by locations registered under the Foods Act. To ensure the quality and origin of the food in such trips the Bulgarian Food Safety Agency will be advised of the arrangements concerning food for the children and students. The requirements to make organized child trips by bus and during the light part of the day is kept.

It is envisaged that the number of staff servicing the trip is to be determined by the trip’s format, the number, age composition and specific needs of children and students – one adult per 5-7 children from kindergartens, one adult per 10-15 students from grades 1 to 12. Participants in trips outside the country must be insured by the tour operator pursuant to the Tourism Act’s requirements, and the conduct of such trips must also involve an insurer’s representative.

For the first time particular requirements to child camps are set out and they are due to be worked out in detail via the forthcoming amendments to the Tourism Act, which are now in progress. The Ordinance envisages that child camps in the country are organized in tourism facilities located in fenced plots, with at least two entrance points, with 24-07 and controlled admission, with CCTV, a restaurant, and other mandatory characteristics due to be in place.

Where the recreation facility is near water, the operator must comply with the relevant specialized instructions. To ensure the safety and security of children and students while visiting a beach (open water areas), the Ordinance on Water Rescue Activities and Making Safe the Water Areas and the Ordinance on the Quality Management of Swimming Waters must be complied with. Secured access from the facility to the beach must be provided for camps near the sea coast. Use of open water areas by adolescents is only allowed in the presence of rescuer/s provided by the owner/lessee/concessionaire.

Requirements to the practicing of winter sports are also being introduced. The Ordinance requires that winter sports training for children and students is carried out by qualified ski teachers, while tourism, march guidance, and excursion camping activities in the mountains are provided by qualified mountain guides.

The Ordinance is adopted based on the Tourism Act. Control over compliance with the Ordinance is entrusted to the Commission for Consumer Protection, the Ministry of Education and Science, and Regional Health Inspectorate, and other competent authorities. The amount of sanctions envisaged in the Tourism Act, the Foods Act, and the Health Act will be kept and imposed for Ordinance infractions.