What should you know about healthcare and emergencies in Bansko?
Emergency number
112
Police: 166. Ambulance: 150.
Updated July 2026 · Sources cited: banskocity.bg, banskosnikolay.com
Bansko town itself has no full hospital with surgical/trauma capability — only an emergency medical aid (ambulance) station and private outpatient clinics. Serious trauma cases are transferred to Razlog (nearest district hospital, ~10km) or Blagoevgrad (main regional hospital with full trauma capability, ~35km). These are included here because Bansko has no in-town alternative, consistent with how this guide handles other 'nearest genuine option is further out' cases.
Good to know
Good to Know
- 112 is the number to remember day-to-day in Bansko — it routes you to police, fire, or ambulance and works from any phone, even without local credit.
- If you're skiing, hiking, or off-piste in the Pirin mountains around Bansko, save the Bansko Mountain Rescue (PSS) number separately — it's a distinct service from the standard ambulance/police lines and responds specifically to mountain incidents.
- Mountain rescue in Bulgaria is a paid service and is NOT automatically covered by standard travel or lift-pass insurance — off-piste accidents especially can leave you liable for the full cost, so separate mountain/accident insurance is worth arranging before skiing or hiking.
- Outside the main tourist areas, police and fire staff may have limited English, so having numbers written down (rather than relying on translating on the spot) helps.
- The '112 Bulgaria' app is mainly designed for people with hearing/speech disabilities to reach 112 via chat rather than voice call — it's not a general-purpose emergency app for all travelers.
- The PSS mountain rescue app is genuinely useful for anyone spending time in the Pirin mountains near Bansko, but it reportedly only installs once you're already in Bulgaria.
- Bansko itself does not have a full hospital — for anything beyond basic first aid or X-rays, you will be transferred to Razlog or, for serious trauma, Blagoevgrad. Always call 112 first in a real emergency; they coordinate transport.
- Ski-lift-pass insurance typically only covers getting an injured skier down the mountain by sled — it does not cover doctors, hospital treatment, or operations, and off-piste accidents are usually excluded entirely. Get proper travel/medical insurance before skiing.
- Private clinics like the gondola-station medical center or town-center clinics are useful for minor injuries, illness, or ski accidents and can do X-rays, but cannot perform surgery or handle major trauma on-site.
- None of Bansko's pharmacies are open 24/7, so plan ahead for prescription needs outside daytime hours.
- If you have travel insurance, check in advance which hospitals in Razlog or Blagoevgrad it covers, since payment/deposit may be requested upfront at private or even public facilities for non-EHIC holders.
Direct Dial Numbers
Ambulance
- Number
- 150
Police
- Number
- 166
Fire Brigade
- Number
- 160
Traffic Police (KAT)
- Number
- 165
Official Safety Apps
112 Bulgaria
- Purpose
- Official app primarily built for citizens and visitors with hearing or speech disabilities, allowing an emergency chat session with a 112 operator and SMS-style alerting instead of a voice call.
- Publisher
- Ministry of Interior / National System 112
Platforms
- Android
- iOS
PSS (ПСС) / Mountain Rescue Service App
- Caveat
- Best downloaded once already in Bulgaria, as it is location/operator-dependent.
- Purpose
- Sends GPS coordinates via SMS to the Mountain Rescue Service control center and provides a one-tap call button to the MRS control center for hikers/skiers in trouble in the Pirin mountains around Bansko.
- Publisher
- Bulgarian Mountain Rescue Service (PSS)
Platforms
- Android
- iOS
Mountain Rescue Service Pss
- Relevance
- Bansko sits below the Pirin mountains and is a major ski resort, so mountain rescue is a distinct, commonly-needed service here, separate from standard 112 dispatch.
- National Control Center
- 02 963 2000
- Note
- Can also be reached by dialing 112 and asking for mountain rescue; the Bansko rescue team is based near the Shiligarnika mid-station on the gondola.
Bansko Team Direct Numbers
- +359 887 100 241
- +359 88 1470
- +359 749 8 8132
Hospitals
ФСМП Банско (Bansko Branch for Emergency Medical Aid / Ambulance Station)
- Phone
- GSM 0897 000 119; national emergency line 112
- Type
- Emergency medical aid station (ambulance dispatch & first response), not a hospital
- Hours
- Continuous 24-hour team-based operation, every day
- Address
- 72 Tsar Simeon Street, Bansko 2770 (near Park Hotel Gardenia, town center)
- Trauma Capability
- None on-site — stabilizes patients and provides medical transport to the nearest qualified hospital (Razlog or Blagoevgrad); no operating theatre or inpatient trauma ward
- Distance From Center
- In town center
Private Outpatient Medical Centers
- Phone
- +359 74 780 780 (Gondola clinic)
- Name
- Bansko Medical Centre (Gondola lift station clinic) / Medical Centre 'Blagoveshtenie'
- Hours
- Not confirmed 24/7 — primarily daytime/ski-season hours
- Address
- Gondola lift lower station building; and 1 Louis Pasteur Street, Bansko (central old town)
- Trauma Capability
- Basic first examination and X-ray only (at the gondola clinic); no surgical or full trauma capability. Serious injuries such as fractures are referred onward to Razlog Hospital
- Distance From Center
- Within town / gondola base area
Razlog Hospital (МБАЛ Razlog)
- Phone
- +359 74 789 723
- Type
- District multi-profile hospital
- Hours
- Not explicitly confirmed as 24/7 in available sources, though it is the designated receiving hospital for serious Bansko-area injuries
- Address
- Sources list either 1 St. Kiril i Metodii Street or Stara Planina 15, Razlog, 2760 Bulgaria (neighboring town, roughly a 10-15 minute drive from Bansko center)
- Trauma Capability
- Handles broken limbs and other serious injuries from Bansko; extremely serious/complex trauma cases are further transferred to Sofia
- Distance From Center
- ~10-15 minutes' drive from Bansko center (nearest hospital, but outside the immediate town)
МБАЛ Благоевград (MBAL Blagoevgrad AD) — Regional Multi-profile Hospital
- Phone
- 073 82 92 306 (Emergency dept.); 073 82 92 329 (general)
- Type
- Regional multi-profile hospital with dedicated Emergency Department
- Hours
- Emergency department operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, including holidays
- Address
- 60 Slavyanska Street, Blagoevgrad 2700, Bulgaria
- Trauma Capability
- Described as the busiest and largest hospital in southwestern Bulgaria; its emergency department receives all serious accident and trauma patients from the wider region and has imaging, ICU (anesthesiology and intensive care unit), and surgical departments on site. No official numbered 'trauma level' system exists in Bulgaria, but this is the most comprehensive-capability hospital serving the Bansko area
- Distance From Center
- ~35-40 km from Bansko, roughly 35-45 minutes by car — beyond the immediate area but the realistic destination for major trauma
Healthcare
- Overview
- Bansko's healthcare options are limited. The local system handles emergencies and basic care but lacks specialist capacity. For serious conditions, patients are transferred to larger hospitals in Blagoevgrad or Sofia.
- Specialist Care
- Limited locally; if needed, patient is transferred to Sofia or Blagoevgrad.
- Emergency Contact
- Call 112 for life-threatening emergencies. Free for all.
- Public Vs Private
- Bulgaria's public healthcare (NHIF) is functional but underfunded. Private healthcare is preferred by expats and tourists and is very affordable. Most European insurance is accepted at private facilities.
- Insurance Notes
- EU citizens can use EHIC; UK citizens can use GHIC for public facilities. Travel insurance with medical evacuation coverage is strongly recommended for Bansko. Insurance should explicitly cover medical evacuation to Sofia or abroad.
Facilities
Medical Centre Blagoveshtenie
- Phone
- +35974988388
- Type
- Private medical center
- Address
- 1 Louis Pasteur street, Bansko
- Details
- Central private clinic offering basic care, vaccinations, and emergency assistance. Fees are relatively low. X-ray service available.
- Language Support
- Limited English
Saint Nicholas Medical Center (St. Nikolay)
- Phone
- +359 887 791 051
- Type
- Private medical center
- Caveat
- Limited hours outside winter season; not fully operational year-round
- Address
- 7 Glazne Street, Bansko
- Details
- Winter-season clinic (operates primarily Dec-Feb) handling ski injuries, fractures, wound care, and emergencies. Offers X-ray, lab tests, and medical transport. 24/7 availability during winter. Accepts most European insurance.
- Operating Hours
- Monday-Sunday 08:30-22:30; out-of-hours doctor on duty
- Language Support
- English available
Bansko Medical Center (Gondola)
- Phone
- +35974780780
- Type
- Hospital-affiliated center
- Details
- First stop for slope injuries. Has X-ray but no surgical capacity; serious cases referred onward.
- Location
- Lower gondola station building
- Language Support
- Limited English
Razlog Hospital
- Phone
- +35974789723
- Type
- Hospital
- Address
- 1 St. Kiril and Metodii Street, Razlog (nearby town)
- Details
- Public hospital in neighboring Razlog, 15km away, for more serious cases.
Pharmacies
- Hours
- Standard retail hours; closed evenings and Sundays. No 24/7 pharmacy.
- Overview
- Multiple pharmacies (apoteka) in Bansko town center, all well-stocked. None are open 24/7.
- Language Support
- Staff speak limited English; bring prescription or name of medication in writing
- Medication Availability
- Well-stocked with Western European medications
Pharmacies
Mareshki 2
- Phone
- +359 879 878 973 / +359 749 79 927
- Address
- Nikola Vaptsarov square
- Notes
- Known nationally for lower medication prices
Subra
- Phone
- +359 882 484 005
- Address
- 92 Pirin street
Azarum
- Phone
- +359 885 770 468 / +359 74 982 161
- Address
- 32 Tsar Simeon street (near Hotel Villa Roka); also 4 Louis Pasteur street (next to Park Hotel Gardenia)
Sanita
- Phone
- +359 74 988 490
- Address
- 57 Tsar Simeon street (central square)
Operator Languages
112 operators in Bulgaria can generally assist in Bulgarian and commonly also English, with French and German cited in some sources; language support can vary by call and shouldn't be assumed guaranteed.
Universal Emergency Number
- Number
- 112
- Description
- Single EU-wide emergency number connecting to police, fire, and ambulance services from any phone, free of charge, nationwide including Bansko.
AI-generated estimateData refreshed July 2026
Sources cited for this category
These are the sources cited in this emergencies research for this city. Individual figures may not each trace to one of them.
- 1.banskocity.bg
- 2.banskosnikolay.com
- 3.st.nicholas.bg
- 4.snmedicalcenter.com
- 5.expatlife.ai
- 6.skibansko.bg
- 7.visit-bansko.bg
- 8.expatra.com
- 9.innovires.com
- 10.expat.com
- 11.expatfocus.com
- 12.expatarrivals.com
- 13.foreigner.bg
- 14.expatfocus.com
- 15.visaforbulgaria.com
- 16.openbulgaria.org
- 17.mtfxgroup.com
- 18.moneyswapp.com
More About Bansko
Data last updated July 2026 · Verify anything important.