A First Timer’s Experience of Bansko Nomad Fest

As a first time attendee at the 2023 Bansko Nomad Festival, I didn’t know what to expect. I arrived in Bansko a few days early to settle in and join some of the pre-fest events.

I was excited for a little sneak peek at the community, and I got to enjoy a delicious BBQ, plus a Hot Springs visit!

What is Bansko Nomad Fest?

Bansko Nomad Festival brings together digital nomads from more than 40 countries to learn, share, network, and have loads of fun celebrating this lifestyle! Taking place in the Old Town in Bansko, Bulgaria, the event awakens this quiet town during their slow season.

There were more than 700 nomads who attended this year’s festival, and that number is only going to continue growing in the years to come. It is the largest nomad festival in the world… and this was only the 4th year running!

Originally sponsored by Coworking Bansko, the presence of digital nomads in this town goes beyond this week in particular. Matthias Zeitler, founder of Coworking Bansko also created Bansko Nomad Fest which draws even more nomads to this destination!

This event has made its way across blogs and news articles to bring together this group. BulgariaTravel.com discusses the festivities, Breaking Travel News, and many others! You can also check out this year’s official footage of the event here!

The Festival Kickoff

The festivities kicked off on a Sunday evening, where you could collect your Nomad gear which included this year’s T-shirt (hot pink!), lanyard with name tag, and wristband). They were also selling drinks, with payments going towards local charities like the Bansko Street Dogs. As a great way to meet people initially, they did a major ice breaker with human bingo. The goal was to find someone who did/would do something on the sheet, which gave you a chance to get to know a lot of the people there. While the names were a bit forgettable since they came in spades, I still found myself recognizing and acknowledging the people I met all throughout the week! The initial event lasted all night with dancing in the square and finally finishing up at The Club which was a paid event in the evening.

Views like this one are some of the best parts of visiting Bansko, Bulgaria in the summer… and the mountains are the reason for so many visitors in the winter. I took this walking to the grocery store!

Interested in more specifics about why Bansko and what else the festival offers for attendees? Keep reading about it here.

What Happens During the Week?

The schedule for the week was really easy to follow, and made for some well-intentioned FOMO. Keynotes were in the morning from around 9am-1pm, followed by Unconference Sessions, and various activities (paid and free). The Unconference sessions were for others who had ideas for talks to have a chance to give them, and others interested to learn more about that given topic. These sessions were pitched on the first day of the festival, and interspersed in the afternoons throughout the week. There was often 10-20 happening each day.

The free activities ranged from a Fitness Session, Yoga, Breathing Exercises, and much more. The paid events were very affordable with the group prices. I was able to do a long game of Airsoft, Archery, White Water Rafting, and a pool party at some Hot Springs!

Some of my other favorites were a craft beer tasting, and there were a few wine tastings on the itinerary as well. For those looking for some more fun during their week, they also offered ATV drives, Horseback riding, and E-bike adventures.

The events were released on the app for signups a week in advance so you could get a jump start on your schedule, and sign up to guarantee your spot. Some of the events, mostly the paid ones, had a cap on the number of people, so everyone needed to sign up for their events at least a day in advance. Most events did sell out, but they would usually find a way to make more room for the additional people, as long as there was a lot of extra interest. 

There were 3 stages for the different talks, Main Stage, Cinema Stage, and Park Stage, so it was pretty easy to get around and figure out where you needed to go. The first two stages featured the keynotes, and the Park Stage was where everything else happened. Even though all the events and keynotes were offered in English, Bulgarian TV and Radio covered the festival’s excursions!

Learning and Growing with Keynotes

To make the most out of the festival, and absorb as much information as possible, I was at the Keynotes every morning to learn about each of the topics. Since there are always 2 Keynotes happening at once, I could only absorb at most half of what was offered, even with 4 hours a day watching the talks! On the bright side, it made me decide more precisely what I wanted to take away from this festival so that I used my time wisely. 

I could discuss the keynotes forever, since there was so much juicy information. Each talk was 25 minutes long, and included 5 additional minutes for questions and 10-15 minutes in between so people had time to walk between stages. Most of the talks had really strong turnout, and there were some that surprised me with the number of people interested. Attachment style was one of those talks that had major turnout, and I loved the interest and undivided attention that the audience provided to the speaker.

I found all the talks useful in one way or another, but the ones that stood out related to business and travel in particular. Here are a handful of the ones I attended, with the speaker linked: 

• Brand Building & Automation
• Social Media Marketing
• How to stay healthy while traveling
• Co-livings
• Storytelling
• Digital Marketing
• Turning photography into a business
• 4 hour work week
• Ways to sell your services while traveling
• Learning about AI and automation

Of the talks I went to, I benefitted the most from Tax and Residency Solutions for Nomads which offered tangible advice on changing residency and tax status and next steps. Speakers also offered discounts, free e-books, and other valuable information at the end of their talks for attendees!

There were other talks that focused more on the self than on business, which were also great to learn more about. These ranged from the aforementioned attachment style chat, how to overcome self-doubt (which can also be related to business), mental shifts, and how to experience true freedom. Most of these talks warranted a ton of questions too, which was a great way to squeeze even more information out of them.

The academic panel drew my attention the most, especially since it was focused on learning about digital nomads, which is a topic that drew a lot of attention. The panel lasted 40 minutes and it was exciting to hear about the statistics and the definition of a digital nomad when it comes to research. 

Unconference Sessions

The Unconference Sessions were great additions for learning even more, and included a bunch of unconventional information that you wouldn’t expect! I frequently chose the active activities to fill my afternoons, so I missed most of these sessions, but they definitely drew a big crowd. I was able to make it to How to Stay Fit as a Nomad, which was great since I could hear from lots of people that they had similar struggles with staying healthy while traveling. Some other notable workshops were on data science, sustainable traveling, marketing, mindfulness, and Thai boxing.

Some Fun (Usually in the Sun) Afternoon Activities

I took advantage of all the active bits whenever I could, both paid and unpaid. One of the most difficult (and rewarding) activities was the Fitness Session, which was run by Active Nomad. While challenging, I was glad I was able to test it out with people of varying skill levels. Yoga was another that I really enjoyed (it took place both in the morning, and in the afternoon), and meditation was offered in tandem with it. There were quite a few teachers, but Carla was my favorite and she stuck around and offered additional classes after the festival as well. 

While I wasn’t able to attend everything, I would’ve loved to try out ecstatic dance and the breathwork sessions. The instawalk was also noteworthy, and great for getting some fresh content while exploring the city. They also dispersed volleyball throughout the week, which was always loads of fun!

The organizer of Bansko Nomad Fest, Matthias Zeitler, is also starting a co-living in the Bansko area called Co-Living Semkovo, and offered a tour for those interested in seeing it and learning more about it. This project in particular was a huge success, and a next step for the community in Bansko.

The paid activities included transportation, in case they were out of walking distance, which made the prices even more convenient since you didn’t need to find your own ride. Most of these activities were reliant on groups, which meant that it was a great chance to meet people and spend some quality time with them.

White Water Rafting was a personal favorite of mine, and I definitely got to know the other 5 people in my boat. Airsoft was a great activity, and it included all the gear and unlimited bullets as well as target practice, axe throwing, and archery.

There were other notable paid activities that I wasn’t able to attend, which were Horseback Riding, E-Bikes, and an ATV adventure. Can’t forget Print Your own T-Shirt, which allowed you the chance to see your logo in action. The prices varied, but all were reasonable for a customized product!

Nighttime Festivities

You can never be bored at this festival, with events happening from morning till late in the night. While the activities varied, the common denominator was community, which was part of all the activities, especially the ones at night. 

The first nighttime activity that kicked off the festival was a Craft Beer Tasting at Pivoteka Craft Beer and Mountain Base, which offered 6 large tasting options that were brewed in the general area and a brief description of each. Another fan favorite (and drinking related) activity was the Wine Tasting at Oscar’s Wine and Gastrobar. They provided little snacks in addition to the wine, which was a great addition! 

Some of the event scheduling was affected by the rain, like the scavenger hunt, but things were quickly rescheduled to keep the events running smoothly. This could be biased, but I’d say that trivia night was probably the biggest hit at the festival with major turnout. Over 120 nomads gathered to test their travel knowledge and win some insane prizes. Of course, I can’t forget the Bonfire, which was also a huge hit and had people talking for days after. 

The other notable activities included hot springs night, nomad jeopardy, karaoke, improv, and speed dating. The pool party (with saunas and varying pool temperatures) had some incredible turnout, and a double rainbow to mark the occasion.

The scavenger hunt drew a lot of attention on its new date, but unfortunately the rain once again didn’t hold out after trivia ended for this event, nonetheless they persisted. A major props goes to those who completed the hunt in lieu of the downpour.

The talent show was a great way to close the festival, and it included a professional comedians, Fedor Ikelaar and Carly Blair, which was a huge treat! A bunch of nomads signed up to show off their talents, from singing to dancing to balloon animal making. This event also thanked everyone involved in the festival, most receiving gifts for all their troubles!

You Never Have to Eat Alone at Nomad Fest

You never had to think about where or what you wanted to eat at the festival if you didn’t want to. Lunch was organized everyday and picked up in the park, preferably if you ordered it in advance, but a lot of people paid on the spot too. With so many people grabbing lunch, it was easy to make friends and find some people to chow down with. 

Dinners were not quite as lowkey as lunch, but they were also included amongst the schedule for those interested. The restaurants always varied, and each dinner had a location that nomads could learn more about, like Croatia or Tenerife. 

While breakfast wasn’t a scheduled event, many nomads would ask the group to join them for coffee, etc. in the morning before Keynotes.

It was great to try some of the local restaurants without needing to figure out which ones were tasty or not. 

Closing Statements

The Bansko Nomad Festival is clearly a unique event, and one that I expect to attend for years to come, as a nomad or just an aspiring one. The festivities were well-thought out, well-organized, budget-friendly, and great for meeting new people and leaving with an extensive network. Solo, paired, and even family nomad travelers all came together in one place, and not to be cheesy, but you could feel the magic of it all. 

Many of the festival attendees choose to stay beyond the 8 days allotted, some even staying the whole summer. There are a bunch of things to do in Bansko in summer, especially with the growing presence of digital nomads. The town draws more than just digital workers, but adventurers as well, especially with the Pirin National Park and other spots available for hiking in and around Bansko.

Digital Nomads are a unique bunch, so it was great to have a space where it’s not only normal, but celebrated to be location independent. This event was all about making it easier and more sustainable to be a nomad, no gatekeeping here, everyone just wanted to help one another! While you won’t be able to meet everyone here, there is a sense of familiarity seeing that pink wristband stating “Bansko Nomad Fest 2023,” and you can expect that any friendliness will be returned with equal sincerity. 

Bansko Nomad Fest took strangers (ones who you probably wouldn’t have met otherwise), and turned them into lifelong friends, potential travel buddies, and a growing network of others who love this lifestyle, just like you! A huge thanks to all and everything that went into making this festival what it was. Can’t wait to do it all over again next year! 

Don’t Miss Out!

Bansko Nomad Fest tickets are available for next year, and discounted the earlier you buy them. Click here to grab your ticket for the best price and use code LGP for a discount! Logistics and other questions are also answered there, such as info on transport and accommodation.

If you’re interested in sticking around a little longer in Bansko, check out this guide for things to do!