The new tourist brand of Bulgaria as a tourist destination was presented Thursday by Ivo Marinov, Deputy Minister of Economy, Energy, and Tourism.

The new brand will be used officially in Bulgaria's marketing activities from September 2013 on, according to reports of money.bg.

The new brand portrays Bulgaria as a friendly, charming, and as-yet-undiscovered destination and the main slogan is "Bulgaria – A Discovery to Share."

The new brand was developed under a project financed under the Regional Development Operational Program worth BGN 1.4 M.

Apart from the national tourist logo and slogan, ten sub-brands have been developed for the different types of tourism, as well as a branding strategy for the different tourist regions and a pilot brand of the Trakia region.

All logos and symbols of the brand will be free to use after a registration on an online platform which will be opened in March.

The platform will be accessible via the website of Bulgaria's Ministry of Economy, Energy and Tourism (MIET).

According to MIET, the new brand was developed on the basis of an in-depth analysis of the current perceptions of Bulgaria as a tourist destination and a comparison with a range of rival destinations.

The designers took into account surveys among representatives of 11 countries in Europe and Asia.

The visual concept for the main brand and its 10 sub-brands were tested in 15 countries among over 2000 representatives of the tourism industry.

According to the surveys, over 90% of the polled expressed satisfaction with their stay in Bulgaria, while 80% of the polled said they were willing to visit the country again.

Bulgaria's Ministry of Economy, Energy and Tourism (MIET) expects a 25% increase in tourists in the first five years of the implementation of the strategy.

In Ivo Marinov's words, the new brand, designed to make Bulgaria's tourism product more recognizable and competitive, is to double the number of tourists visiting the country over the course of 10-15 years.