@JimJ
Bah, humbug... :-)
I get what you're saying... and all the budget airlines are pretty much packing us in like cattle, so I'm not saying the flight itself is much fun. But, really, it's hard to gripe on the value for money front. Yes, we got hit with a couple of extras (reserved seats, Priority boarding with a larger carry-on), but even so we still got 2 round-trips for less than 150 euros. And the Sofia parking is great at 30-odd euros, the London airports are often more expensive than the flights.
We're also regulars on the Wizzair flight to Alicante-Elche Airport as we have a holiday apartment there. I still have residence permits for Spain and Cyprus, and it's only possible to keep popping over to these places because of the affordability of Wizzair/Ryanair.
I think Alicante and Limassol are wonderful, I'd be very happy to live there full-time. I like Bulgaria a lot, but it's hard to compare it with the culture/food/Mediterranean Lifestyle (and Sea). But the cost of living and the cost of property is dramatically different, and we just end up with a much more comfortable life here with minimal financial stress. In terms of bang-for-my-buck, I consider Bulgaria to be pretty much unbeatable. :-)
