Planning and founding (1957–1960)
In 1957 the resort's master plan, designed by architect Nikola Nikolov, was approved on the then-deserted 6 km beach strip between Nessebar and Sveti Vlas. Construction began later that year. On 26 July 1958 the first hotel — Kalina — officially opened, and that date is considered the resort's birthday.
Socialist-era heyday (1960–1989)
In the 1960s–70s Sunny Beach drew hundreds of thousands of tourists a year — mainly from East Germany, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Hungary and the Soviet Union. Landmark hotels such as Globus, Burgas and Kuban were built, along with the first restaurants and discos. The state firm Balkantourist ran the resort.
Modern expansion (1989 — today)
After the 1989 transition, Balkantourist was privatised and the resort was rebuilt. New private hotels, water parks, clubs and thousands of apartments appeared. Sunny Beach now welcomes over 1.5 million tourists a year — mostly from the UK, Germany, Poland, Romania and Russia. The beach carries the Blue Flag award for cleanliness and safety.