Then → Now · 2026
A 30-person, €75 coworking unconference in a Bulgarian ski village grew into Bansko Nomad Fest, with 800+ attendees in 2025.
What it said (2018) ↓
"Most events in the coworking industry are now either unconferences or have an unconference track."
CUBB (Coworking Unconference Bansko Bulgaria), first held in 2016; tickets €75 including food and lodging; Balkan operators face different conditions from London or New York.
What happened (2026) ↓
CUBB ran again in 2019 (8–10 Nov, limited to 15 tickets). The CUBB site still showed the 2019 edition in a 2023 Wayback snapshot, and no later edition was found source. The domain no longer resolves (checked 2026-09-30).
The energy moved to Bansko Nomad Fest, founded by Matthias Zeitler.
Verdict · Held up: 6 / 10 · Full 2026 update
- Most events in the coworking industry were now unconferences or had an unconference track.Partly true
- CUBB was an affordable unconference for Balkan coworking operators, with €75 tickets including food and lodging.Outdated
- A tiny operators' retreat in Bansko turned into the world's biggest nomad festival.Came true in a way the post did not predict
Original post · 5 October 2018
Why You Should Attend a Coworking Unconference, and Why in Bansko?
Most conferences follow the same schema: Many inspiring speakers on the stage, and a lot of people in the audience listening to stories and advice that all sound a little bit too easy and removed from daily business challenges. Often there may be sponsors that pay to speak and try to sell you something. Still everyone takes a lot of notes and wonders after going home: "Was this was really worth the conference tickets and travel hassle?"Unconferencing, what is that?
However, it doesn't need to be that way. We have the unconference concept: Everyone is an expert and has some learning to share. And everyone has questions to discuss. So instead of a predefined agenda, the unconference starts with planning sessions and everyone has the chance to get their topics covered. Over the last couple of years this paradigm shift from speakers to the more engaging unconference has accelerated and most events in the coworking industry are now either unconferences or have an unconference track. The ability to shape the agenda and removing the artificial speaker boundary ensures that everyone gets the most out of the event. (Here's further reading about how your first unconference experience might be: My first unconference experience)
Decisions are made by those at the table
The first CUBB was in 2016
In Bansko the first CUBB, the Coworking Unconference Bansko Bulgaria, was held two years ago and it was really interesting to discuss common challenges and opportunities with coworking space managers and founders from the region. And with tickets for just €75 including food and accommodation it is also much more affordable compared to going to the big coworking events. Combined with cheap flights to Sofia and/or rideshares with other participants this is the best ROI for your conference budget.
Unconference session in action
What to expect when you join this year?
- Meet other space operators from the Balkans region. The environment we operate in is very different from London or New York, so it is great to connect with others that operate in our environment.
- Exchange ideas and share best practices. Take some of the best ideas from other coworking spaces and test them in your community. See what works for others and share what works for you.
- Discover different perspectives when you talk about your successes and challenges. Use the event as your personal mastermind group.
- A real technology demo session to be able to understand what different coworking software solutions offer, how they compare and which ones fit your specific requirements
- New connections to coworking veterans and starters that can grow into something amazing in the future.
- Enjoy the beautiful village of Bansko in the Pirin mountains during the social activities and the tasty Bulgarian meals. There is even time to soak in the hot springs.
Hiking in Bansko
Do you operate a coworking space ? Sign your space up here Are you looking for a coworking space to work from ? download our app here for iOS and here for Android. Do you need more resources for inspiration or building your skills to manage your coworking space, here's some more reading for you: Why I bring the Donuts Books that make coworking space management easier Eco coworking space!, and how to create one Here's also a little video of Matthias talking about Coworking Bansko:
What happened after this was written
Claims then:
- "Most events in the coworking industry are now either unconferences or have an unconference track."
- CUBB (Coworking Unconference Bansko Bulgaria), first held in 2016; tickets €75 including food and lodging; Balkan operators face different conditions from London or New York.
What happened since:
- CUBB ran again in 2019 (8–10 Nov, limited to 15 tickets). The CUBB site still showed the 2019 edition in a 2023 Wayback snapshot, and no later edition was found source. The domain no longer resolves (checked 2026-09-30).
- The energy moved to Bansko Nomad Fest, founded by Matthias Zeitler. It started with about 100 people, had 550 in 2022 and 750 expected in 2023 source, and had 800+ in June 2025 (reported by BNR, bnrnews.bg); one attendee's write-up calls it the world's largest digital-nomad meetup source.
- Zeitler has stepped back. One travel blog reports he sold Coworking Bansko to Emil and Monica Shekerdzhiiski (Networking Premium) and also sold the Nomad Fest source; that is a secondary source and the date of the sale is unverified. Another source says a team of seven led by Holger Mette took over the Fest source. He is now building Coliving Semkovo.
- Coworking Bansko is still operating as "Coworking, Coliving & Team Building" source.
Named spaces/orgs status:
| Name | Then | Now | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| CUBB | 2016–2018 editions | Last found: Nov 2019; no current web presence found | CUBB site |
| Coworking Bansko | Founded 2016 by Zeitler & Allgäuer | Operating; reportedly sold to Networking Premium owners | site, blog |
| Bansko Nomad Fest | Did not exist | 800+ attendees 2025 | Substack |
Verdict: Partly true (unconference formats did spread). Outdated (CUBB itself). The story came true in a way the post did not predict: a tiny operators' retreat in Bansko turned into the world's biggest nomad festival.
Headline finding: A 30-person, €75 coworking unconference in a Bulgarian ski village grew into Bansko Nomad Fest, with 800+ attendees in 2025.
Additional checks · Chrome search, 30 Sep 2026
- Coworking Bansko ownership: Networking Premium (Bulgarian coworking operator) acquired Coworking Bansko — announced 5 Jan 2024. Zeitler also sold the Nomad Fest (travel blog, Jun 2026). (confirmed; Google search in Chrome 2026-09-30; therecursive.com (5 Jan 2024); redwhiteadventures.com (30 Jun 2026))
Where these differ from the notes above, these supersede them.
Re-verified 3 November 2026: 6 claims confirmed, 1 corrected, 0 hedged, 0 removed.
Researched 30 September 2026 and re-verified against the sources on 3 November 2026. Sources are linked in each point. Items marked "unverified" could not be established and are not guessed.