We venture down to the Fedotova Kosa spit where white sand beaches, a large nature preserve, affordable accommodations and other inviting attractions beckon.
he Sea of Azov coast in Zaporizhya oblast offers just as many marvels if you’re looking for a sea-side change of pace.
No Small Business
Kyrylivka, a village with a population of slightly more than 4,000, though lacking in decent accommodations, quality restaurants and other tourist amenities afforded in nearby Berdyansk, offers something more valuable: a seemingly endless stretch of sandy beach and azure sea.
It should come as no surprise, then, that around 500,000 tourists from Ukraine, Russia and Belarus visited Kyrylivka last year. In fact, the average occupancy rate for the aging tourist “rest areas” – campgrounds, essentially – approached 130 percent.
What strikes you first while walking along the main street of Kyrylivka is that despite the influx of so many tourists, it remains a village. Here you won’t find any of the petty snobbishness typical of the other resorts on the Azov and Black Seas.
Down to Earth
Simple and undemanding: These words come to mind while walking through Kyrylivka. This really is a place to come to relax, as long as you don’t expect five-star resorts, and are willing to explore a bit.
You should definitely visit the market, at the very center of the village, and where vendors offer almost everything imaginable, from multitudes of fruits and vegetables to swimwear and fishing gear and more.
At least 20 varieties of fish are also available there, ranging from fresh and smoked Azov bullheads at Hr 5 per kg, to imported smoked salmon at Hr 70.
Every second vendor, it seems, is involved in the currency exchange business. According to the local mayor, that’s because there aren’t enough official exchange outlets. Tourists should summon their courage and use all their bartering skills to get exactly what they expect.
Local Samplings
Dining out in Kyrylivka is largely a matter of small eateries offering different kinds of barbecued meat and fish. Expect to pay around Hr 20 per person. A small number of restaurants and cafes, and some good ones at that, can be found around town. Why does such an underdeveloped tourist environment have such good food? Because meals are usually offered along with accommodations, which are modest: Hostelries find that serving high-quality board is a good way to compensate for less-than-stellar rooms.
Largely Soviet-built, accommodations in Kyrylivka often lack such basic amenities as hot water and air conditioning, and many rooms are reminiscent of student hostels, with up to four beds in each. Such rooms typically cost around Hr 60 per person per night, including three meals. Parking and hot showers are extra.
Some such places have upgraded their facilities and can claim to be either recently renovated or newly built. Such places have around the clock hot water, air conditioning and television, and are generally a great improvement over the regular rooms. They range in price from Hr 200 to Hr 550 per person per night – well worth the cost.
Going Out
Entertainment spots in Kyrylivka are generally beverage kiosks surrounded by plastic tables and blasting loud music, but there are a few establishments worth mentioning. Bagira, an open-air entertainment complex themed after Rudyard Kipling’s “Jungle Books,” is one of them. Concrete sculptures of the characters from the books are scattered around the territory – Bagira, incidentally, was one of the books’ heroes, a black panther.
Bagira offers a local take on European cuisine, with a large selection of seafood entrees, naturally. An average dinner for two with drinks costs around Hr 60 per person. The spot also offers an evening entertainment program featuring local performers who sing pop music hits. On special occasions, Bagira invites popular Russian acts too.
There are also numerous night clubs located at the beginning of Fedotova Kosa, a narrow spit of land stretching some 30 km into the sea. They’re hardly high-concept places, but they are worth visiting for their lively atmosphere and cheap drinks.
Among the most popular is Texas, perhaps the best spot in town, and which is rumored to have American backing. At any rate, the U.S. flag flies above the Ukrainian one at the entrance. The cover charge is Hr 25 for men and Hr 15 for ladies. It’s big and barn-like, but it has nice music, good lighting and lots of good-looking people having a good time.
The only real drawback is its drastically inadequate number of bathrooms – only one for both men and women. The tired-looking middle-aged woman who takes your money at the door repeats to anyone who brings it up that the lack of facilities isn’t her fault.
As a natural attraction, the Fedotova Kosa spit, which juts out into the Sea of Azov, deserves special attention. Only one third of its territory is accessible to tourists, as the rest of it is taken up by the Biriyuchiy Ostriv (Lone Wolf Island) Nature Preserve, home to various birds, waterfowl and other creatures. It’s tightly guarded. Why? Maybe because the preserve is said to be the location of one of President Leonid Kuchma’s numerous dachas.
That said, even the accessible part of the spit, namely the five-km stretch that hasn’t yet been developed, is a real natural gem. The endless stretch of white sand, about 20 meters wide, littered with oyster shells that crack every time you step on them, is reminiscent of the beaches in Egypt, except the sand is whiter. That might be hard to believe, but it’s true.
Add to this a sea of unimaginably crystal-clear blue, as clean as can be; an almost total absence of people; and a panoramic view of the horizon; and you feel as if you’re on an uninhabited island. That is, until you turn around and see the green steppe and an estuary said to be a great place for fishing.
If you like living in a tent, Fedotova Kosa on the Sea of Azov can’t be matched in Ukraine or anywhere.
Camping on the beach costs Hr 30 per vehicle. Most camping supplies can be bought from the hotel and entertainment area nearby, a fifteen-minute drive by car.
ACCOMMODATION IN KYRYLIVKA
Rodem (full board only)
Regular room (double, three, four beds): Hr 75 per person;
Two-room suite: Hr 530 per person.
Tel.: (06131) 96-275; (0619) 42-3216; (067) 561-8502;
Email: [email protected].
Priboy (full board only)
One-room suite: Hr 195;
Two-room suite: Hr 220 to Hr 375.
Bungalo
Hr 375 to Hr 450.
Tel.: (06131) 9-6346; (06131) 9-6976.
GOING OUT
Bagira entertainment complex
Tel.: (06131) 9-6999, (0619) 42-6848.
Email: [email protected], or see www.bagira.zp.ua.
Texas nightclub
Fedotova Kosa, no telephone.
GETTING THERE
Your best bet is to take the train (Hr 320, first class, round-trip) or bus (Hr 150 round-trip) to Melitopil).
To get from Melitopil to Kyrylivka, take either a bus (Hr 8 one-way), or minibus (Hr 12 one-way). Alternately, a two-hour drive to Kyrylivka by taxi costs Hr 100.
For more information, contact the National Tourist Organization at (044) 216-3422, or see www.nto.org.ua.
