This time of year is ripe for touring Crimea. National Geographic has put it on its list of 20 must-see places of 2013, alongside Africa’s Malawi Lake, Canada’s Great Bear Rainforest and Cape Breton Island.
More than 6 million tourists visited Crimea in 2012, 8 percent more than in 2011, according to officials. The percentage of foreign tourists, though, is not very high at about 26 percent, due to poor infrastructure.
“Crimea’s overall problem is a lack of information in foreign languages, primarily English,” says Jeff Luebbe, team Leader of the EU-funded Crimean Tourism Diversification and Support project. “Even for Russian-speaking CIS tourists, there is a lack of maps, well-maintained trails with trail markers and signs, safety information, and basic amenities they might expect, such as visitor centers,” he adds.
To make sure you don’t miss out on Crimea’s spectacular alpine landscapes and natural attractions, Kyiv Post picked some top routes.
Weekend tours
Hiking and sightseeing
A weekend walking tour via the fortress towns of Chufut-Kale, Eski Kermen, Mangup Kale, Tepe-Kermen and Kachi-Kalion, established between the 6th and 10th centuries, starts in five-century-old Bakhchysarai, a destination popular with both locals and foreigners, said Oleksiy Kalynychenko, a Crimean hiking instructor.
The route is also one of the most comfortable as it has a large number of camp sites equipped with showers and other facilities. These cost from Hr 15 to Hr 40 per person for one night, and offer many attractions on the way, including the 16th century Khan (Bakhchysarai, Hr 50); the house-museum of Crimean Tatar writer Ismail Gasprynsky (Bakhchysrarai, Hr 20); the Chufut-Kale fortress (Hr 40); 10th-century Kachi-Kalion, a monument of architecture, housing 150 caves (Hr 10); and Mangup Kale, a Byzantine fortress from the 6th century (Hr 20).
Here’s how to get there: Kyiv-Sevastopol or Kyiv-Bakhchysarai (roundtrip for Hr 300-500, $38-63). A bus trip costs Hr 500.
Climbing and swimming
One of the best routes passes the Crimean Grand Canyon and the peninsula’s breathtaking 1,234-meter Ai Petri mountain. Don’t miss an opportunity to end the trek in Yalta with a dip in the refreshing Black Sea.
“It’s my absolute all-time favorite,” says Roman Kryvoshey, who has camped in Crimea twice a year for five years. “It’s so beautiful there, (Ai Petri) overlooks glorious landscapes,” he says.
The tour starts in Sokolyne village, which is just an hour ride from Bakhchysarai. From there it passes the well-known Crimean waterfall Silver Streams, located 900 meters above sea level, and Yusupov Lake, named after Russian Prince Felix Yusupov, the last of his line of relatives.
The descent of Ai Petri is the most exciting part of the tour, as there is a ropeway that connects the peak with Miskhor, a Crimean resort located 12 kilometers from Yalta. Constructed in 1988, a three-kilometer long ropeway overlooks the picturesque Crimean Hills at 1,200 meters in altitude. It takes about 20 minutes to get to Miskhor’s beautiful beaches.
How to get there: two train routes, Kyiv-Sevastopol or Kyiv-Bakhchysarai (roundtrip for Hr 300-500, by bus – Hr 500). In Bakhchysarai take the bus to Sokolyne village for Hr 20-30.
Six-day tours
Six-day tours are optimal for camping in terms of duration, according to Kalynychenko. Routes via the southeastern or southwestern parts of Crimea are the most interesting in this regard, he says.
There’s no shortage of choices. The most diverse is arguably the one covering the picturesque Crimean plateaus of Chatyr-Dag, North Demerdzhy and Karabi-Yayla. This includes Crimea’s largest waterfall Dzhur-Dzhur and the 125-meter deep Emine-Bair-Hosar cave. Perevalne village, located 23 kilometers from Simferopol, is the route’s departure and arrival point.
How to get there: by train, Kyiv-Simferopol costs Hr 200-450 roundtrip, by bus – Hr 500. In Simferopol take the bus to Perevalne village for Hr 20-30.
A biking tour across the peninsula is another attractive opportunity. A tour of the old part of Crimea via the Uzun-Syrt range, Karabi plateau, Karaul-Oba cape on bike for six to seven days is just one option of many that travel agencies offer. Such tours go for quite reasonable prices between Hr 1,500-Hr 2,500. Meals, insurance and instructor service are usually included, while the transfer and excursions are extra.
Register on the Crimean rescue service website (especially if you’re going alone): www.kss.crimea.ua/old/reg/form_reg.php
Master camping rules, with Crimea’s committee of forest management: www.comleshos.crimea-portal.gov.ua/rus/index.php?v=5&tek=42&par=5
Use a travel agency if it’s your first trip, recommend these: www.snp.crimea.ua, www.comandor.com.ua
Kyiv Post staff writer Anastasia Forina can be reached at [email protected].
