Crimea
Crimea is a region in the south of Ukraine. The Coastal beach cities are very hospitable to tourists (if you speak Russian). Accommodation is plentiful and cheap (minimum cost for a one night stay is 7 USD). Houses advertising accommodation will usually have a large white sign stuck on the door that has about three words written in Cyrillic. During the tourist season expect the beaches to be quite packed, with mostly Russian tourists. The whole coast line is dominated by the mountains that tower above them, sometimes reaching up to 2000 meters.
The weather in Crimea during the summer season is very much Mediterranean. Expect relatively hot weather and lots of thunderstorms that come and go. Hot and very humid at night. In the winter snow can cover the mountains and make the roads almost impassable
The water is fairly warm,, although not as warm as the Adriatic. The water is clean and clear, although also a bit less than the Adriatic.
There are overnight trains running to Crimea from throughout the Ukraine. The cost will vary based upon where you will be leaving from, 15-50 Euro. You can use flying, a return flight Kiev - Simferopol with Ukraine International Airlines is about $150.
If you travel by overnight sleeper train it is quite comfortable, cheap and the quality is OK. Just the average travelling speed of trains is slow in Ukraine in general (about 50km per hour).
There are flights to Simferopol rom Kyiv, Lviv, Moscow, Istanbul, and many western European cities, including Frankfurt, Tallinn and Riga.
You can get anywhere in Crimea by mini bus. You can also go by taxi. Prices vary, be prepared to haggle a fare as you will always find someone to do a deal with.
The road system in Crimea as well as most of the Ukraine, is in very poor repair, expect huge potholes. There is a very strict zero policy to drink driving. Police patrols are frequent as well as roadside checks for documents. The death toll on Ukraine roads is very bad, you have been warned.
What to see:
The Khan's Palace is located in the small mountain village of Bakhchisaray a halfway between Simferopol and Sevastapol. The Khan's palace was the seat of the Tatar rulers of Crimea dating back to 1443. With the Ottoman conquest of Crimea in 1475 the Khan's became a vassal state of the Ottoman Empire but were left as the rulers. After the Crimean war with the victory of Russia all of the Khan's were made Russian nobility but the capital of Crimea was moved to Simferopol. The palace grounds include impressive gardens, several old mosques including cemeteries, a harem and of course the palace itself. You can take a guided tour of the palace but only in Russian.
Chufut Kale Cave City - An hour and a half walk up a beautiful canyon from the town of Bakhchisaray you will find the Chufut Kale cave town dating back to the 6th century. It is located high up in the cliffs so the walk is a bit strenuous but not overwhelming. It is a city of what appears to have been several thousand people who built/dug their homes into the limestone rock. The city was abandoned in the 19th century.
The Bolshoi Canyon is located on the opposite side of the mountain range that Yalta sits below. It will take about an hour and a half to get there by automobile from Yalta. It can also be reached from Bakhchisaray by hitch hiking or minibus. Bolshoi means 'Grand or Large' in Russian. After reaching the entrance to the park you will have to pay a small fee (2 USD) to start down the trail. From there it is about an hour hike into the canyon along a small mountain stream. You never actually end up getting a perfect view of the canyon as you are also down in the middle of it surrounded by lush vegetation but it is impressive all the same. The trail ends at a small picnic area where a local man is selling awful wine and really good fried food. There is a small waterfall and a pool where you can do some minor diving/jumping. You can continue further up the stream without the trail but it is a bit more rough going.
The Swallow's Nest a folly, now an Italian restaurant.
Livadia Palace - former summer palace to the Tsars and famous setting for the Yalta Conference.
Massandra Palace - another former Tsarist palace, which looks a bit like a French Chataeu, once visted by Stalin who declined to stay there as he did not feel very safe. (http://wikitravel.org/en/Crimea)
The weather in Crimea during the summer season is very much Mediterranean. Expect relatively hot weather and lots of thunderstorms that come and go. Hot and very humid at night. In the winter snow can cover the mountains and make the roads almost impassable
The water is fairly warm,, although not as warm as the Adriatic. The water is clean and clear, although also a bit less than the Adriatic.
There are overnight trains running to Crimea from throughout the Ukraine. The cost will vary based upon where you will be leaving from, 15-50 Euro. You can use flying, a return flight Kiev - Simferopol with Ukraine International Airlines is about $150.
If you travel by overnight sleeper train it is quite comfortable, cheap and the quality is OK. Just the average travelling speed of trains is slow in Ukraine in general (about 50km per hour).
There are flights to Simferopol rom Kyiv, Lviv, Moscow, Istanbul, and many western European cities, including Frankfurt, Tallinn and Riga.
You can get anywhere in Crimea by mini bus. You can also go by taxi. Prices vary, be prepared to haggle a fare as you will always find someone to do a deal with.
The road system in Crimea as well as most of the Ukraine, is in very poor repair, expect huge potholes. There is a very strict zero policy to drink driving. Police patrols are frequent as well as roadside checks for documents. The death toll on Ukraine roads is very bad, you have been warned.
What to see:
The Khan's Palace is located in the small mountain village of Bakhchisaray a halfway between Simferopol and Sevastapol. The Khan's palace was the seat of the Tatar rulers of Crimea dating back to 1443. With the Ottoman conquest of Crimea in 1475 the Khan's became a vassal state of the Ottoman Empire but were left as the rulers. After the Crimean war with the victory of Russia all of the Khan's were made Russian nobility but the capital of Crimea was moved to Simferopol. The palace grounds include impressive gardens, several old mosques including cemeteries, a harem and of course the palace itself. You can take a guided tour of the palace but only in Russian.
Chufut Kale Cave City - An hour and a half walk up a beautiful canyon from the town of Bakhchisaray you will find the Chufut Kale cave town dating back to the 6th century. It is located high up in the cliffs so the walk is a bit strenuous but not overwhelming. It is a city of what appears to have been several thousand people who built/dug their homes into the limestone rock. The city was abandoned in the 19th century.
The Bolshoi Canyon is located on the opposite side of the mountain range that Yalta sits below. It will take about an hour and a half to get there by automobile from Yalta. It can also be reached from Bakhchisaray by hitch hiking or minibus. Bolshoi means 'Grand or Large' in Russian. After reaching the entrance to the park you will have to pay a small fee (2 USD) to start down the trail. From there it is about an hour hike into the canyon along a small mountain stream. You never actually end up getting a perfect view of the canyon as you are also down in the middle of it surrounded by lush vegetation but it is impressive all the same. The trail ends at a small picnic area where a local man is selling awful wine and really good fried food. There is a small waterfall and a pool where you can do some minor diving/jumping. You can continue further up the stream without the trail but it is a bit more rough going.
The Swallow's Nest a folly, now an Italian restaurant.
Livadia Palace - former summer palace to the Tsars and famous setting for the Yalta Conference.
Massandra Palace - another former Tsarist palace, which looks a bit like a French Chataeu, once visted by Stalin who declined to stay there as he did not feel very safe. (http://wikitravel.org/en/Crimea)
