The warmer months are approaching, and the peninsula is gradually preparing its beaches for the seasonal landing in swimsuits. However, Crimea is not only a traditional holiday on the sand by the sea. We have compiled a selection for those who are looking for a little more on their trip than the opportunity to soak up the beach.
Crimea is a crossroads of civilizations. The historical, ethnic and cultural heritage literally shrouded the region in mystery and mystical legends. At different times, Greeks, Scythians, Romans, Slavs and Sarmatians lived here. Their myths and beliefs intertwined, turned over time into tourist horror stories and made many local attractions a magnet for ufologists, shamans, healers and other esotericists.
How to get there
Photo credit: IgorMarch/Shutterstock.com
A flight from Moscow to Simferopol with Aeroflot will take a little over two hours.
Look for tickets to Simferopol
For 2,700 rubles* per day, you can book a car right at the airport, which will make it even more convenient to explore the peninsula. During the holiday season, prices are higher, and there are many more tourists wanting to visit the attractions. Therefore, spring is the best time to visit the “non-beach” Crimea.
Where to go to tickle your nerves
Kizil-Koba Cave (44.87035682160502, 34.34336205234265) is located in the valley of the same name near the village of Perevalnoye. You can get there by car along the Simferopol – Alushta highway. The turn will be approximately halfway along the path.
This is the longest cave on the territory of the former USSR. The length of its halls is a total of 21 kilometers. In addition, this is the only cave in Crimea with an underground river. This river forms nearby one of the most famous waterfalls of the peninsula – the 25-meter Su-Uchkhan.
The high content of iron oxide in the cave rock gives it a bright red hue and explains the origin of the name: “Kizil-Koba” translated from Turkic means “Red Cave”. Locals are still arguing: some claim that deep in the depths and underground grottoes lives a firebird, which sometimes appears to tourists in the form of a luminous ball above the river. Others say that the cave was once a refuge for Martians, who chose it for its red arches, the color of which reminded them of their home planet.
Ak-Kaya Rock (45.099001995394545, 34.63538647860799) – white cliff from Cretaceous rock 325 meters high. It is clearly visible from the Tavrida highway, and from there it is most convenient to approach the foot. Ak-Kaya is a continuation of the Crimean ridge, once a reef of the ancient Tethys ocean. Even with the naked eye, you can see the remains of mollusks and prehistoric fish in its rock.
The Sarmatians lived in the vicinity of the rock for a long time. They attached great religious significance to Ak-Kaya and, judging by the finds of archaeologists, they liked to hide gold in secret grottoes and rocky recesses. Later, people figured out that the treasures of the ancient settlers were enchanted with terrible curses, and were guarded by a weresnake. It is unlikely that the snake is still on duty, because horses from a nearby farm carry tourists around the surrounding area without danger.
Cape Meganom (44.79323744611161, 35.08083326307311), or “Crimean Tunisia,” as the locals sometimes call it, is located between Sudak and Koktebel. The climate of this place is unique: it is very dry, there is little rainfall, strong winds blow and there is almost no vegetation.
Locals claim that domestic and even wild animals avoid visiting the cape, and if they get there, they behave unnaturally and anxiously, in contrast to esoteric-minded citizens: every meter of the peninsula is filled with them during the season. The fact is that there is a strong magnetic anomaly in the area of the cape. Its nature, according to rumors, was studied for a long time at one of the military bases nearby. Ufologists believe that the cape is a UFO landing site of regional significance. This is partly confirmed by the force rings with which the surface of the earth is dotted – stripes about 50 cm wide and several tens of meters in diameter form a vicious circle. Other mystics believe that Meganom is a point of concentration of power, and there you can slip into the past or future: after all, the ancestors would not have placed the tantric altar anywhere!
At the foot of the cape, under the water, there is a hidden anchor cemetery – a favorite place for divers. They claim that the underwater world of Meganom is much more picturesque than the land world.
Valley of Ghosts (44.747985341935205, 34.40674664495648) is located on Mount Demerdzhi, a little north of Alushta.
Strictly speaking, it doesn’t look much like a valley, more like a gorge or tract. The main attraction is the stone pillars, in which an inquisitive eye can easily discern the outlines of people, animals and objects. In the dense fog that often envelops the valley, these stone sculptures really seem like ghosts, although the phenomenon is quite explainable by the laws of physics: warm air, rising to the top, cools and slides down. Hence one of the ancient names of this area is the smoking mountain.
There is very interesting vegetation in the valley: moss, vines that have gone wild since antiquity, bushes covered with yellow lichen. All this together creates a mysterious atmosphere: you can spend hours wandering around the valley and trying to figure out who the next moss-covered pillar looks like. This is probably where the legend came from that time on the mountain passes more slowly than it should: it seems that you have been among the stones for only 15 minutes, but in fact two hours have already passed.
Black Mountain Kara-Dag (44.93321541250946, 35.23151281985056) – the remains of an ancient volcano towering above the resort Koktebel. At the top is the Karadag Nature Reserve, at the foot is the famous arched rock “Golden Gate”, and in the mountain itself from the sea you can see the Roaring Grotto. According to legends, more than a dozen ships sank here, dragged by an unknown force into the mysterious darkness of the grotto.
Esotericism experts claim that the dormant volcano continues to erupt streams of energy, which famous writers, artists and other creative people from all over Europe have long come to get their fill of. One of the slopes of the mountain, Magnitny, is a zone, as you might guess, of a magnetic anomaly. Some believe that Kara-Dag hides in its depths a gateway to the underworld, citing Homer, who, no doubt, visited these places and pointed to Cimmeria as the entrance to the kingdom of Hades.
Crimean Stonehenge, ancient Temple of the Sun (44.43039786971312, 33.738654491591525) – stone ensemble in the southernmost point of Crimea, on Mount Ilyas-Kaya, not far from Sevastopol. The stones form a resemblance to a flower with petals and are arranged so that the first ray of the sun falls exactly into the core of the flower.
According to legend, this place grants wishes to those who can reach the stone pillars. This will not be difficult even for a child. And if suddenly you don’t have a cherished dream, you can just come to the mountain in the afternoon and admire the sunset over the sea.
*Prices valid at time of publication
