ancient CULTURES
SOVIET GLORIES
epic beauty

A comprehensive journey to Southern Russia and the autonomous ethnic republics of the Northwestern Caucasus: from the Cossack city of Krasnodar to Persian-speaking Ossetia, athwart breathtaking mountainscapes, traditional Circassian heartlands, remote Turkic hamlets, USSR-era vestiges, green meadows, and idyllic dales.

September 05 ⇾ September 13

In addition to our regular group departures to Circassia, we also offer tailored services for private travel parties and lone wolves alike. Get in touch for more info on our customised Circassia Tours!

THE ROUTE

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DAY 1 • WELCOME TO THE SOVIET DEEP SOUTH

Meet-and-greet at Krasnodar International Airport and entire day devoted to Krasnodar, a bustling southern Russian city of Soviet glories and Cossack pride.

Highlights of your stay will include a gastronomic walk around the colourful central bazaar, a meeting with the Kuban Cossacks, a nostalgic pilgrimage to the main Red Army memorials, and an architecture-centred tour through the many modernist wonders scattered around the city, such as the UFO-shaped city circus and the futuristic cinema Aurora.

Overnight in Krasnodar.

Our guides will accompany you throughout your gallivanting in and around Krasnodar and all across the Northwest Caucasus for the entire duration of the tour, enriching your days with essential knowledge, quirky stories, travel anecdotes, and cultural insights. In the evening you may then spend a few more hours together feasting on delicious Circassian food while sipping local brews or a glass of classy Caucasian tea.

DAY 2 • ADYGHE Lowlands

Early in the morning, we'll depart from Krasnodar and head for Adygea, an autonomous republic mainly inhabited by the Adyghe people, a sub-ethnos of the Circassians, the legendarily handsome Caucasian folk, many of whom were displaced in the wake of the Russian conquest of the Caucasus in the 19th century.

We'll drive across the lowlands of Northern Adygea towards Maykop, stopping en route in Adygeysk, home to an important Adyghe Cultural Centre, and in Giaginskaya, a small town renowned for the production of a tasty traditional cheese.

In the early afternoon, we'll eventually reach Maykop, the sunny capital of Adygea, where we’ll enjoy a leisurely stroll around and about the city’s main Soviet sights.

Overnight in Maykop.

DAY 3 • IDYLLIC PLATEAUS

Today we will drive south towards the Lago-Naki Plateau, known for its thriving fauna and lush alpine meadows and arguably one of the most beautiful spots in Southwestern Russia.

Besides the routine pauses for food, toilet and random landscape pictures, we'll break the two-hour-long journey in the traditional Adyge settlements of Abadzekhskaya, Mishoko and Kamennomostsky and visit the ancient dolmens dotting the surrounding woods.

After lunch, we’ll eventually arrive in Guzeripl, the main village in the area, and devote the rest of the day to the exploration of the Lago-Naki National Park.

Overnight in Guzeripl.

BESPOKE experienceS

Full cultural immersion in an archetypical USSR-era House of Culture in Kabardino-Balkaria, traditional Karachai dinner in a farmer’s house in rural Karachay-Cherkessia, and Circassian bladesmithing workshop in Adygea.

DAY 4 • CIRCASSIAN HEARTLANDS

We'll exit Adygea and head for Cherkessk, the rather unassuming capital of the Republic of Karachay-Cherkessia, homeland to both the Adyghe-speaking Circassians and the Turkic-speaking Karachais.

Once in Cherkessk, we’ll visit the mandatory Lenin statue, the smelly central bazaar, and a few other architectural remnants of the good old Soviet days scattered around the city.

We’ll pop in at the satellite town of Psyzh, a large rural settlement mainly inhabited by the Abazins, an ethnic group of the Northwest Caucasus closely related to the Abkhaz, and then travel south to the Circassian village of Arkhyz, stopping en route in several traditional Circassian towns and hamlets such as Khabez, Ali-Berdukovskiy, and Zelenchukskaya.

In the vicinity of Arkhyz, we'll visit a complex of ancient Alanian churches, the last surviving buildings of a once powerful early Christian state wiped out by the Mongol hordes in the 13th century, and a massive astrophysical observatory that once boasted the world's largest solid-mirror reflecting telescope: a not-to-be-missed massive display of Soviet technology and engineering.

Overnight in Arkhyz.

DAY 5 • TURKIC MOUNTAINS

We'll leave Arkhyz in the early morning hours and set off for a comprehensive tour of Karachay-Cherkessia: taking a shortcut through remote Circassian valleys and passing isolated tiny hamlets such as Khasaut-Grecheskoye and Krasny-Karachay, we’ll reach the picturesque Karachay town of Teberda and then head for Dombay, a renowned Soviet-era mountain resort.

We’ll then spend the rest of the day in and around Dombay, savouring the crispy air of the mountains while sipping a cup of Caucasian tea or a fresh pint of the local brew.

Overnight in Dombay.

DAY 6 • IMPERIAL SPAS

Descending from the high peaks of the Caucasus, we’ll move onto Karachaevsk, the cultural capital of the Karachay people, visit the Karachay Deportation Memorial and the nearby Monument to Defenders of the Mountain Passes (an impressive Soviet-era memorial complex harmoniously embedded on the side of a cliff), before eventually turning east to the traditional Karachay village of Mara, a highly photogenic settlement surrounded by bucolic green pastures.

Around lunchtime we’ll make a detour-cum-picnic across the awe-striking sceneries of the Bermamyt Plateau and the lush meadows surrounding the Karachay hamlet of Kichi-Balyk and – just in timer for dinner – we’ll reach the historical Russian spa town of Kislovodsk.

Overnight in Kislovodsk.

DAY 7 • KABARDIAN PEAKS

We'll start the day early heading for Terskol, a Soviet resort town lying under the shadow of Europe's highest peak: the mighty Elbrus.

Once in Terskol, we’ll have a walk around the village and then take a ride on the aerial tramway leading up to the Gara-Bashi viewpoint.

In the afternoon, we'll descend to the Kabardian lowlands touring the Soviet mining town of Tyrnyauz and the traditional village of Bylym as well as paying our respects to the Grieving Highlander, a twenty-metre high stone monument commemorating the heroic Caucasian people who gave their life to defeat the German invaders.

We’ll then transfer to Nalchik, the capital of Kabardino-Balkaria, an autonomous republic named after the two main ethnicities inhabiting it: the Kabards, current descendants of the Circassians, and the Balkars, Turkic-speaking people with Central Asian roots.

Overnight in Nalchik.

DAY 8 • BALKAR HAMLETS

Early in the morning we’ll enter the cultural heartland of the Balkar people, driving south across breathtaking sceneries along the Chegem river.

Near the traditional Balkar village of Eltyubyu, we’ll visit an impressive monumental necropolis of mysterious pre-Islamic origins and – weather permitting – follow the Kardan waterstream to reach the postcard-like hamlets of Bezengi and Karasau.

We’ll stop at the alpine Blue Lakes and then drive down the national road P291, one of the most scenic and at the same time hazardous routes in the former Soviet Union, towards the quaint settlement of Verknaya Balkaria.

Overnight in Verknaya Balkaria.

DAY 9 • FAREWELL TO CIRCASSIA  

After sharing a last Balkar meal together, we'll take care of your transfer to Beslan Airport, in the neighbouring Republic of North Ossetia, to catch your homeward flight via Moscow.

Before reaching the airport, we'll break the three-hour journey from the Balkar mountains to the Ossetian lowlands in the village of Elkhotovo for its unmissable Memorial to the Unbending Defenders and in Beslan itself, a small Ossetian city that sadly became well-known around the world media during the dramatic 2004 school siege.

Possible extensions and add-ons include: Northeast Caucasus and/or Kalmykia.

End of the tour.

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2490 €

INCLUSIONS
Accommodation (breakfast included) in twin share, private transport in Russia (car/minivan), all entrance fees, English-speaking guiding service, some traditional lunches, 24/7 on-site and remote assistance.

EXCLUSIONS
Single supplement, international flights, most meals (lunches and dinners), extra drinks, visa fees (if required), tips, travel insurance.