The size of a settlement does not always determine the measure of its importance. The village of Khoja-Sala in the Bakhchisarai region of Crimea has only one street and has fifty inhabitants, but is popular with tourists. It's all about the location.

The village is located in the southwestern part of the Bakhchisarai district, near the villages of Krasny Mak, Zalesnoe, Ternovka and Novoulyanovka. To Bakhchisarai from Khoja-Sal 23 km, to Sevastopol - 37 km, to Simferopol - 57 km.

Homeland of warriors

Archaeological research has proven that the origin of the village should be attributed to the beginning of our era. Most likely, its founders were Alans and Goths, who quickly mixed with the local population and assimilated. In the Middle Ages, they became subjects of the principality of Theodoro. But the original name is unknown. Under the modern name (in the spelling of Koca-Salasa), the village was first mentioned under 1520 in Turkish documents.

Initially, the Turks noted it almost exclusively as a Christian population, but it was quickly replaced by Muslims. But in all cases, documents indicate an unusually small number of adult men and a large number of widows in the village. The reason was the excellent military qualities of the local natives. They were invariably taken to serve in the "special forces" of the Sultan's troops. But heroes rarely live long.

At the time of the inclusion of Crimea to the Russian Empire, only Tatars lived in the village - it was a small, poor settlement. After the establishment of Soviet power, its importance did not grow. And in 1944 the Tatars were deported. And the village disappeared altogether.

It was restored in 1990, when a decision was made to rehabilitate the deported peoples. Nowadays, not only Tatars live in Khoja-Sala, but they still make up the overwhelming majority. However, the "suppression" is relatively - the village is quite small. There is no production in it and a very modest infrastructure (you even need to get there by a regional road). But the village has one advantage, but a very significant one. It is located at the western foot of Mangup, and almost everyone who wants to visit the cave city, at least for a short time, ends up in Khoja-Sala.

Hotels and catering establishments

Serving tourists is actually the only occupation of the villagers. Therefore, the village of Khoja-Sala in the Crimea can rightfully be considered a solid hotel with rooms of different categories. Accommodation will not be as cheap as you might think, judging by the size of the village and its distance from the "centers of civilization." The influence of the massiveness and constancy of the tourist flow affects. But still, housing here cannot be called expensive, it will not be difficult to find decent conditions for 1,500 rubles per day.

There are several real hotels in the tiny village, of which reviews rate "Mangup-Kale" the highest. This institution is located on - easy to get to, quiet, calm. The guests are provided with sufficient comfort - there are air conditioners and hairdryers in the chambers, on the territory there is a parking and a sauna. The owners are pet friendly.

Solid teahouse

This statement is also true for many. There are noticeably more food outlets in Khoja-Sala than housing. The fact is that tourists and travelers arrive here, as a rule, "on wheels" and do not spend the night in the village, hurrying to go further. But you always want to eat.

The village is Tatar and everything in it is appropriate - from names to cuisine. Guests are invited to "Arzy", "Kervan-Saray", "Chaikhana at Elmira", "At Aishe" and other inexpensive, but quite pleasant establishments with a national flavor. Tatar cuisine is delicious and has long been appreciated by visitors. But Slavic tourists remember that the local tradition does not approve of alcohol. Therefore, it is better to focus on coffee right away!

Of course, first of all - Mangup-Kale. The legendary cave center of the state of Theodoro is located 3 km from the village, even a lazy one can get there in an hour. The city is one of the most visited resort facilities in Crimea. In addition, from here it is easy to get to other "pearls" in the caves - Eski-Kermen, Shuldan and Chelter monasteries. There are also many more "man-made" monuments of the Middle Ages - the ruins of the Syuyren fortress, the Kyz-Kule castle, and two temples. Monographs have been written about all these objects, and the tour guides do not heal calluses in tongues from stories about them.

The nature of the environment of Khoja-Sal is also interesting. Nearby is the man-made lake Mangup, which has long been transformed into a natural complex, and a beautiful one. A tourist camp is equipped on its shore, swimming and setting up tents is allowed. Fishing is also allowed, but it is paid (prices do not "bite"). In summer, when the lake becomes shallow, at its bottom you can see the ruins of medieval buildings, partially flooded during the creation of an artificial reservoir.

The village stands at the confluence of two valleys - Dzhan-Dere and Karalez, therefore, from Khoja-Sal you can go to the "sphinxes" of the Karalez valley. It is interesting and easy to wander around the mountains in the vicinity - who likes to spend time like that.

In hotels, food is usually not included in the cost of living, but you can get it for an additional charge. You will have to negotiate with a private owner individually. The villagers provide themselves with many products on their own, from their own households, but there is an ordinary village grocery store in Khoja-Sala.

Attractions in Khoja-Sala

But Khoja-Sala is not intended for sitting in a hotel, so relatively little comfort is enough for a visitor. Rest here is intended to get acquainted with the wonders of the Crimea, which are abundant in the vicinity of the village.

 The museum complex "Gezlevskiye Vorota" in Evpatoria is not just a front entrance to the Old City. This is a piece of living history, an opportunity to get acquainted with the medieval Gezlyov, the predecessor of Evpatoria.

Address Odun-bazaar qapusy - st. Karaeva, 13A. This is the intersection of Karaev and Matveev streets. Coordinates 45.198519, 33.380211.

Evpatoria is one of the oldest cities in Russia, it is more than two and a half thousand years old. First, on this place on the shores of the Kalamitsky Bay, the ancient Greek city of Kerkinitida arose, which by the IV century. n. e. fell into desolation due to the constant raids of nomads. In the Middle Ages, a large Ottoman port city of Gezlev (the Russians called him Kozlov) grew up in its place, one of the main places for sending Slavic polon to the countries of Europe, Asia, and Africa.

The city was surrounded by high stone walls, which had five gates. The eastern ones were called Odun-bazaar qapusy - the gates of the wood shed. The fact is that there was a market next to them, where firewood was brought from the Mountainous Crimea for sale.

By now, only a part of the wall has remained from those Gezlev gates. It can be seen on the first floor of a large tower, built over the ruins of the gate in our time, in the nineties of the XX century.

The builders not only restored the medieval gate, they turned it into an interesting tourist attraction.

On the first floor of the Gezlev gate, on one side, there is a workshop where coffee is ground on a special machine. There you can buy excellent freshly ground, properly roasted coffee.

On the other hand, on the first floor, exactly where a piece of the ancient gate has been preserved, there is a souvenir shop. There you can buy a beautiful Turk, a manual coffee grinder or some other souvenir to remember your trip to Evpatoria.

On the second floor of the wood-burning gate in the Kezlev Kiavesi cafe, you can drink excellent coffee, in fact, excellent, the best in Evpatoria and eat some cake. The cakes there are wonderful, we have tried many, they cook very tasty. And the cafe itself is cozy, atmospheric, in an oriental style.

3rd floor - You can only go here with a guide. Guided tours are held once an hour. Tickets are sold on the ground floor. Ticket prices: adults - 150 rubles, children - 120 rubles.

Moreover, the guide's story begins in complete darkness, and then sightseers, with quite natural light and sound effects, can see this miniature medieval city waking up. The dawn flares up above it, the voices of muezzins sound from the district mosques, the noise of the sea and the streets is heard.

There are other interesting exhibits around the model, including Crimean Tatar national clothes and a map of medieval Gezlev on a beef skin.

Also during the tour you will be shown a film about the history of the Crimean Tatar people, made on the basis of sand animation.

And also the gates of Odun-bazaar kapusy, this is a portal to the Middle Ages: behind them begins the Old City of Evpatoria.

Narrow cobblestone streets, old houses, souvenir shops and shops, many cafes with cuisines of different nations, an ancient hamam - oriental baths, as well as many temples belonging to different religions: mosques, Russian and Greek Orthodox churches, synagogues and kenases. Well, after a long walk, it is worth returning to the Gezlev gate of Odun Bazaar again for coffee in Kezlev Qavesi or for chebureks in one of the nearest restaurants.

Thanks to https://po-krymu.ru

Beliaus is one of the best white sand beaches in Crimea. The coastline is unequipped and is more suitable for those who like "wild" rest. The wide strip of white sand of the Belyaus beach is washed by the Black Sea on one side, and Donuzlav Lake on the other. Unofficially, the beach was nicknamed "Crimean Maldives" for its light, almost white sand and clear azure water.

In general, a strip of white sandy beaches in this area stretches through Okunevka, Znamenskoye, Gromovo, Popovka and Shtormovoye. The village beaches attract many tourists during the summer. The beaches are mostly wild, equipped areas are located closer to the sanatoriums and the villages themselves.

A beach holiday on the Belyaus Spit and the surrounding area can be combined with visiting iconic sights (excavations of ancient settlements). Wind farms are nearby, complementing an already spectacular landscape. 

The beach and the Belyaus spit attract with their historical value. Back in the 4th century BC, the Greco-Scythian settlement of Belyaus, which is translated as "Rocky Gorge", stood on this place. Archaeological excavations have been carried out here since the middle of the last century. In addition to passive relaxation on the beach, you can visit the ruins of the ancient settlement of the Greeks and Scythians for free. Of the archaeological sites, the Scythian necropolis, houses, a granary and a dolphin cult sanctuary have survived.

On the Belyaus Spit, on both sides, there are rocky berths where you can sunbathe and fish. You can rent a boat and go fishing in a sea teeming with fish (ruff, mullet, flounder and many others). Belyaus is a favorite place for divers: in the clear waters they go out for night spearfishing, and during the day at the bottom you can collect a lot of mussels, shrimps and crabs.

 The beach in Popovka is a long sandy coast with clear blue water and a gentle entrance to the sea, located in the western part of Crimea.

The settlement of Popovka gained wide popularity in the 2000s, when the Kazantip international music festival was held here for many years. Despite the fact that since 2014 this tradition has become a thing of the past, many vacationers still associate the resort primarily with this outstanding event, which arouses interest and attracts to visit it.

Currently, the beaches in Popovka are an excellent place for both comfortable and wild beach holidays, which will appeal to a wide variety of categories of tourists - single travelers, youth companies, couples and families with children.

The entire length of the beach is covered with light, almost white, fine sand, which is very convenient for walking and accommodation. The entrance to the sea is gentle and safe - there are no stones or algae, only sand, on which numerous shells are clearly visible. The depth increases gradually, the water is clean and transparent, of a beautiful azure hue - all this creates very comfortable conditions for bathing both adults and children.

Due to the impressive size of the beach, here you can always find a place to sit comfortably.

Some tourists note in their reviews the presence of jellyfish here as a disadvantage of the beaches of Popovka. However, this phenomenon is fickle, so it can hardly be considered a serious drawback.

Via https://www.tourister.ru/world/europe/russia/city/popovka-crimea/beachs/32986

The Crimean peninsula is one of the most beautiful places on earth, someone tried to create fantastic landscapes here: mountain ranges and valleys, wild bays and endless strips of beaches. Travelers often call Cape Chameleon in Koktebel one of the strangest creations.

The small town attracts connoisseurs of beauty, people keen on high literature and adoring extraordinary landscapes. The exotic nature of the region at one time inspired Maximilian Voloshin to create lyric poems and delicate watercolor landscapes. Even today she is capable of surprising even those who absolutely do not believe in miracles. An interesting miraculous miracle that Koktebel introduces is Cape Chameleon, but it is not located in the village itself, but a couple of kilometers from the city limits. The easiest way to get there is by car or taxi.

An amazing phenomenon takes place right in front of vacationers: even if they know what the secret is, they cannot refrain from enthusiastic screams, trying to capture it in a photo, video, in memory. The ridge changes its color throughout the year, during the day, at the appearance of a certain shade Photos of tourists on the cape are influenced by the weather and its important assistants - the sun, clouds, clouds, wind.

Experts provide a scientific basis for the phenomenon, according to the results of research reflected in the materials and in the photo, Cape Chameleon in Koktebel is a special rock. It is composed of clay shales, one of their important characteristics is the ability to reflect light. Depending on the angle at which the sun's rays fall on the layers, whether cloudiness interferes with them or not, the shade of the rock at a given second depends.

The cape has a more realistic name among the Crimean Tatars - Toprakh-Kaya, the translation sounds more than prosaic - "Clay Rock". What this education is made of, the Tatars knew several centuries ago. Unfortunately, clay is not at all friendly with water, so the sea ruthlessly advances, eroding the rock and carrying it into its depths.

Disappearing landmark of Koktebel

Historians claim that on old maps a piece of sushi looked much more "plump", it was wider, taller and longer. Constant erosion due to rain, sea and winds has led to the fact that now only Cape Chameleon has collapsed a narrow tongue stretched out into the sea. Once upon a time, tourists walked freely along the ridge, admiring the play of flowers up close. Today, such hikes are considered very dangerous: a strong wind is blowing at the top and there is a threat of a collapse.

The most recent sad news came from here in May 2016. According to information from news sites in Crimea, another part of the ridge collapsed, scientists talk about a hundred cubic meters of rock that went into the sea.

Experts say that this is an ordinary phenomenon, as the equilibrium profile of the cape is maintained. But there is a children's tale about two bears leveling a piece of cheese until not a crumb was left of it. And although the process of destruction of the rock is significantly extended in time, people still worry about the outgoing beauty, especially since a person is unable to stop this process or at least slow it down.