At first glance, the capital of the Karachay-Cherkess Republic (KCR) is an ordinary city with a population of just over 122 thousand people. Monuments of historical value cannot be found in this place. The sights of Cherkessk (the old name is the village of Batalpashinskaya) are few in number, but have their own special charm. Tourists have a lot to see in this unusual city, which combines different religions, traditions and architectural styles.
Park of Culture and Recreation "Green Island"
Green Island Park is one of the largest park areas in southern Russia, covering an area of almost ninety hectares. Unfortunately, for more than twenty years this park was in a deplorable state and was practically not cared for. However, in 2012, a whole team of gardeners and landscape designers breathed new life into this place.
The park opened a year later, in 2013, completely renovated. Now there is everything for a quality holiday with the whole family: a lot of plants - bushes, trees, flowers; walking areas, a cozy cafe and plenty of opportunities to spend time actively: renting pedal boats, a shooting range, billiards and much more.
Location: Ordzhonikidze street - 2.
Cathedral Mosque
Construction of the mosque began in 2007; it was created specifically for local Muslims. The building can accommodate approximately 5,000 visitors and has two main halls – men’s and women’s. The structure occupies a large area - about 4 thousand square meters. meters.
The Byzantine style with features of Muslim building art was used in the architecture of the mosque. The building is complemented by 33 emerald-colored domes, and its interior is decorated with patterns in the form of Arabic script.
Art gallery of the city of Cherkessk
The art gallery building is located in the historical center of the city and has more than a century of history. This is the only building from the early twentieth century that has survived in Cherkessk.
At the beginning of the last century, this one-story mansion housed a bank, run by one of the local merchants. In the 90s of the last century, local authorities decided to equip this ancient mansion as an art gallery. Now the gallery exhibits are paintings by both local masters and famous Russian artists.
Location: Krasnoarmeyskaya street - 56.
Drama Theater named after M.O.Akov
The Circassian Drama Theater was created in 1992, based on a troupe that had already existed for twenty years at that time. Now the theater is touring many nearby cities and towns, as well as neighboring republics such as Abkhazia or Adygea.
The theater's repertoire consists of works by Russian and foreign classics of drama and local authors.
The theater's repertoire also includes various children's plays, puppet shows, and musical performances. Location: Lenin street - 42.
Karachevo-Cherkess Natural and Historical-Cultural Museum-Reserve
Who would have thought, but the collection of this museum, which now numbers thousands of exhibits, began from a small collection of three dozen exhibits. They were collected a long time ago by local residents with the aim of founding a full-fledged local history museum on the territory of the republic.
A traveling exhibition was organized and shown in many cities. Now the museum’s archive consists of various artifacts, photographs, archaeological finds and much more.
Location: Krasnoarmeyskaya street - 58.
Real reviews from tourists about holidays in the resorts of Karachay-Cherkessia
The vast majority of online reviews about holidays in the resorts of Karachay-Cherkessia are positive.
Tourists are attracted by:
- clean mountain air;
- healing climate;
- abundance of attractions;
- the beauty of the mountainous area;
- relatively small number of vacationers;
- friendliness of the local population;
Many tourists consider the sad realities of local life to be a disadvantage of resorts. Also, as disadvantages, vacationers note that in most settlements the roads have not been repaired since the times of the Soviet Union, and also that the tourism infrastructure is underdeveloped.
Alley "Lukomorye"
This alley is the highlight of the Green Island park. You should definitely bring your children here, as well as adults who still believe in fairy tales or want to immerse themselves in childhood.
This alley was created by the golden hands of many craftsmen. Here you can see a lot of wooden sculptures that depict fairy-tale characters or scenes from popular fairy tales. For those who get hungry during an exciting walk, there is a children's cafe on the territory of the alley.
Light and music fountain
This miracle of modern technology was installed in 2009 opposite the Mary building. Every evening, the fountain gathers hundreds of Cherkessk residents and city guests for a fascinating performance, the main actors of which are sound, light and water.
This is truly a fascinating action! One gets the feeling that the water streams really hear the music and move to the beat of it. And the light show accompanying this dance can even put the audience into a slight state of trance.
Location: Lenin street - 54a.
Northern Zelenchuksky Temple
Not far from Cherkessk, in the Bolshoi Zelenchuk gorge, there is a huge historical, cultural and spiritual heritage of the local region. There are three ancient temples here, built more than a thousand years ago, in the 10th century. By the name of the gorge where they are located, the temples were called Zelenchuksky.
The largest among them is the Northern Temple. The temple was built in Byzantine style from sandstone. Previously, the walls of the temple were decorated with amazing frescoes, however, unfortunately, they have not survived to this day. During excavations on the temple grounds, the grave of a wealthy woman was found, full of gold jewelry.
Location: Nizhny Arkhyz village.
Arkhyz Resort
The most popular place among tourists and athletes is the Arkhyz resort. You can get to it from Cherkessk in a couple of hours. The resort has a developed infrastructure; on its territory there are more than a dozen ski slopes, 8 cable cars, shops, service centers, cafes, etc. Even if you don’t have sports equipment with you, you can rent it here.
If you decide to stay at the resort for a few days, you have the opportunity to stay at the local Romantic Hotel or go to Moon Glade for the night. These places have all the conditions for a comfortable stay: baths, spas, restaurants. You can also go on a horseback riding excursion .
Sofia Lakes
Sofia Lakes is a group of three lakes that are located high in the mountains, at an altitude of more than two thousand eight hundred meters. Hikes to the lakes are organized from Arkhyz. The entire route there and back takes no more than two days. However, the view that opens up if you rise just above the location of the lakes itself will definitely remain in your memory forever.
The fact is that the water in each of the lakes has a unique hue. In one lake it is turquoise, in another it is clear blue, and in the third it is black. The panoramic view of three colorful lakes surrounded by mountain peaks is something worth spending two days of your life on.
Climate and weather in Karachay-Cherkessia
Karachay-Cherkessia is one of the most picturesque regions of the Russian Federation, comfortably located in the eastern part of the Caucasus Range and in area comparable to a small European state. This is a mountainous region where people live in close proximity to the sky and have not yet lost their life-giving connection with nature.
Karachay-Cherkessia is located in the foothills of the northwestern Caucasus. Most (about 80%) of the Karachay-Cherkess Republic is located in mountainous areas.
Within the republic there are 3 zones:
- Foothill plain.
- Foothills.
- Caucasus Mountains.
In the north stretch the leading ranges of the Greater Caucasus, in the south – Vodorazdelny and Bokovoy, their height reaches 4000 m.
The climate is moderately warm, winters are short, summers are warm, long, and fairly humid. The climate is characterized by a long duration of sunshine.
From an altitude of about 2000 m, the leading role belongs to the westerly transport of air, therefore the climate of the highlands is more humid and in some features of its regime resembles the sea. However, winter here is characterized by persistent frosts. Thus, at a level of about 2000 m, the average January temperature ranges from -6°C to -8°C, and at about 3000 m it reaches -10°C.
The Black Sea has a very significant impact on the climate as a whole. Mostly cyclones of the Mediterranean front pass over the republic, determining the regime and amount of precipitation. Their greatest amount is observed on the windward southwestern slopes. Due to the significant humidity of the climate in the western region, the snow line is 200-500 m lower than in the eastern one. On the northern slope it is at the level of 2750-3200 m, on the southern slope - at 2730-3000 m.
The height of the snow cover in the mountains is extremely uneven: winds carry huge masses of snow (blizzard transport), bringing down relief depressions, exposing windward slopes and sweeping powerful snow cornices onto leeward slopes. In spring, their thawed layers fall down. A characteristic feature of winters are thaws during periods of increased air temperature due to local warm winds - foes. At this time, the absolute maximum temperature in January can be 16-22°C at altitudes up to 1500 m and 10-15°C at 1500-2000 m. At the same time, cold snaps with snowfalls are common in summer. There are hail showers and frequent thunderstorms.
In the middle mountains, annual temperatures range from 1°C to 6°C, average January temperatures are -4°C -6°C; winters are moderate and snowy. Snow cover lasts for 5 months or more. Summer is moderately warm (average July temperatures 16-22°), annual precipitation is 700-1200 mm, the maximum falls in early summer.
Open air amphitheater
Another highlight of the Green Island recreation park is the first summer amphitheater in the republic. This building was built in antique style, decorated with columns and statues of Greek gods. The total capacity of the theater is more than a thousand seats.
The auditoriums, arranged in a semicircle, have a good resonating effect, so everything that is said on stage will be clearly heard by each of the thousand spectators, even those located in the very top rows. The area near the theater is perfectly equipped for walking and having a good time. Here you can relax on a bench surrounded by green trees. Large-scale concerts have already been held on the territory of the theater, such as a concert on City Day, with the participation of the most popular Russian performers.
Popular attractions of Cherkessk with photos and descriptions
Cherkessk can hardly be called the tourist capital of Russia.
This is a relatively small town, the capital of Karachevo-Cherkessia. The fact that the city is small can also be seen as an advantage: to see all the sights of the city you don’t need to spend a lot of time and money on the road, since they are all within walking distance of one another. And there really is something to see here: the city provides the opportunity to unite with nature, as well as active and cultural recreation for almost every taste.
Park of Culture and Recreation "Green Island"
Green Island Park is one of the largest park areas in southern Russia, covering an area of almost ninety hectares. Unfortunately, for more than twenty years this park was in a deplorable state and was practically not cared for. However, in 2012, a whole team of gardeners and landscape designers breathed new life into this place.
Art gallery of the city of Cherkessk
The art gallery building is located in the historical center of the city and has more than a century of history. This is the only building from the early twentieth century that has survived in Cherkessk.
At the beginning of the last century, this one-story mansion housed a bank, run by one of the local merchants. In the 90s of the last century, local authorities decided to equip this ancient mansion as an art gallery. Now the gallery exhibits are paintings by both local masters and famous Russian artists.
Karachevo-Cherkess Natural and Historical-Cultural Museum-Reserve
Who would have thought, but the collection of this museum, which now numbers thousands of exhibits, began from a small collection of three dozen exhibits. They were collected a long time ago by local residents with the aim of founding a full-fledged local history museum on the territory of the republic.
A traveling exhibition was organized and shown in many cities. Now the museum’s archive consists of various artifacts, photographs, archaeological finds and much more.
Alley "Lukomorye"
This alley is the highlight of the Green Island park. You should definitely bring your children here, as well as adults who still believe in fairy tales or want to immerse themselves in childhood.
This alley was created by the golden hands of many craftsmen. Here you can see a lot of wooden sculptures that depict fairy-tale characters or scenes from popular fairy tales. For those who get hungry during an exciting walk, there is a children's cafe on the territory of the alley.
Light and music fountain
This miracle of modern technology was installed in 2009 opposite the Mary building. Every evening, the fountain gathers hundreds of Cherkessk residents and city guests for a fascinating performance, the main actors of which are sound, light and water.
This is truly a fascinating action! One gets the feeling that the water streams really hear the music and move to the beat of it. And the light show accompanying this dance can even put the audience into a slight state of trance.
Northern Zelenchuksky Temple
Not far from Cherkessk, in the Bolshoi Zelenchuk gorge, there is a huge historical, cultural and spiritual heritage of the local region. There are three ancient temples here, built more than a thousand years ago, in the 10th century. By the name of the gorge where they are located, the temples were called Zelenchuksky.
The largest among them is the Northern Temple. The temple was built in Byzantine style from sandstone. Previously, the walls of the temple were decorated with amazing frescoes, however, unfortunately, they have not survived to this day. During excavations on the temple grounds, the grave of a wealthy woman was found, full of gold jewelry.
Sofia Lakes
Sofia Lakes is a group of three lakes that are located high in the mountains, at an altitude of more than two thousand eight hundred meters. Hikes to the lakes are organized from Arkhyz. The entire route there and back takes no more than two days. However, the view that opens up if you rise just above the location of the lakes itself will definitely remain in your memory forever.
Open air amphitheater
Another highlight of the Green Island recreation park is the first summer amphitheater in the republic. This building was built in antique style, decorated with columns and statues of Greek gods. The total capacity of the theater is more than a thousand seats.
The auditoriums, arranged in a semicircle, have a good resonating effect, so everything that is said on stage will be clearly heard by each of the thousand spectators, even those located in the very top rows. The area near the theater is perfectly equipped for walking and having a good time. Here you can relax on a bench surrounded by green trees. Large-scale concerts have already been held on the territory of the theater, such as a concert on City Day, with the participation of the most popular Russian performers.
Cathedral Mosque
The cathedral mosque was built in Cherkessk quite recently. The building was built in the Byzantine style. Thanks to four minarets, more than fifty meters high, the mosque can be seen from afar. The total capacity of the mosque is five thousand people. Inside, the walls of the building are painted with intricate patterns in the style of Arabic script.
Drama Theater named after M.O.Akov
The Circassian Drama Theater was created in 1992, based on a troupe that had already existed for twenty years at that time. Now the theater is touring many nearby cities and towns, as well as neighboring republics such as Abkhazia or Adygea.
The theater's repertoire consists of works by Russian and foreign classics of drama and local authors. The theater's repertoire also includes various children's plays, puppet shows, and musical performances.
