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RussiaWhat to Expect and Is It Worth Visiting
There are many waterfalls in the mountainous areas of Sochi, but if you really choose to visit something during your vacation, we would definitely recommend visiting "33 waterfalls" in the Valley of the Shakhe River on the jegosh tributary, also known as Jegosh waterfalls. This place is very popular and there are always a lot of people here, because this is the best-selling excursion in the resorts of Sochi, and people come here even from more remote places, for example from Tuapse and even Gelendzhik. After all, only here at once in one place you can see such a variety of waterfalls and water slopes, as well as beautiful nature Sochi National Park. Since the waterfalls are located in the national park, access to them is paid – 200 rubles, children under 10 years old - free of charge. Previously, until 2021, the price was only 100 rubles.
In fact, most vacationers will not be able to see all 33 waterfalls, but only 13 of the most easily accessible and equipped with a convenient path and stairs. The reason is that organized group excursions, with the help of which this place is most often visited, are limited in time: usually no more than an hour is given for a walk and rest at the waterfalls, which is clearly not enough to get to the rest of the slightly more inaccessible ones. But if you really want to, you can see the other 20, although for this you will have to come here on your own and you will need to walk along the river along unequipped trails, which not everyone can overcome. In terms of time, the full route will take 2-4 hours with rest and swimming in natural pools (fonts), and if you are ready to limit yourself to easily accessible waterfalls, you can easily see them in half an hour.
At the entrance to the walking route near the parking lot, a whole tourist complex was formed from several cafes, fast food sales, a market with souvenirs and goods for vacationers. When you pass through the rows of the market and cafes, you will get to the entrance to the tourist route to the waterfalls and to the cash register. Then you need to follow on foot along a more or less safe and equipped trail with railings and stairs, and the first waterfall will come to you in a couple of minutes of hiking after entering. At the base of some waterfalls there are natural swimming pools, but the water is cool.
We advise you to take sunscreen and comfortable shoes, a hat, a swimsuit and a towel with you for a walk. Otherwise, there are no difficulties along the route. But here are some more useful tips:
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A group tour will take a full day, since the program will usually include traditional tourist places such as honey exhibitions, wine tastings, tea, feasts and other points for the sale of tourist goods and services at inflated prices. If you want to avoid this, it is better to come yourself on your own or rented transport.
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The duration and cost of the tour strongly depends on the resort of departure. For example, on a group trip from Adler, Khosta or Sirius, be prepared for a long trip and possible downtime in traffic jams on the road. During peak hours and in bad weather, it can take 3 hours to travel one way.
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If you do not want to buy food at inflated prices in places fed by tour guides, you can take sandwiches or other ready-made fast food with you, or simply do not succumb to the recommendations to buy snacks in the place recommended by the guide.
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Prices in places of sale of honey, cheese, tea, Chacha, etc., where you will be taken during the tour, can be overestimated at times. If you do not know the real market price for this product and do not know how to bargain, it is better to refuse an impulsive purchase.
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We do not advise you to buy the cheapest excursions, since the organizers cover the low price with profit from commissions for selling tourist products at inflated prices (honey, tea, etc.). This means that you will be taken more to all sorts of outlets than to the waterfalls themselves. It is best to generally buy Group or individual excursions with reviews from trusted organizers on these sites:
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Before the trip, check about the state of the waterfalls, i.e. whether they exist at all. The fact is that in summer and autumn they can turn into a thin trickle, or even completely dry out. You can find out about their condition from sellers of excursions (the level of trust is low) and from local residents or taxi drivers (the level of trust is higher).
🕐 Working hours
access to the falls in high season from 09:00 to 19:00, in low season the opening hours are reduced to 18:00. It is best to visit it in spring or early summer, as well as after heavy rains, since in summer and autumn it can dry out.
💵Entrance fee / ticket price
for the entrance to the Sochi National Park will have to pay 200 rubles, children under 10 years – free of charge.
🚶 How to get there
33 waterfalls are located in Lazarevsky district Sochi 50 kilometers from the city center and 35 from the resort Lazarevskoye (33 waterfalls on the map. Most often this attraction is visited with resorts of Greater Sochi but also here excursions are offered from more remote resorts of the Black Sea coast, for example, from the Tuapse district, Gelendzhik, etc.you can get to the waterfalls yourself or with organized excursions. Unfortunately, public transport practically does not go here, so it is best to go on your own or rented transport or with excursions. Here is more about each method:
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By private transport. In our opinion, this is the best way, because you do not have to spend time visiting useless outlets, and you can spend as much time at the waterfalls as you want. The road in the last kilometers is very bad, but you can get to the parking lot in front of the market and the entrance on almost any car, even "puzoterka". The entrance to the last section of the road takes place through the village of Golovinka, to which you will have to go along the main Sochi highway on a section with serpentines. Because of this, traffic in the peak season is very slow, there are often traffic jams. If possible, we advise you to leave distant resorts early in the morning to arrive at the opening of the attraction at 8 am.
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By public transport. As already mentioned, you can not get directly to the Waterfalls by public transport: you will have to go with transfers to hitchhikers or taxis. First you need to get to Golovinka, which is best done by train to the station of the same name (see schedule at the station "Golovinka". You can come here by bus from the resorts of the Lazarevsky district or with a transfer to Sochi from Adler, Khosta, Sirius, but then you will have to spend a lot of time on the road.
From Golovinka directly to the waterfalls 11 kilometers, which can be overcome by taxi, ask from 300 rubles one way per car. You can still catch a ride, but they are rare here. Also from Lazarevskoye through Golovinka there is a bus number 158 to the village of Bolshoy Kichmai (in high season every 30 minutes, the cost is about 100 rubles from Lazarevskoye, 20 rubles from Golovinka). From the stop in Bolshoy Kichmai to the entrance to the waterfalls is almost 5 kilometers, which can be walked or hitchhiked.
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Excursions. Excursions are offered in all resorts of Sochi and beyond. The cost depends on the place (resort) of purchase and the program of the Tour, starts from 800 rubles from the nearest villages and reaches 2000. We do not advise you to buy the cheapest tours and specify the program of the trip in detail before buying, see above why.
There are excursions on buses and Jeeps, the latter are significantly more expensive. But do not think that Jeeps make it easier to hike to the waterfalls. Jeeps are actually just entertainment as they take tourists along the riverbed, which is fun and a bit extreme. At the end of the journey, jeeps and buses park in one place, from where you need to walk a little. You can buy excursions to 33 waterfalls on these sites: