Balaklava Beaches

Overview of Balaklava beaches

Balaklava, although it is a warm seaside resort on the Black Sea coast, is actually not very suitable for a comfortable beach holiday. The entire infrastructure of Balaklava, hotels, promenade, are located on the shores of Balaklava Bay, the embankment of which is covered with concrete. Accordingly, the beaches and swimming areas here are surrounded by concrete, and the bay itself is packed to capacity with boats, which, moreover, constantly scurry back and forth, leaving a trail of fuel, oil and smoke.

Fortunately for vacationers, there are several wonderful beaches on the shore outside the bay, but it is far to get to them from the center on foot, and some do not get to them at all, except by boat.

Beaches in the city

City Beach

It is the main beach within the tourist area of Balaklava, located at the end of nazukina embankment (City Beach on the map). It is small, at most 50 meters, and completely concrete. On the beach there are several benches, a canopy and changing booths. Many sites on the Internet write that this is a wonderful place where there is everything for a beach holiday. We (the authors of the site), on the contrary, believe that only the most unassuming vacationers will be comfortable sunbathing on this concrete strip and swimming in the neighborhood with boats that flooded the Bay.
Beaches on the Tauride embankment

On the opposite side of the Bay from the main tourist center is the Tauride embankment. It is not as beautiful and equipped as the embankment of Nazukina, but there is a tiny sandy and Pebble Beach "marble" (marble on the map), and next to it is also a stone-concrete Soldatsky Beach (Soldatsky on the map). There is very little space here, and in the high season in July and August there is simply nowhere to accommodate. But if you come early in the morning and take a seat, you can sunbathe a little and even swim. Of course, a beach holiday here is a dubious pleasure, but if you do not want to get to distant beaches, then why not sunbathe here, if there is enough space.

You can get here on foot, bypassing two and a half kilometers along the perimeter of the Bay.

Beaches outside the city

The normal beaches in Balaklava are outside the town and the Bay. They are all rocky, with no vegetation. Some have some infrastructure and even rescuers, and others are completely wild. There are a lot of beaches along the coast, but the most popular and famous are only a few, their list and brief description are below.

It is theoretically possible to get to distant beaches on foot, but some are so far away, and the descent to them from the cliff is so difficult that you should not consider such a way to get to them as part of a beach holiday, it is rather independent hikes. By the way, on distant beaches you can often meet independent tourists with tents.

Boats to the beaches recover from the embankment of Nazukina, go 15-30 minutes. Fare as of the 2017 season in rubles one way:

Beach in Vasilyevskaya Balka-100
Middle Beach (Silver) - 100
Golden Beach-100
Jasper Beach-200
Fig Beach-200

You can also get to the nearest beaches by renting a kayak in the Bay.

Panorama of Golden Beach

Shaitan Beach

The closest beach to Balaklava, you can reach it in just 20 minutes on foot (Shaitan Beach on the map). But the descent to the bottom is very difficult, it is necessary to go down the stairs fixed to the rock, the elderly and children will not be able to master the descent. The beach itself is very tiny and secluded, a few dozen meters at most. Very rocky. Its feature is a small amount of sun. As it is sandwiched between rocks hiding it in the shadows. There is no infrastructure at all, take everything with you.
Near Beach (Silver)

It is the most easily accessible beach outside of Balaklava. It is pebbly, but unlike other beaches, there are no large boulders and stones under the water (or rather, there are, but there are not many of them), and it is quite safe for a serene beach holiday, including with children. The infrastructure is not developed, but there are sun beds for rent, canopies, changing cabins and even a lifeguard post in high season.

You can get there by boat for 100 rubles, or on foot along the trail for 30-40 minutes (Nearby beach (Silver) on the map). You will have to go 2 and a half kilometers, overcoming the hill.
Golden Beach

One of the longest beaches (almost 800 meters), Pebble and very rocky. It is also considered one of the most beautiful in the Crimea. There are a lot of large and sharp stones under the water, so it's not safe to indulge and play here, swim with children. In the high season, some infrastructure appears: sun beds and a canopy, a tent with food, a children's inflatable slide.

You can get there by boat for 100 rubles, or on foot. You will have to walk 4 kilometers along the trail (Golden Beach on the map). The trail is simple, but passes through the hills, the road will take almost an hour and a half.
Fig Beach

Fig Beach is a chain of short beaches separated by piles of boulders. These are "cable", "wandering", "Commander", "ass", "distant Fig" and the most distant "White". All of them are very rocky, no infrastructure, but very beautiful. There are good conditions for diving, and you can even go snorkeling, but with extreme caution, because there are sharp stones around. Often independent tourists put tents here.

It is best to get to these beaches by boat for 200 rubles. You can get there on foot, but it will not be just a walk, but a whole hike, since you have to overcome about 8 kilometers along the trail over hills and rocks (Fig Beach on the map).
Vasili beach (in Vasilyevskaya Balka)

It is located nearby and is one of the most developed. In the season, a tent cafe opens here, sun beds and umbrellas are offered for rent, there are changing booths and even a toilet, there is a lifeguard post. There are stones and pebbles on the shore, the water is clean, without stones.

You can get there by boat for 100 rubles. Walk 5 kilometers from the center, which will take almost an hour and a half (Vasil Beach on the map). But you can drive by car to the remains of the battery and the pension "Vasili" (there is an asphalt road), and leave the car there. Further to the beach, go down the steep stairs behind the pension.
Jasper Beach

This is the most developed of the remote beaches, is closer to civilization and Sevastopol in the area of suburban areas and near Cape Fiolent. The length of the beach is almost a kilometer, there are small pebbles on the shore, there are few stones under water. In the highest season (July, August), sun beds and umbrellas are offered for rent, a cafe is open, there is entertainment (bananas. motorcycle rental), rescue post.

Jasper Beach is one of the most remote from Balaklava, even in a straight line to it 8 kilometers (Yashmovy Beach on the map). It is best to get there by boat for 200 rubles, but you can also get there by bus. To do this, first drive from Balaklava to the stop "5th kilometer" (see how to get to Balaklava), and then take the bus number 3 or 79 to the suburban areas to the stop in the area of St. George's monastery. If you go there by private transport, you can put the car on the road near the monastery. Further to the beach you can walk, including a steep and long staircase down.