Photo: SKas (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Winter · Russia
Skiing in the Caucasus
Skiing among the Caucasus peaks at Krasnaya Polyana, where the 2014 Winter Olympic races were held. Three resorts an hour from the Sochi coast.
Sochi · Russia
The experience
At Krasnaya Polyana, about 40 km from Sochi airport, powder snow meets world-class resorts with every comfort. The alpine races of the 2014 Winter Olympics were held here, and today three resorts share the valley, with passes that cover all of them.
The largest, Rosa Khutor, has about 105 km of runs, a summit at 2,320 m and a vertical drop of 1,760 m to its lowest station. Krasnaya Polyana resort suits beginners and families, while Gazprom, with its Laura and Alpika areas, is the quietest of the three.
The season runs from mid-December into spring. The best weeks are February and the first half of March, when the snow is complete, every run is open and weekdays are calm. We steer you away from the New Year period, 25 December to 8 January, when the slopes are at their busiest.
We arrange a private instructor for every level, rental equipment waiting on arrival, and transfers by private car or by the Lastochka train, which runs from the airport in about an hour. Sochi's advantage is the sea an hour away: a day on the snow, then an evening on a coast where daytime temperatures stay around 10°C.
For those who do not ski, there are gondolas to the peaks, walks in the snow and mountain restaurants with wide views of the Caucasus.
Russia
More to do
Winter
Stay in a wooden cabin amid the snow
A stay full of warmth and privacy in an elegant wooden cabin in snow-covered forest. Two or three nights between city stays, in Karelia or the countryside around Moscow.
Read more
Winter
Husky sled rides across the white plains
An adventure through frozen forest behind a team of trained huskies. In Karelia, or on farms in the countryside near Moscow.
Read more
Wellness
The Russian banya
End your day with a moment of calm in a Russian banya, a warm ritual of rest and wellbeing. In Moscow's historic baths, or a private banya at a country lodge.
Read more