Esto-Sadok, Russia
According to cachedhealth, Esto-Sadok is a real resort concentrate. This small village in the mountains near the Black Sea coast in just over 20 years has turned from an ordinary settlement with 800 inhabitants into the main winter tourist center in Russia. It was in Esto-Sadok that the famous all-season and ski resorts were built for the 2014 Olympics – Rosa Khutor, Gazprom with Alpika-Service and Laura, Gorki Gorod and Gornaya Karusel.
Unique climatic conditions: warm Black Sea air penetrating into the valley along the Mzymta gorge, and protection from cold winds, which are provided by the surrounding ranges of the Caucasus Mountains, allow not only to ski from December to May, but also to do it in the most comfortable conditions, without fear of frost.
After the Olympics, the development of the resort area did not stop, every year new hotels and guest houses, all kinds of restaurants and cafes appear here, entertainment and shopping centers are built, modern routes and tourist eco-paths are laid, but the main thing remains unchanged – hospitable people, clean air and amazing mountain-marine microclimate.
Esto-Sadok resort
A small village is a large ski and tourist cluster. In Esto-Sadok, 3 world-class resorts conveniently coexist at once – Rosa Khutor, GTZ Gazprom and the all-season complex Gorki Gorod. All these resorts have many tens of kilometers of excellent slopes, modern ski lifts and the necessary service for riders.
Snowboarders and freestylers should visit Rosa Khutor as there are 5 snow parks of different difficulty levels at once. Fans of cross-country skiing and walking through snow-covered mountain forests have a direct route to the Laura ski and biathlon complex at the Gazprom Center. Go here for peace and tranquility, the fuss at an altitude of 1500 m above sea level is much less than in the “anthill” of the village. Another “trick” of “Gazprom” is a unique ring cable car with a length of 5379 m. And “Gorki Gorod” is famous for the longest evening tracks for skiing and boarding in Krasnaya Polyana.
Cafes and restaurants in Esto-Sadok
There are many remarkable places in Esto-Sadok where you can have a hearty breakfast in the morning before leaving for the mountains, have lunch in the afternoon, drink coffee, sit in a bar, dance and relax after a day of skiing. Some cafes and restaurants are run by resorts, some are independent, but all of them are available to any guest of Krasnaya Polyana.
The average check in fast food restaurants and food courts is about 400 RUB. In small restaurants and cozy cafes you can dine for 700 RUB.
Three must-see spots for cosmopolitan gourmets: Lebanese restaurant Layali Oriental Lounge, Height 2320 restaurant and Lokum patisserie.
One of the best après-ski bars is located at the lower station of the Alpiki-Service cable cars. Pobeda is traditionally cheerful and noisy, here riders from all slopes gather for a glass of punch and mulled wine. In Gorki Gorod there is a positive bar called Orange Cat, one of the few establishments open until the morning. For trendy parties, head to Follow me Cafe Rosa Khutor, Night club 9.6.0. & karaoke and Velvet nightclub.
Entertainment and attractions of Esto-Sadok
Even the most reckless riders one day get tired of the slopes and flickering neighbors on the track in bright ski suits. It’s time to go down to the village and find yourself a radically different entertainment.
On the eastern outskirts of Esto-Sadok are the ruins of the Achipse fortress, built in the 7th century to defend the Circassian village. Look for a local guide who will show you around these picturesque ruins, as well as several ancient dolmens scattered around. The history of the village and the Estonian settlers who founded Esto-Sadok can be found in the House-Museum of the writer Anton Tammsare.
For modern entertainment, go to the Miracle Park, the Gorky Gorod Mall and the Galaktika social and cultural center. Cinemas, bowling, billiards, children’s playgrounds and attractions, scientific and educational laboratories and illusion shows, shopping and even year-round water parks await the guests of the village.
In the warm season, you should rent a bike and ride along the convenient embankments of the village or steep downhill trails. Rentals offer from the simplest cruising city bikes to professional mountain bikes and unusual carving scooters. A little more extreme in the summer will be added by rafting on the Mzymta on multi-seat catamarans.
More than a dozen interesting ecological trails for lovers of hiking have been laid along the surrounding slopes. Routes of varying difficulty can take from 30 minutes to several days. It all depends on your desire and interest.
The main rule of hiking – look, but do not touch. Around Esto-Sadok there are solid reserved places, here you can’t pick flowers, break branches, hunt, walk animals and in other ways impudently interfere with the balance of the biosphere.
Immediately behind Rosa Khutor, a large-scale cultural and ethnographic center “My Russia” was built. 11 pavilions tell about the history, culture, traditions, life and architecture of different regions of the country.
Weather in Esto-Sadok
The meaning of the words “bad weather” in Esto-Sadok is not known. Winters here are warm and snowy, the skiing season is opened by riders in mid-December and do not leave the slopes almost until May. The main thing is to choose the right equipment, designed for a small minus and fairly high humidity, and you can not be afraid of frost. In May, everything is ready for long walks along the green slopes and relict forests of the Caucasian Biosphere Reserve. In June, it is already possible to descend from the mountains and arrange a swim in the Black Sea. Summer actually lasts until the middle of the calendar autumn, light gloves and jackets will be needed only closer to November.