Summer holidays in Vladivostok: personal experience of a budget tourist
I thought for a long time where to go on vacation at sea in the summer of 2021. There was no budget to fly abroad, and many countries were closed.
I started looking at options in Russia. In Sochi and Anape I was already there, it turned out that I do not like the Black Sea. kaliningrad I wasn’t interested, so I thought, why not? Vladivostok? I like unpopular places.
I started watching pictures on the Internet, reading reviews. And just lost the speech of beauty when I saw the blue stormy water beating on high cliffs.
Natural beauty is always the first thing I look at when planning a vacation. I decided I wanted to see it with my own eyes.
Flight costs
I flew for 7 days. Of course, the cost of air tickets budget can not be called. I flew from Yekaterinburg with a transfer to Novosibirsk, and the tickets cost me 34 000 rubles. in both directions. The flight lasted 3 hours to Novosibirsk, 2 hours at the airport and another 5 hours to Vladivostok.
Cost of housing
In Vladivostok, the choice of housing is large. There are hostels and low-cost hotels for a budget tourist like me. I rented a room for 1700 rubles a day, it turned out 11 900 rubles. There are even a few capsule hotels, but I decided to stay in the traditional one.
Hotel Villa Arte
Where to live in Vladivostok?
The first hotel in Vladivostok that embodies the European understanding of what a truly hospitable hotel should be.
The exquisite architecture combines the lightness and sophistication of the forms of the European Renaissance, and the interior of the hotel conquers with its man-made completeness.
Food
I didn’t know anything about local food or coffee. Therefore, the huge number of Asian cafes and restaurants for me was a pleasant surprise. In the center of the city there are many Chinese traditional establishments where visiting Chinese are prepared, and it is incredibly tasty. Same story with Japanese, Thai and Korean cafes and restaurants.
In Yekaterinburg, Asian food was not as tasty as in Vladivostok. I even thought I might be born Asian because I liked Asian food so much. I'm kidding. But the food in Vladivostok is much better than in the European part of Russia.
In summer on the city embankments there are many different establishments, different cuisines of the world, there are even street cinemas. You can eat and watch a movie under the sound of sea water.
But you need to be prepared for the fact that the city is not cheap. The average check in a cafe is about 800 rubles per person. And in stores prices are higher than in the European part. For example, in supermarkets 10 eggs cost me 120 rubles, which was twice as expensive as Yekaterinburg prices.
Entertainment
Since I am a budget tourist, I did not have enough funds for the excursion. But I wasn't too upset because I was swimming in the sea and walking every day. In the city I saw interesting architecture, all the buildings in the center are very different, but beautifully combined together, which creates a beautiful look.
I went to one of the main attractions - the hill Eagle's Nest. By the way, the terrain here is mountainous, but the mountains are low, and they are all called hills. The eagle’s nest is one of the highest. The climb is very steep, climbing the top of the hill takes about 30 minutes. But the view from above made my heart tremble with delight.
From the hill you can see the main bridge of the city - Golden Bridge, Golden Horn Bay. It's breathtaking. I definitely recommend visiting.
It is also necessary to visit the Tokarev lighthouse. This is an operating lighthouse, it is located within the city, albeit slightly on the outskirts. The trail to the lighthouse is then flooded, then open, there is a beach right by the lighthouse and a view of the mountains of Russky Island. The view is charming and even swimming.
In general, the city consists of ups and downs, so getting somewhere on foot is not easy, but it is useful for health. I was very impressed by the way in Vladivostok they build houses right on the hills. You can walk on one sidewalk, and at your eye level there will be a sidewalk across the street. In some houses, even the entrances are not on the first floor, but on the third floor due to the difference in heights.
Sea and beaches
I went and went to several beaches, not all of them are the limit of dreams of a tourist, but the sea in Vladivostok is chic, warm and clean, although not everywhere azure.
Mandatory to purchase the so-called aquasokes - silicone closed slippers. Close beaches are almost everywhere rocky and many where sea urchins live, swimming without shoes is uncomfortable and traumatic.
There are sandy beaches, but they are at least an hour from the city by bus, and in a four-hour drive already on the mainland there are sandy beaches with azure water, as locals say. Unfortunately, I did not have time to reach them.
Beach at the Lighthouse Tokarev Cat
The beach is in the city, and you can swim at least every day, it is convenient. The water is very warm, there are small waves. But the beach is rocky, many sea urchins near the shore, you can prick.
FEFU Beach on Russian Island
It is also one of the picturesque beaches of the city. The coast of small stone, in the water there are larger stones. The water is slightly cool due to the proximity of the sea to the Pacific Ocean. The waves are small. Nearby high cliffs, on which you can walk and even find a lonely rocky beach, where there are no people at all.
Nature is beautiful, but the beach, to be honest, is for the amateur.
Glass beach
This is another local attraction. Along with the small pebbles on the beach are rounded colored glass, it is very unusual, beautiful and completely safe, because the glass on all sides is sharpened with water. The story goes that once a large amount of glass debris got into the sea, and threw tons of water-cut glass fragments on this beach.
Unfortunately, over time, many glasses were taken away by tourists, so the shore somewhat lost its unusual appearance. But still the beach is very picturesque, surrounded by rocks, the waves are quite large, and the water is very warm. Definitely worth the attention of the tourist.
Military Historical Museum "Vladivostok Fortress"
Where to go in Vladivostok? See what?
Museum, military-historical object, historical monument and sample of fortification achievements. The foundations of its defensive structures were laid in the late XIX – early XX century.
The museum has internal and external expositions.
Exactly at 12 p.m. from the territory of the museum sounds signal noon shot. The shooting ceremony was preserved only in three cities of Russia: St. Petersburg, Kaliningrad and Vladivostok.
Climate
The season in Vladivostok begins in August, I went in July, but I did not regret it. Almost every day there was a heat of about 30 degrees. The climate in the city is humid, so it can be unusual for someone, and I like this, so I was much more comfortable than in Sochi.
For a couple of days it was fog, the rest of the time it was sunny.
Vladivostok travel agencies
"Exotic Paradise"
Primorsky Krai, Vladivostok
ooh Svetlanskaya, 205
+7 (4232) 75-07-65
Travel company Exotic Paradise provides a service for people who prefer travel as leisure.
The company sells a variety of tours in directions and price.
Outcomes
In general, I had about 55,000 rubles on vacation, including flight, hotel and meals. Service in Vladivostok is not very developed, so the rest is suitable for those who are looking for unusual places or love beautiful nature. I liked the city very much, I was satisfied with the rest and even decided to move to Vladivostok.
And in the summer of 2022 I recommend you to consider a holiday in Vladivostok, a European resident here has something to be pleasantly surprised and happy.
Text and photo: Oksana Shtirbetz
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