Author: Igor
My head exploded when I read about Sochi for the first time. Look: the Sochi airport is located in Adler, the Lazarevskoye resort is 70 km from Sochi and at the same time is considered its area, the length of Greater Sochi is about 150 km - what ???
Let me explain right away: there is Greater Sochi, or, understandably, the Sochi region, which includes Adler, Lazarevskoye, etc., but there is simply Sochi, as an independent city.
In this article I will tell you which areas of Sochi are better to choose for recreation - both in the city itself and in the "region". Which one is suitable for a long stay, where is it cheaper or, on the contrary, more expensive?
Areas of Greater Sochi - where is the best place to relax?
Four regions officially belong to Greater Sochi:
- Lazarevsky,
- Central (city of Sochi),
- Khostinsky
- and Adlersky.
If we take microdistricts within each, then, of course, there are many times more of them, we will talk about this below.
The city of Sochi is called the central area, the Khostinsky area is the area between Adler and Sochi, and the other two are Adler and the Lazarevskoye resort and everything around them. By plane, tourists arrive at the Sochi airport, which, uh, is located in Adler. If you are traveling by train, then the resort cities are located as follows: Lazarevskoye, the city of Sochi, Khosta and at the very end of Adler.
Central District
The city of Sochi itself, the point of the program "must visit" those tourists who stay in other areas. The infrastructure is better than anywhere else (there is even a vegan cafe !!), and there is a decent share of the main attractions.
Sochi is noisy, bustling, there is little space, but very natural and green. Personally, I would recommend a different area for a beach vacation. But if you like a city vacation by the sea (this is when the beach, cars, large shopping centers, a lot of people) - the option is excellent. There are many micro-districts inside Sochi: not all of them border the sea, and below I will briefly describe the main ones.
The city is also hilly. More precisely, if we take its compact center, then there are no sharp rises, but farther from the sea ... And the main disadvantage for me, as a tourist, is the problem with parking - there is not enough space here! Even in November, in the lowest season, I could hardly find where to leave the car. In the summer, you can probably not try and go immediately by public transport or taxi. Well, or leave it in a paid parking lot.
On the beaches: they are pebble mixed with black sand, the stones are large. Because of the sand, the sea does not seem clean, the water is unclear.
Look for apartments and rooms in Sochi at Sutochno.ru (like Avito only with reviews and tenant protection).
Tours - on Travelata. Save 20% with Travel Cashback!
Sanatoriums - yes, they still exist! - at Sanatory.ru.
Hotels and guest houses - on RoomGuru. I will list several popular and excellently reviewed hotels, and check the entire range on the site.
Hotel recommendations:
Cheap
• 3 * Grace O'Den Congress - yes, far from the beach, but still in the city center next to the railway station; the rooms are spacious and without the Soviet touch, the service is friendly, there is parking, the breakfast is delicious!
• 2 * Coocoorooza Pension - if all pensions were like this - freshly renovated, on the first line, overlooking the sea and for an adequate price - it would be great.
• 3 * Hotel Plutus - a prime location in the middle of everything: you can walk to the railway station, and to Navaginskaya (main street), and to the beach.
Average
• 4 * Mercure Sochi Center - a worthy representative of the international hotel chain; high-rise building near the embankment, almost the first line. The city view is just as good as the sea view, the rooms are large and clean. Guests can use the sauna and gym of the neighboring Pullman (this is the one from the "more expensive" category).
• 4 * Denart - there are questions about the interiors, but still the affordable price includes a good breakfast, large rooms, cleanliness for 5+ and a central location - hence many highly rated reviews.
• 3 * Apart-hotel Brevis - full-fledged apartments by the sea with an area larger than the average apartment of a Russian. Guarded territory, daily cleaning, parking included.
More expensive
Super luxury options to NOT regret not choosing Turkey. Bloggers and everyone who can't afford the price tag of 15,000 rubles per night rest here.
• 5 * Pullman Sochi Center
• 5 * Hyatt Regency Sochi
Khostinsky district
Less popular among the four districts of Greater Sochi - but there are many iconic places here: the famous Matsesta hydrogen sulphide waters, Eagle Rocks, Yew-boxwood grove, Vorontsovskie caves, Stalin's dacha. There are also interesting routes for hiking (walking with a sports bias) - one of these is Terrenkur. Khosta district is divided into Bytkha, Maly Akhun, Matsesta, Khosta and Kudepsta microdistricts.
But the beaches in this area are far from the best, and the sea is not the cleanest. In addition, there are railway tracks along the beaches. And if we consider the place in terms of cultural places and modern cafes, then there are either none at all, or very few of them. Therefore, it is a little cheaper in Khost than in Sochi or Adler.
Lazarevsky district
Which area is farthest from the airport and coldest at the turn of the seasons? Lazarevsky! It is unbelievable, but true: it is here that snow can fall in late autumn and winter. Popular tourist villages are Loo, Dagomys and Lazarevskoye itself.
If, first of all, a calm and measured rest in combination with the sea is important to you, then this is a good choice, most tourists note the central beach in Lazarevskoye with smaller pebbles, "just relief from the cobblestones of Sochi."
From the airport, the journey here by car will take about 2-3 hours, if there are no big traffic jams. You will have to get there through serpentines, and not everyone likes such a "journey". But on the other hand, the train saves about two hours of travel, since this is the first resort in Greater Sochi, where the train stops.
If we compare, the infrastructure in the Lazarevsky district is lagging behind, because the main vector of development before and after the Olympics was directed to Adler and Sochi. Residential buildings include five-story buildings and the private sector. It is inconvenient to get to the sights of Sochi and Adler from here.
The beaches of Lazarevsky are different. Judging by the reviews of tourists, some are quite wide, while others are very narrow, and are not crowded during the season. What you will definitely not like is the railway tracks that run along the coast. It is such a pleasure to rest your gaze from the shore against a concrete wall.
Look for apartments and rooms in Lazarevskoye at Sutochno.ru.
Hotels and guest houses - on RoomGuru.
Hotel recommendations:
Cheap
• Hotel Hollywood - economy option by the sea, tourists like it.
• Zarya is a popular guest house on the first line.
Average
• 3 * Storm is a hotel on the first line, freshly renovated and managed by a new owner who is attentive to the wishes of guests.
• Villa More - excellent rating and reviews, located next to the sea, 150 meters. There is a parking lot, good grounds and European style.
More expensive
Two hotels, better than which you cannot find in Lazarevskoye - and in terms of cost they cannot be compared with Sochi or Adler:
• 4 * Grand Hotel & Spa Priboy
• 3 * Azure Window
Adler district
I will sum up the areas of Sochi, where it is better to relax in the summer, with my favorite place - Adler. Developed, touristy and at the same time calm, modern. It consists of microdistricts:
- Nizhneimeretinskaya Bay,
- Central Adler
- and - surprisingly - Krasnaya Polyana (yes, the mountains are part of Adler!).
Both times in Greater Sochi, we stayed in Imeretinka, and wrote a guide to the area, it is at the link above.
In my opinion, Adler is an ideal place to relax in the summer. There is a good infrastructure here, there are good modern coffee shops and establishments, shops, equipped beaches. And the sea is cleaner and more beautiful than in Sochi (specifically in the Imereti Bay).The main Olympic sights are located here, Abkhazia is very close and another absolute plus is the flat terrain, without much hilly terrain, which is convenient for traveling with children or the elderly.
- If you are interested in comparing Sochi and Adler, read here!
Tourists who come to ski or snowboard in winter often stop in Adler, since housing is cheaper than in Krasnaya Polyana, and a direct route connects the coast and the mountains.
Look for apartments and rooms in Sochi at Sutochno.ru.
Tours - on Travelata. Save 20% with Travel Cashback!
Hotels and guest houses - on RoomGuru.
Hotel recommendations:
Microdistricts of Central Sochi - main list
It is easy to get confused in the microdistricts of Central Sochi, but what is important to know: firstly, not all are of interest to tourists, and secondly, there is nothing special to know about them. I see where the sea is on the map - I take housing as close as possible based on my budget.
The areas where I would stay in Sochi are central, Svetlana, Zarechny and Zavokzalny. There is also New Sochi, but it is located at a distance from the attractions.
1. Central
The very center of Sochi, here are the main infrastructure and sights of the city. The main pedestrian street Navaginskaya, embankment, seaport, various cafes and restaurants. If you come to the city, you will definitely find yourself in this area.
There are many different hotels and hostels in this place, you can find inexpensive options, there are no big ascents and descents.
- A good hotel, but not the cheapest, is the chain Mercure Sochi Center. Great views, pool, breakfasts.
2. Svetlana
We can say that the city center is also located to the right of the central district. The infrastructure is also good, there are sanatoriums, near the Arboretum. The area goes more inland and is not so extended along the coast.
- Also a good place to stay for tourists. From the hotels there is a boarding house Svetlana, good reviews and the price.
3. Jan Fabricius
It is located behind the Arboretum, but still far from the center and the main attractions of Sochi, so the usual tourist environment in the form of cafes and entertainment is much less here.
4. Zavokzalny (Bald Mountain)
The area is remote from the coast and beaches, but still good for tourists. Everything is within walking distance, close to the central area with all the interesting things. In parentheses, I added Bald Mountain, as many people ask about this place as an area, but it is located inside the Zavokzalny.
- I recommend the Denart Hotel with a rating of 8.9 and over 1600 reviews. The price includes a good breakfast, rooms with both city and sea views.
5. New Sochi
A place on the coast, hilly and therefore not very convenient for movement. There are almost no places of interest for tourists. But despite all these moments, the area is popular - the private sector is thriving here.
There are other districts of Sochi, I will simply list them: Donskaya, Makarenko, Zarechny, Mamayka, Vishnevnaya, KSM, Sobolevka, Areda, Hospital town.
Where to look for apartments and hotels?
No matter how much we travel around the world, we use three services to find housing, and Sochi is no exception. True, one more was added - for the Russian private housing market:
- Sutochno.ru - apartments and the private sector in any corner of Russia.
- Booking is a well-known service for finding not only hotels, but now also apartments.
- RoomGuru - fewer tourists use it, which is in vain, because it shows more prices from different sites, including Booking. Offers are often cheaper!
- Airbnb has apartments and the private sector.
Of course, prices differ depending on the districts of the Greater Sochi as a whole, and within the sub-districts. Closer to the sea - the price is more expensive. But there is also a seasonality of prices, and we just hit it: the rental price falls since mid-October, and the weather is still warm, you can swim.
Housing prices in Greater Sochi - 2021:
| Sochi | Adler | Hosta | Lazarevskoe | |
| Private sector | from 1500 rubles / day | |||
| Guest House | from 800 rubles | from 1000 rubles | from 1600 rubles | from 700 rubles |
| Hotel 3 stars | from 2000 rubles | from 2200 rubles | from 2000 rubles | from 2000 rubles |
| Hotel 4 stars | from 5000 rubles | from 5500 rubles | from 6000 rubles | from 5000 rubles |
| 5 star hotel | from 20,000 rubles | from 13 500 rubles | — | — |
Adler district - our advice
Now let's talk about the most popular area of Greater Sochi, where we spent 1.5 months - about Adler. In our opinion, and according to a lot of tourist reviews, this is the best area of Sochi for recreation. This area is chosen by most of the holidaymakers for various reasons.
About the beaches. They are mostly pebbly - and the water is cleaner. There are beaches with dark sand (be guided by the Mandarin shopping center). There are light sand, such as usually belong to hotels (sand is poured over stones, so the entrance to the sea is still with pebbles). It is difficult to talk about the best beach, since they are very similar, but at Mandarin it is ideal for those who are looking for a sandy one, and in the Nizhneimeretinskaya side - who need pebbles.
About the cafe. There are a lot of them here, I'll tell you about those that we most often went to.
- Surf coffee and Karma - there are breakfasts and coffee, these are two different places, but they are located next to the Adler port.
- The bakery and the Burgernaya are establishments in the same building, located next to the Radisson Collection hotel - in one there are desserts and coffee-tea with breakfasts, in the other the name is clear.
- Cheese dairy - here we ordered pizza and desserts, very tasty. I advise you to do this through the Delivery Club application or Yandex delivery, it's cheaper! And here is the promo code for the first order: REF9W5MCTP3 for Delivery for 300 rubles.
- Salmon - we ordered rolls several times, also delicious. We also used delivery from Delivery.
We lived near the Adler port in the Sorrento residential complex, there was only one minus - flying planes. In late autumn, there are few of them, but in the season it causes discomfort.
Forumula-1 is taking place in Adler, for which it is already worth coming - to see the sea, races, go for a drive in the ski resort of Rosa Khutor. Also football and hockey. To summarize, from many areas of Sochi, where it is better to rest, according to tourists' reviews, Adler takes first place!
Where is the best place to relax - in Sochi or Adler? Our experience
About a full-fledged comparison of resorts - where is it better to live, in Sochi or Adler? - we already have a good text on our site.
Adler's pluses:
+ Close to the airport (it is here, not in Sochi)
+ Tours are slightly cheaper
+ The sea is clean, there are no railway tracks nearby
+ Closer to Krasnaya Polyana
+ Amusement Park, Oceanarium, Dolphinarium
Sochi pluses:
+ Developed urban infrastructure (shopping centers, clubs, etc.)
+ Many attractions
The weather and food prices do not differ between resorts. And yes, I am completely a fan of the Imereti Bay in Adler.
Greater Sochi districts map
The best areas of Sochi to live:
