Livadia, a cozy suburb of Yalta, is famous for its stunning mountain landscapes and waterfalls, emerald lawns, lush vegetation, a snow-white pebble beach and an excellent health climate.
Paradise, now called Livadia, was mastered by people as early as the 3rd millennium BC. The modern appearance of Livadia began to take shape at the beginning of the 19th century, and the region reached its heyday after the local lands were acquired and improved by the family of Emperor Alexander II.
Livadia is located in convenient proximity to the main attractions of the Crimean Peninsula - Mount Ai-Petri, Swallow's Nest, Nikitsky Botanical Garden and Vorontsov Palace. And the resort village itself, where Pushkin, Bunin, Levitan, Aivazovsky and many others came for inspiration at one time, deserves attention. The list of what to see in Livadia and the immediate vicinity includes, in addition to the world-famous Livadia Palace, many other places of interest.
TOP-10 attractions of Livadia
Livadia Palace
Livadia Palace
The history of the construction of the palace is connected with the Russian imperial family. The palace is made in the exquisite style of the Italian Renaissance. The interior interiors amaze the imagination with luxury and elegance of decoration. Of the 116 rooms of the palace, you can see the following:
- front waiting;
- The White Hall - it was in this sun-filled room with huge windows, which served as a ceremonial dining room in tsarist times, that the Yalta Conference of 1945 was held;
- the emperor's ceremonial office (during the conference, the office was provided to Roosevelt);
- a billiard room, made in the English style, famous for the fact that the signatures on the final documents of the Yalta conference were put here;
- the upper cabinet of the emperor;
- the empress's study, in which Alexandra Feodorovna was engaged in drawing;
- small family dining room;
- the Italian courtyard is the most attractive corner of the palace.
In the palace you can see the exposition entitled “The Romanovs in Livadia”.
Livadia park
The history of the famous park-reserve surrounding the Livadia Palace began in 1834-1836. By the nature of the layout, the park is landscape, but with elements of a regular garden, pronounced near the palace complex (strict straight alleys, symmetry, geometrically correctly trimmed trees).
A rich collection of plants - about 400 species - is the pride of Livadia Park. Here you can see Atlas cedars, oleanders, boxwoods, columnar yews, Crimean pines, "mammoth tree" and even a 500-year-old fluffy oak. The magnificent flower beds with rare varieties of roses are impressive. Fountains, marble benches, cascades of artificial reservoirs and streams, gazebos that have their own names: Tsarskaya, Turetskaya, Rose and others organically complement the look of the park.
Livadia Park is deservedly considered the best in Crimea.
Royal trail
Royal trail
Since 1843, the Tsar's path has existed - a path that starts at the Livadia Palace and leads to Oreanda and Gaspra. The peculiarity of the almost 7-kilometer trail is that it is laid almost horizontally, with a minimum slope, despite the mountainous terrain. The path leads through a shaded oak and hornbeam forest, so walking along it is surprisingly comfortable and pleasant even on the hottest day. From the viewing platforms of the Tsar's path, amazing views of the whole of Livadia and the surrounding area open up to the Swallow's Nest. All along the well-maintained path is decorated with sculptures and old benches. Tsarskaya (or, as it was called in Soviet times, Solnechnaya) trail is one of the most beautiful and popular tourist routes on the entire South Coast of Crimea.
Holy Cross Church
A separate attraction of Livadia is the Church of the Exaltation of the Cross, which is part of the Livadia palace ensemble.
Architect Ippolit Monighetti built a one-domed Byzantine-style temple, taking as an example the ancient church of St. Luke in the Greek Livadia. The interior decoration is also designed in the Byzantine style. Especially worth noting is the magnificent white marble iconostasis, exquisite paintings and mosaic panels.
The Church of the Exaltation of the Cross is small, since it was designed only for members of the royal family, but it has great historical significance. Here Alexander II prayed, Alexander III was buried, Nicholas II swore allegiance to the fatherland, his bride, the German princess, the future Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, converted to Orthodoxy.
Today the church is active, so you need to carefully consider the rules for visiting the temple.
Church of the Intercession of the Holy Mother of God
The most beautiful attraction of Livadia is the functioning Church of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos in Nizhnyaya Oreanda. It was built in 1884 by order of the Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich. The temple is made in the Georgian-Byzantine style, which fits perfectly into the rocky terrain of Oreanda. It is interesting that a huge oak tree that grew next to the church was used as a belfry: a ladder was attached to it, a platform was built of several planks and 5 ringing bells weighing from 3 to 160 kilograms were hung.
The decoration of the Intercession Church was very rich. The walls of the temple were painted by famous artists, the carved iconostasis is made of rare wood species, the dome is decorated with mosaics.
During the Soviet era, the church was seriously damaged, but after the return of the church in 1992, it was completely restored by restorers.
Kichkine Palace
Kichkine Palace
Tourists are very fond of miniature Kichkine (translated from the Crimean Tatar "small palace"), nestled on the cliff of Cape Ai-Todor, not far from the Tsar's path. Some consider this palace to be sham and pretentious. Others admire its originality. So you must definitely include Kichkine in your excursion program in order to form your own opinion.
The palace was built in a pseudo-Moorish style, decorated with a minaret, Arabic painting and turrets. The bright and graceful architecture of the palace leaves the most unusual impressions. The park around Kichkine is also very beautiful. Emerald cypresses, exotic palms and spreading oaks are planted here. Down to the sea from the palace, a staircase carved into the rocks, decorated with summer pavilions in the form of grottoes, descends steeply.
Uchan-Su waterfall
One of the famous natural attractions not only of Livadia, but of the whole Crimea is the Uchan-Su waterfall (which means "Flying water" in the Crimean Tatar language). The most beautiful 98-meter waterfall is hidden in the mountains at an altitude of 390 meters above sea level. A distinctive feature of the waterfall is that in cold winters it freezes and turns into a dangerous icefall, and by the middle of summer it almost completely dries up. But in the spring, when the snows are melting, the power of Uchan-Su is amazing! Water crashes into the gorge with a deafening roar and spray fireworks. It is unrealistic to approach the waterfall at this time, but you can take the most spectacular photos.
A well-marked and well-designed path to the waterfall leads through a beautiful and healing forest with gigantic pine trees. The viewing platforms offer wonderful views of Uchan-Su and its surroundings.
Glade of fairy tales
Glade of fairy tales
Not far from the Uchan-Su waterfall, you can find a unique open-air museum - Glade of fairy tales. The museum is designed for visitors of all ages, but, of course, the smallest tourists get special pleasure from visiting. After all, here you can not only see your favorite fairy-tale characters, but also touch them, hug and take pictures with them. All sculptures are skillfully made from various materials: wood, stone, branches and rhizomes, marble chips, metal.
The uniqueness of the exposition lies in the fact that heroes of fairy tales and legends from different countries and different times are gathered here. Among the sculptures:
- heroes of folk tales and epics (heroes, Vasilisa the Beautiful, Ivan the Fool and others);
- characters from the literary works of Pushkin, Chukovsky, Tolstoy, R. Kipling, A. Lindgren;
- heroes of Soviet cartoons;
- representatives of Slavic mythology (Perun, Veles, Yarilo);
- scandinavian trolls.
There is an attraction with crooked mirrors, play areas for kids, and theatrical fairy performances are held here in summer.
Monument to Brave Rock Climbers
An unusual attraction of Livadia is the Monument to Brave Rock Climbers. It was installed in 1964 in the Upper Oreanda region, under Mount Krestovaya. And it was dedicated to the first climbing championship in the Soviet Union. The famous Tsar's path runs just below the monument.
The monument is an uncomplicated but touching sculptural group made of concrete: a man and a woman dressed as rock climbers from the middle of the last century. Despite its naivety, the monument is eye-catching and makes a pretty strong impression.
Next to the monument to climbers, on a small terrace, there is a Rotunda gazebo. From here you can enjoy gorgeous views of the mountains. Nearby is the Church of the Archangel Michael, popular with parishioners and tourists.
Wine Museum
The wineries of Crimea are known all over the world. And in Livadia there is a museum with a very good collection of the best varieties of wine collected from all over the Crimean peninsula. More than 22 thousand bottles of fine wines are kept here. Both old traditional varieties with long-term aging (starting from the 1830s) and rare young wines are presented. There is a port wine "Livadia" - the favorite wine of the imperial family of Nicholas II. Fruit wines are represented by the famous white nutmeg "Livadia" and rose nutmeg "Yuzhnoberezhny".
During the excursion, tourists are given information about the history of winemaking, the secrets of making and the rules for drinking the drink.
There is an opportunity to taste wines and purchase your favorite (not collectible) varieties. Real wine from Crimea is a great souvenir and gift from your vacation.
