Siberian Tourist Stunned by Salaries in Abkhazia

«In August, my friend and I wanted to relax by the sea, but prices were steep because, due to closed borders, vacations in Sochi or Crimea had become very expensive. That»s when we took a liking to Abkhazia,« begins the frank review by Nikita, a reader of the blog Tourism Subtleties.

The Journey and First Impressions

— We really liked the Abkhazian option, and we immediately bought tickets. They cost us 28,000 rubles (about $311 at current rates). We flew from Novosibirsk to Adler. We ordered a taxi to Abkhazia even before the flight, so as soon as we landed, we were immediately driven to the border. Passing border control is quite simple, the only downside is the huge queues in which you have to stand in unbearable stuffiness and heat.

Immediately after crossing the border, we felt the spirit of Abkhazia: incredibly reckless driving, overgrown ruins of Soviet sanatoriums, and an amazing atmosphere.

The Hotel

However, before diving into excursions and relaxation, we went to check into our hotel, which cost us 12,000 rubles (about $133) for 5 days. That«s where the first problem appeared: mobile internet was unavailable because we were abroad, and we had to find the way! However, we were very lucky with the taxi driver, as he roughly knew where our hotel was and helped us find it. Therefore, I highly recommend studying the route to the hotel in advance so as not to get lost.

The very first thing we asked at the hotel entrance was the Wi-Fi password. After that, there were no problems with the internet, as free Wi-Fi was available in almost every more or less decent cafe.

Overall, we liked the hotel: our room had a sea view, meals were provided three times a day, the rooms were cleaned well, the staff was polite, and there were all the necessary amenities from a refrigerator to an air conditioner. Although, of course, there was no luxury to speak of, everything was very simple but tasteful. At the same time, for those who like more expensive vacations, there are huge hotels with enclosed territories and all amenities; you won«t even need to leave these hotels.

Rotavirus, Electricity, and Trash Bins

We devoted the first two days to the sea and exploring the city of Gagra, where our hotel was located, and then we had excursions and the biggest disappointment of the entire trip. As it turned out, all newly arrived tourists start experiencing severe nausea, vomiting, and weakness after a few days. This is caused by a rotavirus infection, which is impossible not to catch there. Treatment takes on average 1–2 days, which ruins the entire vacation!

The next disappointment was constant power outages and sometimes water outages. During our stay, the power went out about 6 times, and once we saw a transformer explode due to overload.

Another small and unusual downside is that there are very few trash bins on the streets, so sometimes you can come across a bag of garbage right in the middle of the street. Perhaps this was only in our area, but I think this is the case everywhere.

What Pleased Us

However, the excursions were very pleasing, because Abkhazia is a small country with a huge culture! We took a trip to the most popular places in Abkhazia to manage to see all the most interesting things in a day.

We highly recommend visiting: Lake Ritsa, the New Athos Caves, and the Stone Bag Gorge. These are insanely beautiful places—look at the photos, but they can«t convey the emotions you will experience there. Of course, I haven»t listed all the places you can visit, but these were the most memorable!

And there is one amazing attraction here—the Reprua, the shortest river in the world. Other vacationers strongly recommended we visit it, but we didn«t have time left.

The next plus is the prices. In Abkhazia, they are very low, much lower than in Sochi or Crimea. You can eat well for 500–1,000 rubles ($6–11) depending on the establishment; if you want to buy any groceries, you won«t notice a big difference in prices with regular stores. And, naturally, rubles are accepted everywhere, but only in cash.

It«s also worth noting that the locals are extremely hospitable and kind people; they care very much about their reputation because everyone knows everyone, and if someone tarnishes their honor in Abkhazia, all its residents will know about it.

We were also stunned by the salaries in this country: we were shocked to learn that a maid at our hotel earns 8,000 rubles (about $89) a month! After that, we understood why prices are so low here.

In Summary

Having listed all the main pros and cons of this tiny country, I want to say that a vacation in Abkhazia is a normal vacation for your money. But the infection, power outages, and the extremely reckless driving of the locals leave far from the most pleasant impression.