Arkhyz Resort – the Caucasian Alps

Recently, in Russia, more attention is being paid to the development of ski resorts. And one of the fastest-growing today is the year-round Arkhyz ski resort. The resort development began in 2011, and in August, the first support for the future cable car was installed. And today, it is a well-functioning resort resembling the Alps, but much more modern.

The resort is often confused with the homonymous village, which is located 10 km before reaching the resort. The village of Arkhyz has also experienced a construction boom in recent years. New hotels, cafes, restaurants, mountain chalets, and ski equipment rental points are appearing here and there. Offices of local tour companies are also common, offering a variety of activities such as trips to the observatory, horseback riding, and quad biking.

The resort has 27 kilometers of slopes: green for beginners, blue for confident athletes, red for advanced, and black for extreme professionals. To transport athletes and tourists to the beginning of the slopes, there are 7 lifts – 3 chairlifts and 4 gondolas. In the winter, at the bottom, in the center of the main clearing, a travelator operates, with a green slope for beginners on one side and a slope for tubing on the other.

The food options are also diverse, catering to all tastes and budgets. There is a high-altitude restaurant "Trampoline," bars, cafes, burger joints, a canteen, and several stalls with delicious Caucasian fast food – khachapuri. At the top, there are also cafes and stations with hot drinks. Near the lift to the Southern slope, there is a small souvenir market and a mini-market with products.

The choice of local souvenirs is notably useful. At the market and in the souvenir kiosk of the service center, you can find herbal teas, homemade pine cone jam, honey, spices for cooking Caucasian dishes. In addition, there are many products made of sheep's wool, slippers from sheepskin, and toys that accurately replicate local fauna – squirrels, hares, foxes, and bison. Hotels offer guests souvenir mugs, thermoses, T-shirts with resort and hotel logos. As you can see, friends and colleagues will not be left without gifts.

According to the resort's construction concept, it will consist of 5 tourist villages – Arkhyz, Lunar Clearing, Dukka, Dukka 2000, and Phia. The villages will be connected by a network of roads, pedestrian alleys, and cable cars. The construction of hotels on all resorts is carried out according to the ski-in-ski-out principle. This means that hotels are concentrated around the lifts, and you literally go out of the hotel directly onto the lift to the start of the slope, and from the slope, almost without taking off your skis or snowboard, you enter the hotel lobby.

All hotels on the clearing are modern, and this is undoubtedly a plus for the resort. Their construction was carried out in accordance with all the latest hospitality standards. Most hotels offer buffet breakfasts, have ski storage, spa salons, children's rooms, and pools. Some hotels even have open heated pools. The choice of hotels by star rating is also rich, from guest villas to 5-star hotels. But the trend is that despite the fact that new and new hospitality facilities are opening every season, each year it becomes more difficult to find a free room, and prices for the New Year holidays tend to skyrocket. Therefore, when planning a vacation, do not delay and book a hotel as soon as possible.

I hope that this article was useful to you, and to immerse yourself even more in the atmosphere of the Arkhyz resort, be sure to watch my video review from the opening of the season at the Arkhyz resort. In the video, I also showed in detail my stay at one of the hotels in the resort – Allure Lodge.