Gelendzhik is a universal resort with a beautiful promenade, picturesque views and good beaches. He's almost exemplary! But it has two big drawbacks. We went to the resort and are now ready to honestly tell you about all the pros and cons. Let's see what Gelendzhik really is.
Useful links:
- Daily - private sector in Gelendzhik.
- Hotelluk - hotels in Gelendzhik.
What the resort looks like
Gelendzhik has become much prettier over the past few years. Like a gray ugly duckling, the resort has morphed into a beautiful swan over time. If on my first visit he left the impression of an ordinary southern town, now, walking around Gelendzhik, I felt like at a real resort.
This feeling is born thanks to the clean and well-thought-out promenade: it frames the entire bay with a snow-white balustrade and, in combination with the blue sea, looks elegant. Almost the entire promenade is in the shade of relict pines, so there is no threat of sunstroke. I am glad that pleasant relaxing or classical music is playing from the speakers, and not modern hoarse pop or hits of the 90s. We walked to the sound of a saxophone and re-singing of famous songs from The Rolling Stones.
The embankment is wide and long, like in Imeretinka, so there is enough space for everyone even in summer. It is not crammed with beer, shawarminthes and shooting galleries, as in Dzhubga or other small resorts, so people walk freely. Tourists are divided according to their interests: someone settles in a cafe, someone goes to the beach, families with children are concentrated in a large amusement park, and some people wait for a boat trip at the pier and take pictures at art objects. Some ride bicycles and electric scooters. In general, everyone is happy, no one gets bored!
Outside the embankment, the city also looks good: there are many trees, lawns, new houses and high-rise buildings are being built, there are no outright shacks and garbage, and we have not even seen barbecue and discos, as in Vityazevo. Everything is so decent and calm that I even wanted to live here.
Of course, the city is not without flaws: there is not a trace of beautiful architecture, problems with outdoor advertising and parking, few sidewalks, heavy traffic. However, tourists hardly encounter this, because they only walk along the embankment.
Housing prices in Gelendzhik
As in most resorts in Russia, Gelendzhik is dominated by private sector, and often advertisements hang right on the gates of the house that is being rented. Usually, such accommodation is cheaper than hotels: rooms - 800-900 rubles, and a small wooden house for 3-4 guests - for 1400-1500 rubles. A one-room apartment 10-20 minutes from the beach will cost 1200-1300 ₽, and the same one by the sea will cost 3000-5000 ₽. According to vacationers, if you plan to travel with your family or company, it is more profitable to rent a house or a large apartment in Gelendzhik.
Hotels, boarding houses and sanatoriums in Gelendzhik are also enough. There is even the beautiful 5-star Kempinsky Hotel.
So, here are the prices for holidays in Gelendzhik in the middle of the summer of 2021 (room for two / three per day):
| Housing type | Price for two |
| Flat | from 2 000 ₽ |
| Apartments in the center | from 4 000 ₽ |
| Budget guest house | from 1 000 ₽ |
| Hotel 3 * by the sea | from 6 500 ₽ |
| Pension 3 * | from 2 500 ₽ |
| 4 * hotel "all inclusive" | from 20 000 ₽ |
| Hotel 5 * | from 35 000 ₽ |
It is important to say about the first big minus of Gelendzhik - there are power and water interruptions during the high season. The load on the electricity grid in summer is high, and the water disappears because the springs dry up. Considering this problem, we chose the Syndicate 3 * hotel - it has good reviews, a convenient location and there is always hot water. So choose a home with your own well!
As for the area of residence, I liked Tolstoy Cape the most with a brand new embankment, many cafes and restaurants, clean beaches and the most romantic sunsets on the steepest.
If you want to save money, settle further from the beach. Also, prices for hotels and tours fall by half at the end of the season or off-season. You can live in style by the sea in a 4-5 * hotel in winter! If you love swimming, choose a hotel with a heated pool for the winter time.
Where to book accommodation
During our large-scale audit of resorts in the south of Russia, we found that local hoteliers often deceive vacationers by buying positive reviews on travel sites, including Booking. Therefore, carefully read the reviews before booking, especially negative ones - they will tell you a lot of interesting things. And also look at the owners' responses to criticism: if they are rude, make jokes and run into a tourist, then feel free to walk by. We advise you to always book your accommodation in advance, and not to search on the spot, otherwise you will get a mediocre option, and even overpay.
Look for hotels on the Hotelluk service - it will be safer and more profitable, because he is looking for discounts on different sites. Find out how to book a hotel cheaper.
Look for housing in the private sector on Sutochno.ru - this is a convenient and reliable service with real photos and reviews of tourists. There you can rent an apartment, room or house directly from the owners. Do not expect to easily rent a house upon arrival at the train station - usually they offer apartments at inflated prices, in an inconvenient area and with a minimum of amenities. Book your accommodation 2-3 months before your trip.
You can profitably buy a ticket to Gelendzhik on Travelat - this is a reliable and convenient online store where we ourselves buy tours for our vacation. Find out how to buy tours for less.
The best hotels in Gelendzhik
Food prices in 2021
Judging by our experience and reviews of tourists, it is quite inexpensive to eat on vacation in Gelendzhik in 2021. Near the sea, there are many canteens, cafes and restaurants with affordable prices. You don't even need to look for them, we just walked along the embankment and saw many stands with menus and prices for set meals for 200 rubles.
In a restaurant, the average bill for a dinner without alcohol is from RUB 1,500 per person, but there are places with a higher bill. Most of all I liked the fashionable "Cheese Factory", where you can eat tasty but expensive with a view of the sea and the fountain. Nearby there is a no less interesting Saigon restaurant, it is more budgetary.
In general, when choosing establishments on Yandex.Maps, we were faced with the fact that there are not very many really good and at the same time inexpensive cafes, and reviews are often purchased, so we chose long and carefully. As a result, after a long search, we no longer wanted to go somewhere, and we went down to the dining room at our hotel or ordered pizza to the room in Yandex.Eda or Delivery Club. :)
Interestingly, the best cafes and restaurants are located on Cape Tolstoy or not far from it. So, 1870 Wine & Food Bar, the food market "Cooperative", "Mangal House", "Magnolia", "Khata Kazaka", bars "Edison" and "Prichal 93", pizzeria "Sicily", restaurants "Zarbazan" "and Lavash.
What are the beaches and the sea
Gelendzhik Bay is both good and evil at the same time. On the one hand, the water is warmer and calmer, and the views are more picturesque. On the other hand, the water is dirtier than the open sea, and it is easier to catch an infection. And this the second big minus of Gelendzhik... However, we did not see any excrement, as they sometimes write in the reviews, only a lonely bag or seaweed floated by.
It turns out that you can have a great rest in Gelendzhik if you don't really need the sea. However, there is a way out - swim on the beaches near Tolstoy and Tonky capes or get out of town, for example, to the wild beach "Sosnovka". We went to Sosnovka for half a day. Cool and picturesque beach, we advise! The difference in the purity of the water is clearly visible in the photographs below: see how clear the water is on the wild beach "Sosnovka" outside the city and what is in the center of the city.
There are more than 20 beaches in Gelendzhik, all are located one after another. Almost everyone at the entrance has a sign with a name - it is convenient to navigate. The beaches are comfortable, with decks, awnings, umbrellas, sun loungers, toilets, changing rooms, entertainment and bars. Entry into the sea is smooth and shallow.According to vacationers, almost the best pebble beach in Gelendzhik is "Gardens of the Seas".
The surface is pebbly almost everywhere, so if you have sensitive feet, buy aqua shoes. On the beaches of Central and 2k20 there is loose sand, and on the "Bahamas" - sand with pebbles.
Almost all beaches are free, but sun loungers usually cost 150-200 ₽. Good, but paid ones - the beach of the Krasnaya Talka sanatorium and the Alean Family hotel.
If you don't like pebble beaches, find out where to find sandy ones:
