‘This peninsula is one big resort’

In their own words, Russian vacationers explain why they continue to visit Crimea

Even with the war ongoing and the front line just 65 kilometers (40 miles) from the northern Crimean city of Armyansk, Russian tourists continue to travel to the occupied peninsula for recreation. Since the start of July, heavy traffic around the Kerch Bridge has been a regular occurrence. (Russia’s Federal Road Agency says the traffic is due to vehicle inspections, which have become more frequent since the travel season began.) The independent journalists’ cooperative Bereg asked Russians to explain why they’ve continued spending vacations in Crimea. With Bereg’s permission, Meduza is sharing excerpts from their interviews in English.

Alyona

28 years old, Orenburg

We went to Crimea in August 2022; we vacationed in Feodosia. When my husband and I reserved our hotel rooms, paid for them, and planned our itinerary, the conflict [between Russia and Ukraine] hadn’t started yet. When it all started, we paid close attention to the news and thought hard about what to do. But we ultimately took a chance and decided to go.

The atmosphere was tense. They were transporting new and damaged equipment [to the peninsula] for repairs, there were fighter jets flying overhead, and our Black Sea Fleet was in the harbor. There were also a lot of refugees getting their families out of [Ukraine], driving cars that were packed to the brim with belongings. But at the same time, everything felt calm.

In July 2023, my husband, my sister, and I went to Feodosia again. We weren’t scared. The Crimean peninsula is very well protected: there are a lot of our soldiers patrolling the streets, and we felt safe. We weren’t even thinking about danger.

The locals are happy to see Russian tourists. Some people told us that they’re very glad to have become part of Russia, although we didn’t ask them about it too much. But people told me several stories about how the Crimeans were terrorized when the peninsula joined Russia [and afterwards]. I think it’s obvious who did this: there was the “dirty bomb” that they wanted to drop on them, and they shut off the water and power. [Before the annexation], there were a lot of problems in the cities; nothing was getting fixed. [Both then and now], people said that they grew up in the USSR and that they’ll remain with Russia.

[...]

We travel to Crimea because we believe our resorts are every bit as good as international ones, and we want our money to stay in the country and to go towards developing Russian tourism. Crimea is my special love.

Anna

44 years old, Arkhangelsk region

We vacationed from July 4–11 in Koreiz. My husband absolutely loves the peninsula, and this was our first vacation together in four years, so we decided to go to his favorite place. It wasn’t scary since we’d already been there twice.

Things are calm there, and there’s practically nothing to remind you of the war, except for the thorough inspection on the bridge. The only thing we discussed with the locals was the traffic and the fact that there are fewer people this year.

It was a wonderful vacation. We’ll definitely go back.

Anonymous

32 years old, St. Petersburg

We’re currently (Editor’s note: this interview was conducted on July 12) on vacation in Feodosia. We came here for a week; we’re heading home in a few days. We come here every year and stay with relatives. The journey here was scary, of course, but our relatives told us that things are calm right now. There are other people here on vacation, but not too many. We came from Anapa, where we also vacationed for about a week, but there are a lot more tourists there.

[...]

Every year, the city [of Feodosia] gets nicer: they put up more statues, beautiful new streets, and recreational areas; they restore historic sites and build new roads. In the evenings, people go out to the embankment, which is surrounded by cafes and restaurants, and they’re far from empty.

Things truly are calm here right now. It used to be more stressful: our relatives said they saw drones flying over the sea. In the summer of 2022, there were even fighter jets, but not anymore.

Anonymous

16 years old, Lipetsk region

From July 4–11, I went on vacation with my parents in the town of Kacha near Sevastopol. We weren’t scared to travel there, because we knew there isn’t any fighting in the area. Anything’s possible, of course, but we were certain that everything would be fine. And we were right.

We chose Crimea for several reasons: first of all, we hadn’t been there in a long time, and we wanted to see it [again]. Second of all, a lot of people are, understandably, scared to go there, so other, safer resort destinations are crowded right now, whereas Crimea is half-empty. There really were very few people there!

We regularly encountered military vehicles, but apart from that, there was nothing unusual; the locals didn’t mention anything negative at all.

Overall, it was a good, unconventional vacation. I’ll remember it for a long time.

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Angelina

39 years old, St. Petersburg

On June 28, my husband, our two kids, and I arrived in Yevpatoria, or, [more precisely,] in the village of Uyutne. My husband recently left, but I’m staying until August 7. We didn’t have any misgivings [about coming here], and I wasn’t nervous. I’m not afraid [of airstrikes]. I simply believe that everyone will do their jobs and the military will deal with whatever comes. I actually prefer these kinds of situations, because it means there are fewer people around.

I love this peninsula. We go on vacation every year, and we don’t always make it to Crimea, but we have been here before. Right now, it’s our most accessible option.

Anna

51 years old, St. Petersburg

We’ve come to Crimea every year since 2017. We usually spend two or three months in a different city each time: Feodosia, Utes, Yalta, Balaklava, Yevpatoria. Every year, it gets better and better here; the embankment gets nicer, they build more hotels, the service gets better. When you come once a year, you really notice the improvements.

I like Crimea because it has a variety of beautiful nature; natural fruits, berries, and vegetables; and more freedom than in the Krasnodar region.

Who said it’s dangerous here? The Ukrainians? The peninsula is a resort, so the atmosphere is that of a resort right now.

The Crimeans are very calm; they’re confident that everything’s fine and that there’s nothing to be afraid of. They know they’re under Russia’s protection. They’re just living their lives like normal.

Anonymous

25 years old, Moscow

I went to Crimea from May 1–11 and I stayed on the southern coast. I was a little scared, but I know a lot of people on the peninsula, so I consulted them about the situation in advance and decided it would be fine to go. I also had friends who went on vacation to Crimea earlier, in March and April. They also told me everything would be fine.

[I chose Crimea] for personal reasons. The locals are discussing the same things as people on the mainland (and they all have concerns about the future), but nobody said much about the situation in Crimea. Things were calm overall, but the military ships and the people in uniform in the trains, the train stations, and the city made it difficult to forget the current military and political situation. It was impossible to ignore and was a little depressing. There were also fewer vacationers than in peacetime.

Lyudmila

St. Petersburg

We just returned from Feodosia. My husband is a soldier, and we went to a military resort. [Because of his work], we’ve gotten used to unexpected changes. We tried not to watch the news in the lead up to our trip, to avoid overthinking things.

We usually submit requests to visit the military resorts in November, and they give us vouchers to go to different places. This time, they gave us one for Crimea. We weren’t scared to vacation there, since we were guarded by soldiers with machine guns, who were constantly on patrol. There were barricades with anti-tank barriers at the checkpoint, just like you see in war movies. At the resort we went to, there were also injured [soldiers] from the special military operation who were undergoing rehab. It was a sad sight, of course — they were young and maimed. I have two sons myself, so I looked at those men with tears in my eyes.

Interview by Anastasia Zhvik from Bereg

Translation by Sam Breazeale