Crimea - Ukraine - page 366

mer residence for Russian Tsar Nicholas II in 1911. But he and his family spent just four
seasons here before their arrest by Bolshevik troops in 1917 and execution in Yekaterin-
burg the following year. Photos and some poignant mementos of the doomed Romanovs
are still in their private apartments.
From the row of souvenir stands at the entrance, a signposted path leads to the palace's
former power station (800m away), which has been transformed into an organ hall . In
summer, concerts take place daily at 4pm and 8pm.
Marshrutka 47a from Veshchevoy Rynok bus station and Marshrutka 5 (3uah, summer
only) from the Spartak Cinema bus station drop you right in the palace grounds. A taxi to
Livadia will cost around 20uah.
Swallow's Nest HISTORIC BUILDING
(Lastochkino Gnezdo; admission 15uah; 9am-9pm) Like many movie stars, Swallow's Nest
is shorter in real life than it appears in pictures. This toy-town castle is a favourite subject
for Crimean postcards, but it's only big enough to house an expensive and exceedingly
disappointing Italian restaurant.
Instead, it's the castle's precarious perch on the sheer cliff of Cape Ay-Todor, 10km
west of Yalta, that elicits a minor thrill. On the surrounding walkway, you realise that the
castle actually overhangs the cliff. Although the castle looks medieval in style, it was
built in 1912 for German oil magnate Baron Steingel, as a present to his mistress.
The most spectacular approach to the castle is over the water, via the ferry (adult/child
20/10uah, up to 20 daily in high season, four in October), which heads from Yalta Pier to
the beach and jetty just below the Swallow's Nest.
Buses 26, 27 and 32 also pass this way, stopping directly in front of a row of souvenir
stalls above the castle. Stairs, leading to the castle, are on the left side of the row.
Ay-Petri Cable Car CABLE CAR
(one way 65uah; 10am-6pm, services every 20min to 7pm) On the coastal road in Miskhor,
behind a little cluster of market stalls, is the cable car up the cliff of Mt Ay-Petri. It's a
truly dizzying ride across the foothills and up the mountain's sheer face, during which
you overlook the coast and the sea. Views from the top are stunning, while Mt Ay-Petri's
dry plateau itself feels otherworldly, or at least Central Asian. There are also several nice
Tatar eateries. Buses 27 and 32 shuttling between Yalta and Alupka stop here; cable cars
depart every 20 minutes.
Vorontsovsky Palace PALACE