DAY 1 - YALTA
Upon arrival to Simferopol you will be met & transferred to a small town of Bakhchisaray that brings you face to face with the Tatar era of the Crimea. From the 15th century until 1783, Bakhchisaray (Turkish for “garden palace”) was the seat of the Crimean khans. You’ll see there the Khans’ Palace built primarily by Russian & Ukrainian slaves in the 16h century under the direction of Persian, Ottoman & Italian master builders, the Ambassador’s Gate, The Fountain of Tears, harem & historical museum.
Continue to Yalta that lies between the gently curving shore of Yalta Bay & the Crimean mountains, reminiscent in different ways of Cornwall, the Costa del Sol, Windermere & the French Riviera. Check in & dinner at a hotel.

     DAY 2 - YALTA
Breakfast at the hotel. Your first visit this morning is to Chekhov house-museum, garden & exhibition hall with innumerable editions of his works. Continue to Livadia Palace built in 1911 as a summer residence for Nicholas II in Italian Renaissance style with pretty Florentine & Arabic courtyards. In February 1945 Stalin, Roosevelt & Churchil held their Yalta Conference here.
Transfer to a fairy-tale Swallow’s Nest castle (1912) for lunch. Afternoon visit to Alupka the most exotic palace-park complex on the whole coast located some 16 km west of Yalta. Designed & built between 1828 & 1846 by English architects for the English-educated Count Vorontsov the palace is a bizarre combination of Scottish castle on its landward side, & Arabic fantasy facing the sea. The tour ends with wine-tasting at Alupka. Crimea now produces some very good vintages & at the wine center next to Vorontsov’s Palace you’ll have an introduction to the regional wines with, of course, an opportunity to sample & purchase some of the best from the Massandra winery. Dinner at the hotel or local restaurant.

     DAY 3 - YALTA
Breakfast at the hotel. Enjoy morning walk along the coast, fresh air & warm sea. Check out followed by departure transfer.