If you go to Bakhchisarai to visit the excursions, schedule at least two days on the trip. One day will go to visit the Khan Palace, the Assumption Monastery and the cave city of Karaim Chufut-Kale. The second day will fully be devoted to the excursion to the cave city of Mangup-Kale. Buy these two excursions in one bureau or one private guide, so you can count on a discount. The cost of two excursions for us left about 90 dollars. The price included free wine tasting, a free visit to the private archaeological museum. For a separate, very low price (80 hryvnia for two) we bought dinner, Crimean national cuisine dishes. The menu was: shuffle, kebab, chebureki and vegetable salad, a complex lunch in Tatar.
Now more about the excursions themselves, what exactly is waiting for you and why it is necessary to see.
The Khansky Palace, he is the Bakhchisaray Palace, he is Hansaray - once a long-time residence of the Crimean Khanate, today is the Museum of History and Culture of the Crimean Tatars. It was founded back in 1917, for a rather short period, until the 1930s, the museum fund was significantly replenished, then the repression began and the museum stopped his work. And after 1944 and the deportation of the Crimean Tatars and was looted at all. In Soviet times, the museum held on the enthusiasm of individual citizens, practically did not function. He fully began to work only during the independence of Ukraine.
Today, the museum's exposition acquired a form if it is possible to say so. The fact is that I visited this museum twice in 1994 and in 2012. Say that she has changed for the better - say nothing! In the nineties, it was a barely renovated room and the collection was very poor ... Now it is really a museum in which you get a complete picture of the features of the life of the Crimean Tatars, about the once powerful Crimean Tatar kaganate.
This is a unique monument of global architecture, the only preserved example of Tatar palace architecture. The buildings are preserved quite well, the interior decoration is well restored and transmits the atmosphere of the measured luxurious life of Khanate.
The only thing that has not changed - Bakhchisarai fountain, the suspension of A.S. Pushkin in the work of the same name. With him, they associate the legend of the love of one of the Hannes of Gires to a concubine Christian, according to which after the death of the concubine and was built "the fountain of the tears".
The Holy Assumption Monastery belongs to the XIX century, famous for the graves of the Crimean War. The monastery is valid, on the territory there is a holy source.
The lion's time on the first day of excursions, of course, will take a visit to Chufut-Kale.
We went from Bakhchisaray on foot, with backpacks, this is about four kilometers. Height of about 600 meters above sea level. Chufut_kal is called the Jewish fortress, due to the fact that there were no Muslims ever there. Here the guide will tell you about all the peripeties that had to go through these walls. The excursion is very informative, but tedious.
The next day, we visited the famous Cave City of Mangup Kale, traveled by car to the village of Khoja-Sala, on foot.
Mountain is low, at the foot of the lake, we climbed the western slope, the rise is not complicated (about an hour), in fact these are pedestrian paths. Mangup used to be called Feodoro and was the capital of the principality of the same name. The ruling house Theodoro was the side branch of the comninov and Paleologists. The symbol of the principality of Feodoro (Gothia) was a double-headed eagle, and therefore the appearance of the appearance that the coat of arms of Russia received this image after the Princess Sophia Paleologist (the last Byzantine Princess) married Widow Ivan III. However, in my opinion, it is much more interesting than, there is a contribution more significant from the Paleologist dynasty to the history of Muscovy. After Marriage Sofia invited Italian architects to Moscow, which all the famous Granovy Chamber, Towers of the Moscow Kremlin, the Terem Palace, Assumption and Archangel Cathedrals were built.
As for the Magup Kale itself, of course, it is better to see once. Therefore, I will write as shorter as possible, which is the city, let you want to look at it with your own eyes.
We arrived there for dawn, it was a separate bonus, firstly, there are no heat, and, secondly, at dawn, all this ancient luxury looks even more majestically.
Having spent seven o'clock on a pedestrian tour we saw our own history. Defense Walls and Towers, Karaaymsky Necropolis, Christian Basilica, Tower of Prince Alexei, Northern Monastery, Winelong, Residence of Princes Feodoro, Southern Monastery (is valid and now), garrison church, octagon temple, siege well with spring water, soaking baths Skin, Casemates, knocked out in a rock, Karst Cave, Tombs of Princes Feodoro, Unique Frescoes, Cave Baraban Coba Complex (Conditioned in the Rock of Prison).
Here they offer to ride on donks, horses, take a picture (professional photographer), you can eat, so to speak accompanying service. There were people with children, but I would not solve the kids to such a tour.