Went to rest in Kaliningrad. When the Baltic Sea met better than the Mediterranean

When the second month of summer ended and the championship of August ended, I decided to immediately arrange a short vacation for myself. I don’t want to fly alone to some hot countries for several days, but at the same time I feel an acute desire to lie on the beach and swim in the sea, preferably in a warm one.

In Kaliningrad and its environs. The choice fell on this location because:

• the presence of attractiveness
• the spirit of Europe is observed
• Baltic Sea and sandy beaches
• delicious food and reasonable prices

Plus, this year the beach in the village of Yantarny, Kaliningrad Region, for the eighth time was the prestigious international Blue Flag award for preparation for the swimming season.

In terms of hypersensitivity, a Blue Weather Vane, when used effectively, is like three Michelin stars for a restaurant.

To the point: We visited the Russian beach with the “Blue Flag” and share our impressions

The main thing is that I have never been to Kaliningrad. No joke, to get to it by train, you need to cover the borders of two four-part countries in one direction!

So from the window of the car you can appreciate the landscapes of Belarus and Latvia, the travel time from Moscow to the final stop is not too stressful 20 hours.

Next, I’ll tell you about my interesting vacation for this season, show a lot of photos and share interesting places in Kaliningrad, as well as in Zelenogradsk and its environs.

How to get to Kaliningrad

The Baltic can be reached both by train and by plane. And the prices for the plane are even lower than for the train.

Our company took unicycles with them to ride along the shore, so we traveled by train. A one-way ticket cost me 6,000 rubles.

If I had flown by plane and without a unicycle, I would have saved several thousand, at least.

The train departs from the Belarusian place, travel time – 21 hours with events. Moreover, from this time about 4 hours the train stops at the state borders of different countries.

Belarusian and Lithuanian border guards conscientiously check the passport and cheerfully stamp transit visas issued to passengers on leaflets when boarding the car.

Important: you should buy a ticket to Kaliningrad only with a passport. You should take it with you by chance, you can leave your Russian passport at home.

Before the trip, there were several cases when it was necessary to comply with the declaration for the unicycle, you did not have to pay taxes on the import and export of expensive goods, but in fact, at none of the borders on the way there or back, customs officers did not even pay absolutely no attention.

By the way, there is no dining car on the trains on the route Moscow – Kaliningrad – Moscow. The conductor confusedly explained that this was due to some kind of prohibitions on the part of Lithuania, so it is advisable to take food on a trip with you. There is not much to buy at the stations.

What to see in Kaliningrad

So, 10.38 am and I am in Kaliningrad. On the platform of our meeting, representatives of local unicycle movements, who showed this wonderful semi-European city with beautiful architecture.

In short, we saw:

• Brandenburg Gate
• Hospital of St. George
• Kant Island, Cathedral
• Fishing village
• Museum of the World Ocean
• Amber Museum

A few more photos from a sightseeing trip around the center of Kaliningrad:

I especially look forward to visiting these places for everyone who decides to visit wonderful Kaliningrad.

Between rental points, we swept through the central park and had a bite to eat in a good race in the center of Kaliningrad called “Povareshka”. The kitchen is homemade, the price tag is very democratic: I paid 938 rubles for a full meal for two.

A revelation for me is the fact that there are not so many in the Kaliningrad Sea itself. Yes, there is a port, but there is an industrial area and you can’t swim. All tourists and even foreigners leaving the city are engaged in electric trains and there they already visit the beaches and use the sea.

Let’s go to Zelenogradsk and we.

Getting there is easy: about 30-40 minutes from the southern arrival of Kaliningrad, a comfortable train runs to Zelenogradsk. The ticket costs 79 rubles, the travel time is 39 minutes.

What to see in Zelenogradsk

Zelenogradsk is a typical resort town: the population mainly consists of vacationing tourists, housing is rented at every turn, there are many cafes, restaurants and kiosks with food and drinks.

But the main thing is that there is a SEA.

The beaches are clean, despite the rather large number of sunbathers. It seems to me that the whole point is that there are a lot of people on this beach and people just stretch along the entire coast without interfering with each other.

All five days that I spent in Zelenogradsk, the temperature was at +28. The sea temperature was a little over 23 degrees. Swimming was comfortable, the waves did not interfere at all.

In the evenings, securities forays deep into the city. I saw very cozy streets with old houses, and a huge number of cats, cats and kittens.

It turns out that Zelenogradsk quite officially bears the proud title of “City of Cats”. These fluffy animals here find themselves real masters, easily make contact and allow themselves to be stroked. All cats and cats have anti-flea collars, so you can touch them without fear.

Of the attractions worth visiting is the excellent Murarium cat museum (ticket 350 rubles), which is located inside the water tower. If you climb to the very top, a panoramic view of Zelenogradsk opens up.

The cat museum itself is replete with figurines, souvenirs, household items and clothes that are somehow covered with cats.

It is interesting to look at the exhibits throughout all 4 floors.

In the evenings, the central street is full of people, there are a lot of students for every taste, street musicians entertain tourists at every step. The atmosphere is relaxed and positive.

There are really a lot of tourists, and from all over Russia. I met people from St. Petersburg, Kazan, Moscow, Saransk, even from Belarus.

Yantarny village and its Blue Flag beach

Early in the morning we left Zelenograd on monowheels and after 40 km we found ourselves in Yantarny, in anticipation of the greatest good of Russia.

His visit left me with a double impression: everything seems to be as in the picture – white sand, blue sea, sun loungers and several beach bars. But the sea was much dirtier than in Zelenogradsk, and the prices in cafes are in no way inferior to those in Moscow.

Yes, there are wooden changing rooms and shower posts. But there are such queues for them that I personally have not been able to appreciate these benefits at their true worth.

So my verdict – do not go to Yantarny is in anticipation of some unique property. Exactly the same beautiful beaches are scattered along the coast, and many of them are much less crowded.

General impressions

I was extremely pleased with the trip to the Baltic Sea. The atmosphere of the resort towns is set up for maximum relaxation and you want the Internet, usually have a delicious dinner, sleep in plenty and lie on the beach under the gentle sun, occasionally refreshing yourself in a calm, clear sea.

What else is needed in order to reboot in that short time?

The popularity of the Kaliningrad region is growing, which is especially noticeable when looking for housing. The price for a three-room apartment for 3 days is 32,000 rubles, for 8 people, and it was not the most expensive or cheap option. Yes, a solid middle man. However, the high cost of living was offset by delicious and not too expensive food.

I recommend visiting the Balt restaurant in Zelenogradsk and ordering fish soup, which should be eaten with a piece of coal to give the dishes the flavor of a fire. And if you are a fan of street food, there are excellent pavilions with fish and shrimp shawarma on the embankment. This is delicious.

Take plane tickets and fly to rest! Summer is coming to an end, just a reminder.

📸 All photos in the article: