Active holidays in Ossetia

08:30 Start, collection from the hotels.

Program of the day: Vladikavkaz — Uastyrdzhi sanctuary and rock monument — Tsey Gorge — ecotrope hike to Tsey glacier — Afsati monument — Biragzang thermal complex.

Moving along the Military Ossetian Road in the Alagir gorge, to the right along the route, an extraordinary sculptural composition attracts attention. This is Nykhas Uastyrdzhi, as they call him in Ossetia. This place is a dzuar, a holy place. The sculpture is attached to a rock and weighs 28 tons!

On the way we will see the cave and the sanctuary of Sau Baraga (the Black Horseman). The place and the very image of the Black Horseman are shrouded in many legends and beliefs that we have to learn.

An additional fee is paid for lunch according to the set menu at one of the cafes along the route (pre-order at the beginning of the tour / cash payment) 500 rubles /person, family cafe in the village of Buron: lyvzha national. beef soup + Ossetian pies with cheese and meat (2 pieces) + compote.

We will turn from Transkam to the Tseysky Gorge or Tseyskaya horseshoe. The entire gorge is a state nature reserve, and the figure of the patron saint Afsati at the entrance symbolizes protection for everyone living in this beautiful corner of the Caucasus.

Going to the Tseisk glacier, be sure that you will have an unforgettable adventure, perhaps one of the most vivid in Ossetia. The glacier formed about 150 million years ago. It is one of the largest and lowest-sinking glaciers in the Caucasus.

The hiking route runs along the picturesque banks of the Ceydon River through coniferous and deciduous forests surrounded by rocks. Monk Mountain is the motionless and stern guardian of Cei.

Soon the forest opens up, we find ourselves in an area of alpine meadows and a glacier glistens ahead framed by high mountains. The glacier seems to be breathing, constantly making noise and living its own life. We will be able to get closer, feel his power and indomitable temper, feel the natural element.

The Ceydon River bursts out of the glacier's icy grotto in a rapid, turbulent stream.

At the end of the exciting hike, we will leave back to Vladikavkaz, but on the way we will definitely stop at the Ganakh Therma thermal springs in the village of Verkhny Biragzang to swim in the mineral water pool.

A ticket to the thermal complex is paid separately — 600 rubles.

The source is of volcanic origin. The water rises from a depth of 2,300 m and has a temperature of over 40 °C.

Return to Vladikavkaz by 17:30.

• Daily car race: 185 km.
• Walking distance: 9 km.
• Climb: 450 m.
• Duration: 8-9 hours.

08:30 Start, collection from the hotels.

Program of the day: Genaldon gorge — Karmadon Gate — Dargava Necropolis — hike to the Midagraba waterfalls — playground and swing overlooking the Fiagdon Valley — Kurta and Tag Tower.

Karmadon is one of the narrowest and most rugged gorges in Ossetia. The gorge's infamy is associated with the collapse of the Kolka Glacier in 2002. As a result of the collapse, residents of the gorge and the film crew of Sergei Bodrov died.

Transfer to Dargava Valley. The Dargava necropolis, popularly called the "city of the dead", consists of more than 90 crypt structures of original shape. Watchtowers of the 16th and 17th centuries.

Our main goal today is the Midagraba Waterfalls. The creations of nature fall from an incredible height and give the impression of falling from the sky. There are eight most famous cascades: Zeigalan, Takhkadon, four Crystal and two Green.

The main waterfall is Bolshoy Zeigalan. The waterfall's height of 750 meters is the largest waterfall in Ossetia and one of the highest in Europe. Zeigalan is very powerful, therefore, together with the icy spray, it carries large stones, as well as fragments of a glacier.

An additional fee is paid for lunch according to the set menu at one of the cafes along the route (pre-order at the beginning of the tour / cash payment) 600 rubles/person, family cafe in Lamardon: "karchi bash" – chicken soup + soy fat tortillas fried in ghee (2 pieces) with potato and cheese filling + fresh salad + tea.

Next, we head towards the Kurtatinsky gorge to the observation deck of the Fiagdon valley. A distinctive attraction of this place is the "swing over the abyss" with a panoramic view of the Valley.

Going further down into the valley, we will make a stop at the legendary tower of Kurta and Tag. The tower is the beginning of the ancestral settlements and the cradle of the Ossetian people.

Return to Vladikavkaz by 17:30.

19:30-21:30 Alan evening show program in ethno-national style with dinner and tasting.

Alan evening is paid separately: adult — 2,600 rubles/person, child under 18 years — 2,200 rubles/ person, children's menu up to 8 years — 800 rubles/person.

• Daily car race: 135 km.
• Walking distance: 6 km.
• Climb: 400 m.
• Duration: 8-9 hours.

08:30 Start, collection from the hotels.

Check out of the hotel and departure for the tour with your luggage.

Program of the day: Kadargavan canyon — Dzivgis rock fortress — hike to the village of Tsmiti — hike to the tower complexes of villages: Lats, Kadat, Urikau — Archon pass — Holy Dormition Alan Monastery.

The Kurtatinsky gorge is located in the very center of mountainous Ossetia. To this day, ancient Ossetian villages with family, military, residential and signal towers, cave fortifications, and religious buildings have been preserved here.

Kadargavan Canyon. A unique place where you can see how, over hundreds of years, a mountain river has eroded the soft limestones of a rocky ridge, and a huge boulder that fell from the mountain has become a natural bridge over the canyon.

The Dzivgis rock fortress dates back to the time of the invasion of Tamerlane, that is, around the 15th century. An amazing tactical contraption created by the highlanders to protect them from enemy raids.

The architectural monument of the Middle Ages is the city of Tsmiti (Tsymyti), founded in the early 14th century. Exploring the ruins, we will learn a lot of interesting things from the history of these places, we will see dozens of architectural monuments.: crypts, battle towers, and ruins of apartment buildings.

Hike to the tower complexes of the villages: Lats, Kadat, Urykau. Among the objects of this complex are galuans (fortified complexes), ganakhs (house—fortress), ancestral family towers, sanctuaries, above-ground, semi-underground and underground crypts, an underground burial ground, as well as commemorative steles and pillars.

The cultural heritage site "Nartovsky nykhas" is located on the territory of the village of Lats. Nyhas (word, speech) is a place where elders gather, discuss, and speak, where they "kept the word."

We will reach the famous bench with the inscription "happiness is just around the corner, it is in the mountains", located on the observation deck at the Archon Pass. From an altitude of 2,300 meters above sea level, there are unreal views with a panorama of the entire Caucasus Range!

On the way back, while descending into the valley, we will visit the most mountainous in Russia, the Holy Dormition Alan Monastery. Pilgrims come here from all over the south of Russia. The monastery has an amazing, though not so long-standing history, which we have to learn.

Let's get acquainted with the Fiagdon monuments. At the monument to the Grieving Horse, let us recall the soldiers of the Kurtatians who gave their lives for their Homeland in the Great Patriotic War. We will also see the world's first monument to Lenin and a bust of Stalin.

An additional fee is paid for lunch according to the set menu in one of the cafes along the route (pre-order at the beginning of the tour / cash payment) 600 rubles /person, cafe "Right Bank": Ossetian pies with cheese and potatoes (2 pieces) + chicken kebab + fresh salad + tea.

Return to Vladikavkaz by 16:30.

Group transfer to the airport/ train station for evening flights/trains later than 18:00.

• Daily car race: 150 km.
• Walking distance: 6.5 km.
• Climb: 550 m.
• Duration: 8-9 hours.