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Pictures of Koktebel, Crimea

Koktebel today is one of Crimea's best-known resorts and has been attracting more and more wealthy visitors despite its conspicuous lack of infrastructure. Koktebel is a half-hour drive from Feodosiya and less than an hour from Sudak by bus.

Maximilian Voloshin — a Russian writer and painter who lived from 1877 to 1932 — made the village of Koktebel famous by inviting prominent scientists, artists, writers, and intelligentsia to his fancy library-like home, which is a museum today.

Koktebel became associated with the naturism movement in Voloshin's time, and it remains a haven for nudists to this day. They gather at the edges of the long city beach, but they are being squeezed further out by mass tourism and Koktebel's development as an elitist resort. Today Koktebel is more famous for its wines and cognacs.

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= the best and highest quality photos (in our opinion).

View of Karadag Nature Reserve from Ordzhonikidze. Koktebel is to the right.	A poor picture, but here is the long beach of Koktebel. Nudists congregate on this end, which is furthest from the town.	This gate meets you as you enter from the east. "Land of Cognacs," it reads.	Landslides are common along the coast.
Further inland, in the small town of Schebetovka	The Crimean Mountains reach only 550 m here, but they are forested and scenic.	A landfill is hidden in the forest near Schebetovka. Maybe this is where they put all the refuse from tourists.	Eastern Crimean Mountains. Near Koktebel and the Black Sea coast, the hills become much drier.

All photos are the original work of Rick DeLong. To learn about purchasing originals, go here. Please contact me at before using my pictures for any purpose.