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Pictures of Sevastopol, Crimea

Sevastopol is among the top three tourist destinations in Crimea and provides an authentic taste of classic imperial Russia within modern-day Ukraine. The city was established as a military base and port and preserves those functions to this day. Sevastopol has seen a lot of battles, and numerous war memorials attrack history buffs from all over Europe.

Russia's Black Sea fleet is stationed in Sevastopol, which is a source of some friction between the countries. Most citizens have strong ties to Russia and consider themselves Russians. The level of education and cultural awareness in the city seems quite high, and the presence of water and imperial-era buildings likens it to St. Petersburg. The city is experiencing rapid economic development and has the potential to become a major center of trade and commerce.

Sevastopol is the final train stop for trains from Kiev, St. Petersburg, Moscow, and other cities in Ukraine and western Russia.

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Sevastopol city photos

		The main bay of Sevastopol is filled with ships.	Sevastopol has quite a few cultural events, like this group of folk dancers.
	Shorefront restaurant
			The Sevastopol branch of Moscow State University, located at a Russian military base above the harbor.
		The church suffered a lot of artillery damage during World War II.	Here you can see some of the damage that was done.
More dents from artillery shells		A proud Lenin statue rises above the city.	A long staircase symbolizes the power and authority of Lenin.
Looking down the stairs towards the city center.
		Some kind of running competition was taking place on this chilly day.	From here you can see the North Side of town across the harbor. Ferries go there every 15 minutes or so.
View of Artillery Bay, which has a lot of restaurants and discos around it.	One of numerous WWII monuments in the city

Hersones photos

Hersones was a center of Greek culture for more than 2000 years (!).	Occasional maps and pointers make a visit to Hersones an educational experience.	This is where Byzantine Christianity (Orhodoxy) came to Kievan Rus over 1000 years ago.
This church was rebuilt just a few years ago, and work is still being done on it.	Hersones, established in the V century BC by Greek colonists, was a flourishing center of culture and trade in Crimea for nearly 2000 years! Here Vladimir of Kievan Rus adopted Christianity in the X century AD.
	Close-up of columns
Excavated walls of Hersones. Archeological digs continue here every summer, with the vast majority of Hersones still uncovered.	Looking towards the old bell tower.
This monument has the oath of office of Hersones' civil leaders engraved upon it. In Greek city states leaders only pledged allegiance to their city rather than to a nation.	Here are all the colors of stones or glass shards discovered in Hersones. Obviously, they have been sorted here by excavators.	Map of the Crimean peninsula showing altitude and location of known settlements during the Middle Ages

Fiolent photos

The Cape of Fiolent is a scenic area about 10 km south of the center of Sevastopol.	There is an ancient, functioning monastery at the top of the cliff.	To reach the water from the top of the escarpment you have to go down 800 stairs.	On the way down you get some very scenic views.
The cross on this rock was erected by monks who survived a shipwreck in this spot and resolved to build a monastery here.	There are stairs leading up to the cross, but you have to swim to the rock first.	The beach at Fiolent Cape is one of the best on Crimea's South Shore in terms of scenery and cleanliness. Not everyone is prepared to take the hike here.	The beach is closed to the public during the nighttime and is cleaned daily. Alcohol is not allowed on the beach.
The beach is called Jasper Beach.	It's a pebble beach like virtually all natural beaches on the South Shore of Crimea.	Well-camouflaged beach cat	A rare dusting of winter snow

Near Sevastopol

Monastery in Inkerman	Above the monastery people have been "harvesting" the soft local sandstone or chalkstone for hundreds of years.	Now there appear to be an intricate system of tunnels inside this plateau.	If you travel along the shoreline northwest of Fiolent, the cliffs gradually decrease in height.
The beaches here are a bit more accessible.	However, accidents happen.	The soil is unstable in many areas, which leads to occasional landslides during or after rain. In 2006 a landslide killed a number of vacationers near Sevastopol	Another WWII site. Soldiers hid out in these tunnels and attacked the Germans with their artillery and cannons.
The defense of Sevastopol, thought it ultimately failed, was one of the most glorious hours (months, actually) in the history of Sevastopol.	A huge artillery gun was mounted on top of this rock.
View towards the Crimean Mountains on the road to Balaklava	Viiew of the scenery in Baydarskaya Valley, which is about 25 km from Sevastopol but still in the city's jurisdiction. The valley has become a favorite place to buy up old farmhouses and renovate them.

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.