When looking for a holiday apartment in the Republic of Dagestan, it is worth first deciding what you want to focus on during your trip: historic buildings, mountain landscapes or distinctive natural features. The sights offer a range of themes, from Derbent’s fortifications to waterfalls, gorges and dunes.
Natural features from high plateau to dune
Tobot Waterfall lies at an altitude of 1,690 metres at the beginning of the Tsolotl Canyon on the Khunzakh Plateau. It is one of the highest waterfalls in the North Caucasus. Its exact drop is unknown; estimates range from 50 to 100 metres. Tobot has its greatest flow from May to July. In winter, it freezes and turns into a large icicle. This creates a clear difference in timing for your trip: you can compare the months with the strongest flow with the winter sight of the frozen waterfall.
The Mountain Botanical Garden of the Russian Academy of Sciences is located in the Upper Gunib Nature Park. It includes rare and endemic plant species from the Caucasus and Dagestan. Alongside waterfalls and canyons, the region’s plant life is another nature-focused option.
The Sarykum Dune is described as the largest dune in Russia and Europe. It is 262 metres high and about three kilometres long. These dimensions give it a different character from the plateau and waterfall: here, a single large dune is the main attraction.
Fortifications and historic sites
The Derbent Citadel contains archaeological remains of a bathhouse, several underground water reservoirs, a Christian church dating from the 5th century and a mosque dating from the 8th century. Steep slopes surround the citadel on three sides. Its massive stone walls are 2.5 to 3.2 metres thick, more than 700 metres long and 10 to 15 metres high.
The mountain wall of Derbent’s fortifications stretches 40 kilometres westwards across the mountains, completely blocking the pass between the sea and the mountains. Nine of the complex’s original 14 gates remain. These dimensions and the number of gates offer a different perspective on the fortifications from the individual archaeological remains within the citadel.
Derbent’s historic old town is also part of a cultural landscape of fortifications and medieval buildings known as magalims. The surviving buildings include courtyard houses, public buildings, mosques, bathhouses, madrasas and the remains of a caravanserai. Those interested in architectural history will find several different types of buildings within a historic cityscape.
A fortress wall with a round tower and two gates has been preserved in Gunib. The lower gate is called the Baryatinsky Gate, and the upper one the Shamil Gate. A path leads from the Shamil Gates along the three-kilometre-long fortress wall to a tower. The 107-metre-long Gunib Tunnel was cut through the rock in the 1860s; Alexander II travelled through it.
Planning visits and routes
The Sarykum Dune is part of the Dagestan Nature Reserve; not all of the dune is accessible to visitors. Metal walkways lead onto the dune, and the walking trail is called the “Path of the Wise Turtle.” Check the current visitor rules before your visit and take the access restrictions into account when planning.
On an excursion to the Chirkey Hydroelectric Power Plant, visitors can stand at the foot of the dam. They can also visit the station’s tree museum and two viewing platforms. Check in advance whether a suitable excursion is available. The Karadakh Gorge offers a different landscape experience: visitors can walk through its unusual rocky corridor.
Discover more destinations: Kizlyarskiy Rayon, Bryansk, Makhachkala, Sovetskoye, Derbent, Shara, Izberbash, Kurla, Kizlyar, Khasavyurt, Buynaksk, Derbentskiy rayon, Gunibsky District, gorod Makhachkala.
For the overview of the wider region: Russia.
