SEVASTOPOL | SIMFEROPOL | EVPATORIA | YALTA | FEODOSIA | ALUPKA | SUDAK | KERCH

Balaklava is not only interesting, but in fact positively unique.  In Soviet times, deep within B alaklava's mountains, the Russian navy's secret nuclear submarine base was housed.

The hills surrounding Balaklava contain a maze of tunnels that allowed large numbers of nuclear Soviet submarines to hide unobserved. The base was said to be virtually indestructible and designed to survive a direct atomic impact. During that period, Balaklava was one of the most secret residential areas in the Soviet Union. This base was operational until 1991. however the break up of the Soviet union brought rapid change; the base was liquidated, and in 1996, the last Russian submarine left the base. This base is now open to the public for guided tours around the canal system and the base.

Balaklava was conquered by the Genoese in 1365, and you can see the impressive remains of a fortress built by them in that century.

The town has been of great strategic importance over the centuries. With a quick climb up to the ruins of his fortress you can see why. The steep hills surrounding the harbour mean that ships in the port are not visible at all from the sea. Anyone in possession of the cliffs where the fortress stands can control the entrance to the inlet with ease.

For this reason Balaklava was the the scene where great battles were played out during the Crimea war of 1854 between Turkey, Britain, France and Russia, and during the Second World war; in which Balaklava was the Southern most point in the Soviet-German lines

To find out more about the Crimean war, please go to: http://www.1911encyclopedia.org/Crimean_War

To view 58 pages of photos of Balaklava and its surroundings, please go to http://balaklava.net/

Diving in Balaklava

Balaklava offers very unusual and exciting diving. Balaklava's clear clean waters and magnificent scenery make this a wonderful destination for divers that are looking for something new.

As yet, this is a relatively unusual place for Western tourists to come to, but this is set to change fast in the next few years.

Experienced professional guides will share their extensive knowledge of Balaklava's underwater world with you, helping you select the dives you are most likely to enjoy. Your dive guides are all divemasters or instructors, and are friendly and responsive to your needs. The diving center is set up to welcome divers of any skill level; all diving enthusiasts needs will be met; from the inexperienced to the most advanced. On your way to your diving spot, you will be taken out on a boat through the famous entrance way of the Balaklava harbour, and will ride past the towering cliffs that make up the Balaklavan coastline.

The dive center in Balaklava is a PADI 5-Star Instructor Development Center, which offers all PADI courses from Introductory level to Instructor grade. This means that all the instructors are  professional and licensed, the equipment is modern and well serviced, and that all the safety precautions prescribed by PADI are taken during the diving process.

There is a wide variety of dives that you can undertake in Balaklava . At the dive sites in Balaklava you can see a submarine wreck, a wreck from the Second World war, underwater caves, and more. You can even dive into an old Soviet submarine factory.  Balaklava's diversity is exceedingly impressive.

There are over 30 dive sites dotted along the spectacular coastline stretching out from the town harbour. During your stay here, you will have the opportunity to choose which dives you would like to undertake. This will be based on your diving abilities, your interests, and also on the weather conditions.