Sochi (Russian: Сочи) is situated in the Krasnodar region between the Black See and the Caucasus mountains. The subtropical climate, long sandy beaches and palm trees make Sochi a popular summer holiday destination in Russia. The resort extends over 145 km along the Black Sea coast. The average summer temperature is 26ºC (79 F). And the sea is about 24ºC (75 F) warm. Sochi is also famous for its natural mineral springs, spas and mud bathes. Outside the peak-season, the Russians spend time in numerous sanatoriums that offer treatments of different diseases.
Sochi is the summer residence of Russian politicians and businessmen. That is why Sochi is also called "the summer capital of Russia".
Sochi has a population of 400.000. It is the birth city of Russian tennis stars Yevgeny Kafelnikov and Maira Sharapova.
The village Krasnaya Polyana (russian: Красная Поляна) is one of the shooting stars among Russian tourist destinations. It positions itself as "the small Switzerland of Russia". Krasnaya Polyana is located 600 meter above sea level in the Caucasus. The Black Sea coast is only 40 km away. The mountains around Sochi are about 2000 meters high. Mount Elbrus (5,642 m) is the highest mountain of the Caucasus and the highest peak in Europe. Those who spend their holidays in the Sochi region enjoy sun, mountains and the sea almost at the same time. Also president Putin spends his holidays in Krasnaya Polyana. He goes skiing and makes sure the region gets the necessary financial support.
"The 22nd Olympic Winter Games in 2014 are awarded to the city of Sochi!" announced the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Jacques Rogge on Wednesday, July 4, 2007. As the host city for the Olympic Winter Games and Paralympic Games, the resort Sochi in the South of Russia beat Pyeongchang (South Korea) and Salzburg (Austria).
As the elected host city for the Olympic Games, Sochi can stop worrying about money though. Now 12 billions of dollars are allocated to build new training and competition facilities for winter sports, hotels, roads as well as means of transportation and communication. One of the important issues is also the modernization of the railway connection between Moscow and Sochi. In 2014, the journey between the two cities shall take less than 24 hours (instead of 36 hours today). Sochi is located 1500 km south of Moscow.
Being a bridge between Sochi and the rest of the world,
Moscow will also profit from the planned investments. Already in 2010 the capacity of three Moscow airports – Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo and Vnukovo – shall be doubled. It is also planned to provide transportation services for 60 million transit passengers. A transfer from one airport to another shall take 1.5 hours without luggage. Transfer baggage shall be handled automatically.