How to get to Mount Elbrus?
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To get to the foot of the most popular mountain in Russia - Mount Elbrus, from Moscow or St. Petersburg, you can use any means of public or private transportation. The most convenient way is by air to one of the airports closest to Mount Elbrus. The airports of Nalchik, Mineralnye Vody, and Beslan are conveniently located.
The most convenient airport is Mineralnye Vody, which receives direct flights not only from Moscow and St. Petersburg but also from 15 other cities in Russia and abroad. Although Nalchik airport is located 100 km closer to Elbrus, it is not as versatile - only 4 flights from Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Istanbul arrive here, and often flights to this city are more expensive than a flight to Mineralnye Vody.
Another option is to fly to Beslan (Vladikavkaz) airport, which is 270 km from the foot of Elbrus, comparable to the distance from Mineralnye Vody. Beslan receives 9 Russian and international flights, of which 5 arrive from Moscow and one from St. Petersburg.
Often, the cost of tickets to Beslan airport is significantly lower than the cost of tickets to Nalchik or Mineralnye Vody. Regardless of the destination airport, the flight time from Moscow will be approximately 2 hours and 20 minutes, and from St. Petersburg - 3 hours and 10 minutes (until the beginning of the war in February 2022).
In addition to the air travel, you should not forget about the existence of such a classicway of transportation as railways. This traditional method is used by those who, for a number of reasons, cannot use airways. For example, in the case of a large amount of equipment for an expedition - in this case, the choice of railways is obvious. The distance from Moscow to Nalchik by rail is 1887 km, the travel time is 36 hours (46 hours from St. Petersburg).
It should be noted that with standard baggage weight, choosing train travel may result in a higher ticket price compared to a flight. However, with a large selection of flights, the average price for a flight remains relatively low and can even compete with train fares.
Getting to the foot of Mount Elbrus from Nalchik, Mineralnye Vody, or Beslan is not difficult, with a wide selection of official taxi services available (the cost of a car ride from Nalchik is 1500 rubles, from Mineralnye Vody - from 2500 rubles, and from Beslan - from 3000 rubles as of 2022). It is not worth paying attention to taxi offers directly at the airport - as everywhere in the world, such offers are several times higher in price and do not guarantee a safe ride.
If you are critically limited in your budget, you can save some money by using public transport. However, there is no direct bus service between Nalchik and Azau, but you can take a regular bus to Tyrnyauz or Terskol. Then, you will still need to use taxi services, which can be more expensive near Elbrus than if you start from Nalchik.
The third option is a personal car. The distance from Moscow to Nalchik on the M4 highway is 1657 km, with almost half of the road being a modern toll highway.
Overall, the road is very comfortable and takes no more than two leisurely days. Of course, it's not as fast as flying, but a personal car provides you with complete freedom of movement and significantly saves on associated transportation costs.
The author of the texts and photographs Alex Trubachev
Your professional mountain guide for Mount Elbrus and other mountain climbing routes in Caucasus
MCS EDIT 2024