On the Abkhazian side, there are at least two checkpoints. Present your letter of permission (see below), answer any questions and wait patiently until you are allowed in. The border guards may demand a cursory glance through your luggage.
Sukhum is the capital and principal city of Abkhazia. It has for the better part of the last century been famous throughout the Former Soviet Union as a prominent subtropical beach resort, complete with palm trees, botanical gardens, and citrus plantations, backed by the high alpine peaks of the Greater Caucasus Mountains.
You can easily see Sukhum's urban sights in one afternoon; spend the rest of your time on the beach or doing day trips to northern Abkhazia. The region is relatively small, so Sukhum is a great base to explore it all.
If you enter Abkhazia with a travel permit issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Abkhazia, you'll need to visit Sukhum, as this is the place where (if you require a visa) you will have to exchange your permit for a proper visa. The consular service is located at the ground floor of the Ministry of Repatriation on ul. Sacharova 33 (from 9AM, lunchbreak from noon). Visit the consular first to establish if payment is required (e.g. for UK nationals the entry permit may be sufficient). If required, then pay your visa fee ($10 for 10 days) at Sberbank, Lakoba Ave. (opposite no. 37, 09:00-17:00) before returning to the consulate as you will need the receipt in order to obtain the visa.
Although some of the major sights of the city were destroyed by the war, Sukhum's principal attraction remained intact: an almost tropical climate with beaches, mountains, lakes, palm trees and of course the warm welcoming of locals, always mixed with a curiosity towards westerners. Since 2008, when Russian trade embargo was lifted, Russian tourists returned to Abkhazia once again and during summer invade the seaside; the influx of new money permitted the reconstruction of the main sites, and progress, albeit slow, is visible everywhere.
- 1 Promenade. Seaside promenade stretches some 4 km long westwards from the government buildings. Summertime it is always full of life: locals as well as Russian tourists stroll along, chat, eat ice cream, drink beer and enjoy the sun. Several restaurants are located to the West from hotel Ritsa, this is the area where bathing in the sea is permitted, and if you need accommodation, here you'll find many babushkas sitting on plastic chairs with "komnata" ('room') sign, they are more than happy to assist you.
- 2 Beslet arcaded bridge (Queen Tamar Bridge). Medieval bridge over the Besletka river. It was built during the reign of queen Tamar of Georgia in the 12th century.
- 3 Sukhum fortress (in the very center of the waterfront). The very first fortress here was built by the Romans in the early 2nd century AD. Then rebuilt by Ottomans in 1724. It was later used as a prison, destroyed in the Soviet years. What remains now is only southwestern tower of Turkish period and the northern wall with the remains of the gate.
- 4 Castle of Bagrat III (on a hill, 500 meters away from the sea, in the north-eastern part of the city). It was built at the times of prosperity of the Abkhazian kingdom on behalf of the king of Abkhazia Bagrat III (980-1014). Its main purpose was to protect the southern approaches to the city, as well as controlling the port. Castle offers magnificent views of Sukhumi and its surroundings.
- 5 Great Abkhazian Wall (Kelasuri Wall). The wall featured about 300 towers, most of them now entirely or largely ruined. Most likely was constructed by the early modern Mingrelian and Abkhazian princes amid their territorial disputes in the 6th century AD.
- 6 Sukhumi lighthouse. 37 m height lighthouse. It was made in France in 1861 and then brought and installed in Sukhumi. Lighthouse overlooks New Athos and Sukhumi.
- 7 Cathedral of the Annunciation. Constructed in 1909-1915 years at the funding of the Greek Orthodox community of the city. Built in neo-Byzantine style.
- Old Soviet buildings and remnants of war: for those who seek for this, Sukhum is a paradise. Among all the abandoned, destroyed and sadly dilapidated buildings that you still find literally everywhere, the most famous one is indisputably the gigantic old government building of the Abkhaz Autonomous Republic (two corners westwards from the Botanical gardens), sacked and burnt out two decades ago. The railway station at the western edge of the town is also worth a look; the huge building -- nowadays a burnt-out shell -- seems to have had enough space for all the travellers of an entire metropolis like Moscow. (These days travellers are served by a much smaller, reconstructed building to the west of it.)
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