Hotels in Noviy Afon

The old part of town — Ladaria, Eshba, Chanba and Vodopadnaya streets — fits inside a fifteen-minute walk. From here you can reach the entrance to the New Athos Cave, St. Panteleimon's Cathedral, the swan pond in Primorsky Park and the Psyrtskha waterfall without once getting into a vehicle. This is the choice for anyone arriving without a car: narrow lanes, low-rise buildings, everything that matters within reach. The one caveat is that parking in the centre is scarce, so it's worth checking in advance whether your hotel has its own lot.

There is essentially one full spa complex with treatments in New Athos; everywhere else a pool, sauna or hot tub comes as a pleasant extra alongside the room. Almost all of these options sit in the old part of town, five to ten minutes from the cathedral and Primorsky Park, so you don't have to travel to Gagra or Sukhum for a spa day. This is the top end of the local market and a sensible choice for an off-season trip, when the sea is still — or already — cool.

Guest houses are the main budget format in New Athos: simple rooms and a kitchen shared by the house or by the floor, but a night costs noticeably less than at a hotel. Some stand right in the centre, next to the park and the monastery; others line the Sukhum highway, closer to the sea and the quiet. The format suits travellers who spend the whole day on excursions and come back to the room only to sleep.

The shore in New Athos is pebbly, and the buildings with direct access to the water stretch east from Primorsky Park along the Sukhum highway. Here you wake up to the sound of the surf and walk down to the beach without crossing a road — but the cave and the monastery are a few minutes' drive away. A good option for a beach holiday and for families who would rather not walk the children across town to the sea.

The second way to do New Athos is to arrive in your own car and stay away from the tourist flow. Evenings along the Sukhum highway and in neighbouring Primorskoye are quiet, there is always somewhere to park, and the monastery is a five- to ten-minute drive away. It also makes a convenient base for trips in every direction: Sukhum, Gudauta, Blue Lake, Gagra and Pitsunda all fit into a single day. Without a car it's harder out here — minibuses run, but not all the time.

Gudauta lies about half an hour's drive west of New Athos — a proper resort town with its own main avenue, a market and wide beaches. It's worth basing yourself here if you want more infrastructure and open sea, and are happy to treat the monastery and the cave as a day out. Between the two towns lie the village of Primorskoye and quiet stretches of shore that tour buses rarely reach.