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Heliskiing
Essential
Challenging skiing with varied slopes during the day - relaxing in an historic residence in the evening.
A generous amount of flight time, promising long hours of skiing on steep slopes.
In a small group with 2 guides, you’ll savour this corner of paradise, complete with light and abundant powder.
Snow cover is outstanding for this latitude, due to the proximity of the Black and Caspian Seas.
Our Ecureuil B3 helicopter will be your taxi for the week, allowing us to reach the steepest, most secretive slopes.
The extremely comfortable Dacha GORBACHEV is steeped in history. What’s more, our helicopter picks us up and drops us off right in the dacha’s garden !
There is no need to travel halfway around the world to Alaska when you can come to this still secret place at the southern tip of Russia. Explore it with us and we will guide you through some magnificent skiing over alpine terrain, under the watchful eye of the Caucasus’ giant peaks.
But this trip offers more than great skiing; it also provides a taste of history, as evenings are spent at the Dacha Gorbachev, the second home of the USSR’s last president Mikhail Gorbachev.
SATURDAY
If you are flying from Geneva, you can spend the night at the Novotel close to Moscow airport
SUNDAY
VFlights from Paris to Moscow to Mineralnye Vody. One of our guides will meet you at the airport. Transfer to the hotel in our bus (3-hour drive). Check in to the hotel, welcoming drink and lunch.
FROM MONDAY TO FRIDAY
1st morning: safety and helicopter briefing, then heli-skiing.
FRIDAY, LATE AFTERNOON
Transfer from the hotel to Mineralnye Vody. Final dinner with a member of our team.
SATURDAY
Transfer to Mineralnye Vody airport. Flight home.
The helicopters will be single-turbine Eurocopter AS350B3 Ecureuils or Aérospatiale SA 315B Lamas, which are regularly used for winching, transport, rescue and special operations and, more recently, for heli-skiing. These helicopters can carry five people (including the guide), as well as the pilot. They were all built recently and meet all current safety standards. They are carefully serviced and maintained according to international procedures. .
FLYING TIME :
Unlike classic heli-ski companies, who bill flying time based on the vertical descent skied, we base our calculations on the actual amount of flying time. This method is not only more transparent and more in line with the true cost, it gives us the opportunity to adapt our programme to conditions and therefore explore the best areas in which to ski.
Hence, a good day will give us 7000 to 10,000 metres of vertical drop for around 2½ hours of flying time. The flying time indicated for each package is the average achieved on each trip. When the weather prevents us from flying all these hours, we will reimburse you the hours we do not fly.
The DACHA GORBACHEV, hidden amongst century-old pines, is an imposing but cosy country house. In fact, it was once a state residence that was used as a second home, or dacha in Russian, by the USSR’s last president, Mikhail Gorbachev. It was here that Gorbachev and the West German Chancellor, Helmut Kohl, negotiated the reunification of Germany.
The rooms are spacious and luxuriously decorated. The house has an old-fashioned charm and you can still feel the influence of the Soviet elite in every corner.
Meals are prepared with loving attention by the dacha’s chef.
Breakfasts are taken at the hotel.
On heli-ski days, we provide picnic lunches based round a variety of ingredients.
We also provide snacks (energy bars, etc.).
Bottles of water will be available in the helicopter throughout the day.
Evening meals are taken at the dacha. Meals are varied and based round mostly local ingredients, together with vegetables and dairy products, etc.
Reasonable quality wine (from South Africa or Chile) is available, but the most classic drinks are beer, champagne and vodka.
Other activities are available if the weather isn’t good enough for the helicopters to fly; however, some of these activities will involve extra cost.
The ski resort is located 15 minutes by minibus from La Datcha.
Organisation : One of the guides creates a group and coordinates the activity. Equipment: Your standard ski equipment.
Cost : Organisation & supervision are free – ski lifts at your own expense.
Byzantine temples, dolmens, observatory…
Suitable skis (fat or freeride skis) that have been properly prepared (edges sharpened, freshly waxed, bindings correctly adjusted, etc.) will ensure you get the best from your trip. In addition to this obvious advice, we have drawn up a list of things you will need to pack.
PERSONAL EQUIPMENT :
CLOTHING:
SAFETY EQUIPMENT INCLUDED IN THE PRICE :
Your trip is from Sunday to Saturday.
You’ll be picked up by the Heliski Russia Team on your arrival at Mineralnye Vody Airport.
You should arrive in Mineralnye Vody on Sunday and leave Mineralnye Vody on the following Saturday.
TRAVEL FROM EUROPE
With a scheduled flight from Europe you transit via Moscow (SVO). Moscow is served daily by Aeroflot or Air France from France and Switzerland.
Aeroflot or Air Baltic from Sweden, Aeroflot from Germany and from the UK.
TRAVELLING FROM THE UNITED STATES
With a scheduled flight from the USA you transit via Moscow (SVO). Moscow is served by Aeroflot or Alaska Airlines from the east or west coast.
TRAVEL FROM MOSCOW
A daily internal flight is operated by Aeroflot from Sheremetyevo Airport (SVO), Terminal D to MineralnyeVody Airport (MRV).
PLEASE NOTE :
If possible, travel on Saturday and spend the night in Moscow before departing on Sunday to Mineralnye Vody.
We advise you to take the flight below, so that you don’t arrive too late at the lodge as you have a minimum of 3 hours transfer from Mineralnye Vody airport.
On Sunday, departure from SVO at 1:40 pm – arrival at MRV at 4:00 pm (flight SU 1312).
Air transport – Administrative procedures
SATURDAY
Possibility to sleep at the Novotel Hotel near Moscow Airport when departing from Geneva.
Foreigners wishing to visit Russsia must first obtain a visa.
To obtain a tourist visa for Russia, you must hold a valid passport that will be valid for at least six months after the end of your stay. The passport must have two adjacent empty pages to which the Russian visa will be affixed.
You must also have certification of your repatriation insurance. You can take out this policy directly with Heliski Russia. However, it should be noted that most credit cards already include repatriation insurance if you use the card to pay for your flight ticket and your trip.
We’ll issue to you a voucher (a tourist invitation), which you’ll need for your visa as well as a passport photo of less than 3 months old.
For further information on administrative procedures, don’t hesitate to contact us.
As soon as your reservation is confirmed, we’ll send you a Travelers Booklet with all the information you’ll need to organise your trip.
| Arrival date | Date of departure |
|---|---|
| January 9, 2022 | January 15, 2022 |
| January 16, 2022 | January 22, 2022 |
| January 23, 2022 | January 29, 2022 |
| January 30, 2022 | February 5, 2022 |
| February 6, 2022 | February 12, 2022 |
| Arrival date | Date of departure |
|---|---|
| February 13, 2022 | February 19, 2022 |
| February 20, 2022 | February 26, 2022 |
| February 27, 2022 | March 5, 2022 |
| March 6, 2022 | March 12, 2022 |
| March 13, 2022 | March 19, 2022 |
| Dates of stay |
|---|
| ON DEMAND |
Heliskiing specialist in Russia. Take off for an exceptional stay in Kamchatka, the Caucasus or Lake Baikal! Also discover heliskiing in Chile, Antarctica, Greenland, Turkey and the Spanish Pyrenees.
Nous vous envoyons de la documentation sur ce séjour.
We are sending you documentation on this trip.
