Our Pyatigorsk Online

Pyatigorsk is a small town hidden in the Northern Caucasus Mountains. Pyatigorsk is located in the South of Stavropol region in the middle of the Caucasian Mineral Waters area. The name of the town means "Five Mountains Town".

This place is a famous Russian mineral water resort and even during the time of the tsars the nobles would come to drink, bathe and relax in mineral waters of Pyatigorsk and recover their health.

Pyatigorsk is one of the oldest spa resorts in Russia. The city was founded at the foot of Mt Mashuk in 1780. The health resort provides unique medical resources, and its underground wealth supplies 50 different mineral springs of 5 different types. One of the most effective spas of Russia, it has been developed on the basis of the local curative springs, medical mud taken from Lake Tambukan located 10 km from Pyatigorsk, and the mild climate of the area. It is one of 116 historical towns of the Russian Federation. The history of Pyatigorsk is rich with bright, significant events, and now it is the cultural center of Stavropol region as this land preserves the memory of one of the greatest poets of the world Mikhail Lermontov.

Pyatigorsk, a town and watering-place of Russian Caucasia, in the province of Terek, 141 m. by rail N.W. of Vladikavkaz. Pop. (1882), 13,670; (1897), 18,638. It owes its origin to its mineral waters, which have long been known to the inhabitants of Caucasia. The sulphur springs, about fifteen in number, come from a great depth, and vary in temperature from 75° to 96° F.; they are used both for drinking and for bathing. The first buildings were erected in 1812, and in 1830 the name of Pyatigorsk ( town of the five mountains ) was given to the new settlement. Its subsequent rapid increase was greatly stimulated by the completion of the railway connexion with Rostov-on-the-Don. The town is charmingly situated on a small plateau, 1680 ft. above sea-level, at the foot of the Beshtau, Mashuk and three other outliers of the Caucasus range, which protect it on the north. The snow-covered summits of the Elbruz are visible to the south. The most noteworthy features are a cathedral, a monument to the poet M. Y. Lermontov (1814-1841), and a hydropathic.

From the 1911 Encyclopedia

Pyatigorsk city (1989 pop. 129,500), Stavropol Territory, SE European Russia, on the Podkumok River in the N Caucasus. It is a rail terminus and a health resort. The city has an electrotechnical industry, shops for the repair of agricultural equipment, and factories that produce food, clothing, footwear, and other items for resort visitors. The name Pyatigorsk [Rus.,=five mountains] derives from the five peaks of the Besh-Tau Mts. that overlook the city. Founded in 1780, Pyatigorsk has been a spa since 1803. There is a museum devoted to the memory of the Russian poet M. Y. Lermontov, who was shot in a duel at Pyatigorsk in 1841.

The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, 2001.

Pyatigorsk is a small town hidden in the Northern Caucasus Mountains.

Pyatigorsk is located in the South of Stavropol region in the middle of the Caucasian Mineral Waters area. The name of the town means "Five Mountains Town". This place is a famous Russian mineral water resort and even during the time of the tsars the nobles would come to drink, bathe and relax in mineral waters of Pyatigorsk and recover their health.

Pyatigorsk is one of the oldest spa resorts in Russia. The city was founded at the foot of Mt Mashuk in 1780. The health resort provides unique medical resources, and its underground wealth supplies 50 different mineral springs of 5 different types. One of the most effective spas of Russia, it has been developed on the basis of the local curative springs, medical mud taken from Lake Tambukan located 10 km from Pyatigorsk, and the mild climate of the area. It is one of 116 historical towns of the Russian Federation. The history of Pyatigorsk is rich with bright, significant events, and now it is the cultural center of Stavropol region as this land preserves the memory of one of the greatest poets of the world Mikhail Lermontov.

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How to get there and away

The airport and mainline train station are located in the city of Meneralnye Vody and are linked to all spa towns by buses and a good local train service.

Air Daily services to/from Mineralnye Vody in June, July and Uagust include: Moscow (1-3 hours, three daily), Baku (four a week), Batumi (one a week), St. Petersburg (three a week), Tashkent (twice a week), Tbilisi (one a week) and Yerevan (daily). There are also weekly flights to Istanbul, Munich and Tel Aviv.

Train The easiest and, no doubt, the most comfortable way to travel to Russian Mineral Water Spas is by train arriving in Mineralnye Vody. Mineralnye Vody station has several trains a day to/from Moscow (29 hours) and Rostov-on-Don (9 hours), daily trains to Krasnodar (8 hours), Nalchik and Vladikavkaz. Pyatigorsk and Kislovodsk are served by daily trains direct to/from St. Petersburg and Moscow via Rostov and a weekly train to/from Tynda.

Bus The Rostov-Tbilisi road goes through Mineralnye Vody and round Pyatigorsk on a bypass. Regular and frequent intercity buses and minivans serve all spa towns of the region.

Why to go

The central Caucasus begins to arise from the steppe in a fascinating landscape studded with mineral springs, mountain chains and dead volcanoes. The springs curative power has always attracted wounded, sick or holiday-minded people from all over Russia.

Today this land known as Kavkazskie Mineralnye Vody (Caucasian Mineral Waters) is the biggest holiday resort in Russia for both holidaymakers and patients. The parks and elegant spa buildings recall the late 19th century, when fashionable society came here for rest, balls and even for a spouse.

The whole region is also connected with the name of Mikhail Lermontov, great Russian poet, who lived here for some time, described the area in his bets novel A Hero of Our Time and was killed in a duel in 1841. Many local sites tell about the poet and his life in the Caucasus.

Mild climate, over 130 healing springs, verdant parks, 19th century Baths and glass galleries are the highlights of the resort experience in Stavropol region.

Geographical location and climate

Stavropol region is located on the south of the European Russia or Central Caucasus. The region is often called Kavkazskie Mineralnye Vody (Caucasian Mineral Waters). There are five main towns-resorts of Pyatigorsk, Kislovodsk, Yessentuki, Zheleznovodsk and the industrial and transport center, Mineralnye Vody. The climate of the region is mainly continental. Average winter temperature is about 4C, and average summer temperature is +20+25°C. Winters are usually mild, while summers are hot and sunny.

History

Stavropol was the Russian military supply center throughout the Caucasus campaigns that lasted until 1850s. The region is still an important industrial and cultural center of the Central Caucasus.

Stavropol, the capital city of the region, was founded in 1777 as one of the defense fortresses protecting the southern border of Russia. Since 1822 Stavropol which means town of the cross became the center of the Caucasus region. In the 18-19th centuries Stavropol was on the main post road connecting the Caucasus with central regions of European Russia, which contributed to the citys development into a large commercial and administrative center. In 1935 the city got the name of Voroshilovsk after the famous Soviet statesman K.E. Voroshilov (1881-1969). Yet, in 1943 when the city was liberated from Nazi troops, it got its ancient name of Stavropol.