(Source: https://www.tourister.ru)

The Mountain Akhun located near the Greater Sochi is very popular among tourists and residents of the city. Bolshoy Akhun (“Big Akhun”) rising to 663 meters above sea level is the most interesting. Due to its height, the mountain stands out against the background of the Orliniye Cliffs and Maly Akhun (“Small Akhun”), giving a unique opportunity to enjoy panoramic views of the surrounding territory.

There are a lot of interesting things here: an observation tower considered to be a landmark object of Sochi and a Ferris wheel that has been recently built on top. The cafe and restaurant offer Caucasian cuisine, and the tasting room offers liqueurs infused with different herbs. In memory of the visit, you can buy souvenirs in shops and take photos against the background of picturesque local scenery.

The name of Akhun Mountain is associated with the mythological deity Akhyn. He was great, powerful and rich, possessed big herds and could jump from one mountain to another with the help of his long staff. His appearance caused genuine fear of those who surrounded him, but did not frighten a beautiful daughter of some influential gentleman. She fell in love with the giant Akhyn and married him, although her father strongly opposed her choice. Once the father-in-law managed to get to the staff of Akhun and make a cut in it, but the mighty giant did not notice this. When he tried to cross the gorge, the stick broke, Akhyn fell down from a great height into the river and died.

The tower on Akhun Mountain, a Romanesque-style building, was erected in 1936 by the order of Stalin, during a record-breaking short time. The development of the project was commissioned to the architect S. Vorobyov. A year before, a highway had been laid to the top. The upper platform offers magnificent views of the mountains, the resort city of Sochi and the Black Sea (the distance to the coast expressed by a straight line is only 3 kilometers). If you want to climb higher than 30 meters, you have to do this on foot, but the panoramic view is worth it. Inside the tower there is a tasting room; the cozy “Akhun” restaurant and a tea room are located next to it. Carved art objects are placed and a small lawn is arranged on a small territory. Indoor wooden pavilions and souvenir shops are located along the pedestrian road, and the “Prokhlada” Cafe is located closer to the parking lot. PIK 701 entertainment centre with the highest point of panoramic view in Sochi is located several hundred meters from the Akhun Tower.

The observation platform offers amazing views of the sea, city landscapes and the Imereti Lowland. The Ferris wheel raising people to a height of 701 meters above the sea level offers the view of Olympic objects and allows you to admire the peaks of the mountains of the Great Caucasus Range.