Russia to Ukraine...

pangolin12

pangolin12

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5+ year member
hi, I’m looking at a Moscow trip next year where I plan to visit Moscow and Saint Petersburg, however, I have a big Saiga envy and plan to visit askania nova. Can you fly from Moscow to Crimea and then drive to askania nova? The information I have gathered on the matter ranges and is rather confusingo_O. Most other nearby places to askania nova aren’t actually that nearby and are around 3 hours or more away.
Thanks
 
pangolin12 said:
hi, I’m looking at a Moscow trip next year where I plan to visit Moscow and Saint Petersburg, however, I have a big Saiga envy and plan to visit askania nova. Can you fly from Moscow to Crimea and then drive to askania nova? The information I have gathered on the matter ranges and is rather confusingo_O. Most other nearby places to askania nova aren’t actually that nearby and are around 3 hours or more away.
Thanks
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Given the political situation at present in that corner of the world, I think it would be highly inadvisable :P

Moreover, I have a feeling that the Saiga are in the wider nature reserve and not the zoo within the reserve.
 
TeaLovingDave said:
Given the political situation at present in that corner of the world, I think it would be highly inadvisable :p

Moreover, I have a feeling that the Saiga are in the wider nature reserve and not the zoo within the reserve.
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Thanks again TLD:)
 
As Crimea is an illegally occupied part of Ukraine, if you enter Crimea on a Russian visa via Russia, Ukraine will consider it illegal entry to Ukrainian territory. So you will struggle to get to Askania Nova from Crimea and could even be arrested or deported if you try to get into the rest of Ukraine via Crimea.
 
Shirokuma said:
As Crimea is an illegally occupied part of Ukraine, if you enter Crimea on a Russian visa via Russia, Ukraine will consider it illegal entry to Ukrainian territory. So you will struggle to get to Askania Nova from Crimea and could even be arrested or deported if you try to get into the rest of Ukraine via Crimea.
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Or, indeed, if you decide to visit Crimea via Russia and then try to visit Ukraine on a future trip.
 
Thanks, how safe is Kazakhstan because it’s probably best to go to Almaty zoo? That is, if they still have saiga :p
 
It is indeed problematic up to impossible to legally cross from Crimea via land to Ukraine proper if you are an EU citizen (as opposed to a local). It is also problematic if you want to travel by air because Russian civilian planes are prohibited to enter Ukrainian airspace and vice versa.

Best way to visit safari part of Askania Nova is to book a flight from Europe to Odesa (or via Kyiev) and use one of several local travel agencies in Odesa that organise one-day bus trips there. Askania Nova is rather popular tourist target, even for locals. Friend of a friend has done this last year spontaneously with a family (when they were holidaying in Odesa, they saw an ad and booked trip on spot) and they liked it.
 
pangolin12 said:
Thanks, how safe is Kazakhstan because it’s probably best to go to Almaty zoo? That is, if they still have saiga :p
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I know a few people who have visited Kazakhstan without incident. The country is definitely doing its best to attract visitors. The UK government state in their foreign travel advice: “Most visits are trouble-free. However, mugging and theft occur in cities and rural areas. Foreigners can be targeted”.
 
Does anyone know if Almaty still have saiga? Or if anyone else has them, probably china or somewhere?
 
pangolin12 said:
Yes:)
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Ok. Read my posts here first, all are very recent, and all relate to saiga. The best place to see them is Askania Nova, in the Ukraine. When we went there, we flew to Kherson (some of us through Kiev, some of us through Istambul), spent the night, and the next morning we took a van (previously booked through an agency in Budapest, Hungary) to Askania Nova. Spent the remainder of the day in the reserve, spent the night at a hotel there, and went back to the reserve for more on the followig day. We left to Kherson at the end of the day. We were there with a group of zoo professionals, saw everything (the steppe, the zoo, the 100+ years old, artifically irrigated woodland, had an interpreter one of us arranged, and local guides. We also met the management. Great people. This was at the end of August. Summers are very hot there, so late summer/early autumn is best (or maybe the calving season in the spring). We had perfect weather. Since our visit was a 'pofessional' one, we clearly had more attention, than an average tourist. The Ukraine has a bad covid19 epidemic, so I'd wait until at least next year.
 
Greg G said:
Ok. Read my posts here first, all are very recent, and all relate to saiga. The best place to see them is Askania Nova, in the Ukraine. When we went there, we flew to Kherson (some of us through Kiev, some of us through Istambul), spent the night, and the next morning we took a van (previously booked through an agency in Budapest, Hungary) to Askania Nova. Spent the remainder of the day in the reserve, spent the night at a hotel there, and went back to the reserve for more on the followig day. We left to Kherson at the end of the day. We were there with a group of zoo professionals, saw everything (the steppe, the zoo, the 100+ years old, artifically irrigated woodland, had an interpreter one of us arranged, and local guides. We also met the management. Great people. This was at the end of August. Summers are very hot there, so late summer/early autumn is best (or maybe the calving season in the spring). We had perfect weather. Since our visit was a 'pofessional' one, we clearly had more attention, than an average tourist. The Ukraine has a bad covid19 epidemic, so I'd wait until at least next year.
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Thank you very much this has helped me a lot:)
 
Jurek7 said:
A friend went for a bird photography trip to Kazakhstan and saw wild saiga and plenty of steppe birds. Apparently not difficult if you book with a local ecotourism company.
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That's absolutely correct. I know people working in the field with saiga, if you're interested. I myself have never been, so have no personal experience. One thing is sure: speaking Russian or Kazakh is a must.
 
The friend speaks Russian. However at least some Kazakh tour operators must speak English, because a quick Google search found English adverts and tour reports of saiga photography tours.
 
Jurek7 said:
The friend speaks Russian. However at least some Kazakh tour operators must speak English, because a quick Google search found English adverts and tour reports of saiga photography tours.
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Hm. They might speak SOME English... :-) You would expect that from tour guides, you are right. But you won't get the best out of it unless you speak Russian in those parts. My best contact in the field there is actually German (and I am fluent in German)... so I really don't have any experience. Let's hope for the best! Also, saiga are very very flighty. I heard from people in the field that due to poaching they have become very weary of humans, and before you can see them even with binoculars, they are gone. If you want to get close, and would specifically go for photography, and not observation in the wild, go to Askania Nova. You can take stunning pictures there.
 
An alternative would be Mongolia. Here is an interesting photography report from last year, there is a hide, too:
Wild Saiga Antelope Watching and Photography: May 2019 - Mammal Watching
I think mammalwatching and cluodbirders would give more reports.

The same friend has been to Mongolia too, with a local tour operator. He was very focused on photographing particular birds, but saw wild Przewalski horses and many other mammals.

From his description, Mongolia is also well organized tour, and again there are local tour operators, but one needs a week or two due to long distances. However there is lots of other steppe wildlife besides saiga during this time. And it is possible doing it on moderate prices, much lower than e.g. a similar time in famous African national parks would cost.
 
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