Thermes de Pyatigorsk

Pyatigorsk, meaning five-peaked mountain in Russian, is the oldest and most historically distinguished spa city in the North Caucasus Mineral Waters region, where bicarbonate-rich springs have been exploited since the early nineteenth century and the city's literary association with Mikhail Lermontov — who duelled and died here in 1841 — gives the spa culture a melancholic Romantic resonance unique among Russian resort cities. The famous Provalny cave baths carved into the flank of Mount Mashuk allow visitors to soak in naturally heated mineral water inside an ancient cave of geological drama, with the distinctive sulfurous atmosphere recalling the springs' deep volcanic origins beneath the Caucasian rock. The funicular railway ascending Mount Mashuk to 790 metres rewards riders with one of the Caucasus region's most celebrated panoramas, encompassing five mountain peaks including the distant snow-covered summit of Mount Elbrus, Europe's highest mountain.