The palace was designed by the famous English architect Edward Blore. The northern facade embodies typical features of the English Tudor style and resembles the contours of Mount Ay-Petri that dominates the whole area, whereas the southern facade displays oriental decoration and resembles the famous Alhambra in Grenada. A strikingly beautiful Lions Terrace leads down to the Italian park and the sea. It is hard to imagine the place more romantic than the Alupka Palace with its exquisite and lavish decor and an extensive collection of arts, marble sculptures and paintings.

In 1998 celebrated its 150 th anniversary of the Vorontsov Palace, located in Alupkinskoe estate of Count Mikhail Semenovich Vorontsov, governor-general of the Novorossiysk Territory, a prominent military and political figures of Russia of the XIX century.

Author of the project was an English court architect E. Blore, which owns the idea of structures of Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey. With experience, skill, talent and taste of the Blorom Vorontsov, was brought up and educated in London, the palace is a remarkable harmony of eastern and western styles.

Masterpiece of creative imagination Blore - the southern facade, decorated with a truly Oriental splendor. Arch horseshoe-shaped, two-tiered set, a magnificent carving of gypsum in a niche with the image of a lotus. The frieze inscription niche Arabic script, and six repeat the saying of the Quran: "And there is no god but Allah."

Here, the walls of the southern facade, begin terraces pridvortsovoy part of the park. Pearl it - marble sculptures of lions, located at the sides of the stairs leading to the southern entrance. Left, at the bottom on a high pedestal rests a sleeping lion. On the opposite side of the lion, as if alarmed by the sound of someone steps up and listens. Above the couple is awakened, and in niche Southern entrance - two keepers of the lion, as if frozen in the palace guard. The inscription on the pedestal, the sleeping lion says that all six statues made of marble in the studio of the Italian sculptor V. Bonane.

Northern part of the palace is different severity of style, typical of the XVI century England. It appears that you have experienced during the reign of Elizabeth Tudor and visited one of the palace villas of the time. It opens a magnificent view of the majestic Mount Ai-Petri.

Main entrance to the palace is situated on the west side. In the first minutes of attracting the attention of the clock tower with the battle, set in 1841. Circular watch towers, crenellated walls of the deaf, the window-slits - all are reminiscent of knights of feudal castles of the novels of Walter Scott.

Alupka Palace - multifaceted and interesting phenomenon in architecture not only his time, but in our days. Each case Vorontsov Palace resembles a certain age and this is completely different mood. But the combination in a single building different architectural styles is not impressed pretentiousness - the palace looks like a unique, coherent ensemble. It is a rare blend in with the picturesque panorama of Alupka. Its majestic tower, curly tops of many towers, battlements of the walls create an openwork silhouette, as if echoing the relief of Ai-Petrinskaya mountain ridge, the top of which she recalls the romantic ruins of an ancient castle. It creates the feeling that you are making a journey of history, that the palace was built not once, but was built over many centuries. "I do not know what is more worthy of curiosity and wonder: Does a vast castle, built from the Crimean stone, the hardness of which can not crush the century, or the fabulous gardens with trees and flowers and charm that can not imagine not seeing them," - said in the past century Russian explorer, O. Shishkina on Alupkinskoe park.

The Yalta Conference mainly took place in Livadia Palace, but preliminary discussions of issues to be put on the agenda were conducted at the meetings of foreign ministers, which were held, on an alternate basis, in each delegation`s accomodation place.

Twice (on February 8 and 10) these meetings gathered in the Main Dining-Hall of the Alupka Palace. It was here on February 8, 1945. that the number of countries-participants of the Constituent Conference of the United Nations Organization was finally determined, time and place of its calling fixed.

And today, who has once visited Alupka Park, can hardly forget the majestic silhouette of Mount Ai-Petri, the endless expanse of the sea, the picturesque coastal cliffs, and, of course, the unusual architecture of the palace that overlooks the greenery of the beautiful old park.

You can get there by direct flight to Simferopol or through Kiev or Odessa.