Small fairytale castle Swallow’s Nest overhangs a cliff above the Black Sea, near Yalta, Ukraine.
Hovering precariously on the Aurora Cliff 130 feet above the Black Sea, Swallow’s Nest is a small Neo-Gothic castle designed by Russian architect Leonid Sherwood.
In 1911 Baron von Steinheil, a Baltic German noble who made his fortune developing Baku oilfields, bought the land and commissioned the building. Said to be homesick for his native country, von Steinheil patterned it after his memories of knight castles from the middle Ages.
Local legend claims von Steinheil built Swallow’s Nest as a surprise for his wife, naming it “Castle of Love”. Unfortunately, von Steinheil’s wife was deathly afraid of heights and therefore never lived in the castle.
Another legend says the Baron built the castle for his mistress.
Perhaps all of these “legends” are just good stories made up by tour guides.
Regardless within two years, von Steinheil sold his “Castle of Love” in 1914, to P. Shelaputin who planned to use the building as a restaurant.
A major earthquake
In 1927, the castle survived a serious earthquake. While the building only suffered minor damage, the cliff on which it sets developed a large crack. Swallow’s Nest was closed to the public for more than 40 years due to the damage it suffered in that quake.
In 1968, a concrete plate was added to stabilize the cliff and Swallow’s Nest was renovated. A top-rated Italian restaurant opened in the building in 1975, which still operates today.
Swallow’s Nest hangs over the cliff above the Black Sea. Photo by Vyacheslav Argenberg.
With a size of only 65ft by 33ft, the castle is compact. It’s observation deck circles the building providing views of the Black Sea, Bear Mountains, and in the distance, the city of Yalta.
Getting to Swallow’s Nest
We visited the Swallow’s Nest, the Alupka Palace and other highlights of Yalta on a Black Sea cruise on Holland America’s ms Prinsendam. Read about our visit here – Palaces, lazy lions and Massandra wine.
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