Weekend tour “Kamenka – Rashkov – Valya-Adynka – Podoyma”
Escape to the most historically rich and scenically dramatic corner of Pridnestrovie on this perfectly organized three-day self-drive weekend tour — a 100 km journey through the Kamenka district that takes in ancient churches, a legendary outlaw’s grotto, Stalin’s Line fortifications, an aristocratic park and one of the most charming riverside estates in the republic.
The route visits the Holy Trinity Church, the Church of St. Cajetan, the ruins of the Synagogue and Intercession Church, the house-museum of Fyodor Zharchinsky, the Grotto of Karmaliuk, the Church of St. Paraskeva of the Balkans, the Historical and Cultural Complex “Stalin’s Line” in Podoyma, the estate “At Dim Dimych” and the park and crypt of the Wittgenstein family.
Excursions at each site can be arranged on request. Guides are available throughout the tour for 5 rubles per hour per group.
📞 For excursions in Rashkov, Valya-Adynka and Kamenka, contact the Municipal Department of Culture of the Kamenka District: +373 216 21312 | +373 216 21294 📞 To book “Stalin’s Line” excursion: Vasily Mikhailovich: +373 779 68654 🚗 Car rental: +373 775 35831 (WhatsApp, Telegram, Viber) | +373 533 55955
Day 1 — Arrival in Kamenka: The Northern Capital Welcomes You
17:00 — Depart Tiraspol and head north through the Pridnestrovian countryside toward Kamenka.
19:30 — Arrive in Kamenka and check into your accommodation at the Emperia Recreation Center (1b Dniester Str., Kamenka):
- 🏨 Tourist Complex “Sport-Cruise” — from 450 rubles/night
- 🏨 Hotel-Restaurant Complex “Coliseum” — from 120 rubles/person/night
20:00 — Dinner at the Restaurant “Imperia” (from 100 rubles) or at the Hotel-Restaurant Complex “Coliseum” (full board from 150 rubles) — a warm and comfortable introduction to the cuisine of the northern district after the journey from Tiraspol.
Day 2 — Rashkov and Valya-Adynka: Ancient Churches, Rocks and an Outlaw’s Grotto
09:00 — Breakfast at Restaurant “Imperia” (from 50 rubles) or “Coliseum” (full board from 150 rubles)
10:00 — Departure for the village of Rashkov — one of the oldest settlements in Pridnestrovie, with a history stretching back to 1402 and a remarkable concentration of historical and cultural landmarks within walking distance of each other.
The Rashkov walking tour visits six extraordinary sites:
The Church of the Holy Trinity (Rashkov village, Kamenka district) — one of the oldest churches in Pridnestrovie, housing the venerated icon of the Spas Nerukotvornyi, to which the faithful have attributed miraculous powers for generations.
Just 530 meters away, the St. Cajetan Catholic Church (Rashkov village, Kamenka district) stands as a rare testament to Rashkov’s multicultural past — a Catholic church that once served the Polish community of this ancient village.
After 420 meters, the haunting Ruins of the Synagogue (Bazarnaya Str., Rashkov village) bear silent witness to the once-thriving Jewish community that shaped this village’s identity across centuries.
Just 31 meters further, Panska Krynitsa (Rashkov village) — a legendary natural spring steeped in local folklore — offers fresh water and a moment of reflection before continuing.
After 650 meters, Chervona (Red) Rock (Rashkov village) rises dramatically above the village — one of the most striking natural landmarks in the Kamenka district, its rust-red face visible from a considerable distance.
Just 62 meters away, the atmospheric Ruins of the Intercession Church (Pokrovskaya Str., Rashkov village) bring the Rashkov tour to a contemplative close — a hauntingly beautiful remnant of a once-active parish that closed with the turbulence of the 20th century.
After 1.5 km, the Museum of Hero of the Soviet Union F.I. Zharchinsky (35 Fiodora Zharchinskogo Str., Rashkov village) honors one of Rashkov’s most celebrated sons — a deeply personal museum that connects this ancient village to the defining struggles of the Great Patriotic War.
13:00 — Lunch at the Restaurant “Dubrava” (2 Sovetskaya Str., Belochi village, Rybnitsa district) (from 150 rubles) — a welcoming restaurant in the nearby village of Belochi, perfectly positioned between the Rashkov and Valya-Adynka sections of the day.
14:00 — Departure for Valya-Adynka village (Kamenka district) — 15 km from Rashkov — for two of the most distinctive stops on the entire weekend.
The Grotto of Ustym Karmaliuk (Valya-Adynka village, Kamenka district) is a legendary natural cave associated with the celebrated Ukrainian folk hero and outlaw Ustym Karmaliuk, who operated in these borderlands during the early 19th century. His story — a peasant rebel who defied imperial authority and became a symbol of resistance — gives this atmospheric grotto a romantic and subversive energy that is entirely its own.
Just 4.4 km away, the Church of Saint Paraskeva of the Balkans (37 Zarechnaya Str., Valya-Adynka village, Kamenka district) brings the day’s adventure to a spiritual close — a church dedicated to the beloved healer saint of the Orthodox Balkans whose veneration spread northward along the very routes of imperial expansion.
18:00 — Dinner at Restaurant “Imperia” (from 100 rubles) or “Coliseum” (full board from 150 rubles)
Overnight at Tourist Complex “Sport-Cruise” (from 450 rubles/night) or Hotel-Restaurant Complex “Coliseum” (from 120 rubles/person/night)
Day 3 — Kamenka, Podoyma and Dim Dimych: Parks, Fortifications and a Riverside Picnic
09:00 — Breakfast at Restaurant “Imperia” (from 100 rubles) or “Coliseum” (full board from 150 rubles)
10:00 — Sightseeing tour of Kamenka city, centered on two of the district’s most atmospheric aristocratic landmarks.
The magnificent Park of Peter Wittgenstein (Lenin Str., Kamenka) — laid out at the estate of Russian Field Marshal Prince P.Kh. Wittgenstein at the beginning of the 19th century — is one of the finest examples of imperial landscape design in Pridnestrovie. Walking its tree-lined paths, with the Dniester visible through the foliage, one feels directly the aesthetic vision of a man who fell in love with this corner of the world and shaped it according to his considerable means and taste.
Just 1.8 km away, the deeply moving Crypt of the Wittgenstein Family (Kamenka) brings the park visit to its most intimate conclusion — the final resting place of the Field Marshal and his dynasty, a family tomb that stands as the most personal monument to the imperial connection between Russia and this northern stretch of the Dniester. (Guide: 5 rubles/hour for a group)
13:00 — Lunch at Restaurant “Imperia” (from 100 rubles) or “Coliseum” (full board from 150 rubles)
14:00 — Departure 12 km south to the village of Podoyma and the extraordinary Historical and Cultural Complex “Stalin’s Line” (Podoyma village, Kamenka district) — one of the most impressive and immersive military heritage sites in all of Pridnestrovie. This carefully preserved complex of Soviet-era fortifications, weapons and historical exhibits offers an unparalleled encounter with the defensive infrastructure of the Stalin Line — the system of border fortifications that shaped the opening battles of the Great Patriotic War on this frontier. (Book in advance: Vasily Mikhailovich +373 779 68654)
15:00 — Just 2.5 km away, the charming Homestead “U Dim Dimych” — Dmitry’s Place (13a Lenina Str., Podoyma village, Kamenka district) provides the perfect finale to three days of historical discovery. Pre-book a bungalow on the banks of the Dniester and organize a riverside picnic with meat and vegetables on the grill — the river flowing past, the afternoon sun on the water and the relaxed warmth of this welcoming estate creating a close to the weekend that is as restorative as it is memorable. (Bungalow rental: 33 rubles/person/day)
18:00 — Departure back to Tiraspol, carrying three days of northern Pridnestrovie in memory and — if Dim Dimych’s grill did its job — the satisfying warmth of a perfect riverside meal in the stomach.