Europe's highest peak · 5,642 m
Elbrus VIP — All-Inclusive Climb
All-inclusive VIP climb of Elbrus from the south: single rooms in 4–5★ hotels, premium gear provided, 1 guide per 2 climbers, individual transfers.
- Duration
- 10 days
- Max altitude
- 5,642 m
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Group size
- From 2 people · 1 guide per 2 climbers
- Region
- Elbrus
From€5,240/ person
Next date
24 Jul
- 4.9 traveller rating
- 95% summit success
- No payment to book
Overview
About this tour
The VIP climb is a programme thought through to the last detail, from your preparation at home to the summit at 5,642 m. It offers maximum comfort, service and personal attention at every stage, with professional instructors at a ratio of 1 to 2, gradual acclimatisation and a complete safety system.
Almost everything you need is included: premium personal equipment and clothing, single rooms in 4–5★ hotels and the LeapRus high-altitude hut, three meals a day, individual airport transfers, cable cars and snowcats, mountaineering insurance and all safety equipment. A snowcat takes the group up to 5,100 m on summit day, so the climb on foot is shorter than on the standard programme.
No special mountaineering experience is needed, but you should be healthy, in good physical shape and prepared for long efforts at altitude. Preparation starts before the trip: an individual consultation with an instructor, an assessment of your fitness, personal recommendations and a training programme.
- One guide per two climbers on the mountain, including Masters of Sport
- Premium personal gear and clothing provided as part of the price
- Single rooms in 4–5★ hotels and the LeapRus hut comfort module with a panoramic window
- Snowcat to 5,100 m on summit day, shortening the climb on foot
- Individual airport meeting and transfers, professional photography and mountaineering insurance with helicopter evacuation
- Personal pre-trip consultation, fitness assessment and training programme
Day by day
Itinerary
Weather may change the order of days; your guide always has a reserve plan.
- Day1
Arrival and meeting in Pyatigorsk
525 mArrive the day before or on this day. You are met individually at Mineralnye Vody airport (MRV) and take part in an organisational meeting at our Pyatigorsk office (Lenin Square 13, Intourist hotel), where we issue your gear and clothing and sign the paperwork. Each participant has an individual visiting slot between 8:00 and 18:00. Night in a single room at the boutique Lermontov Baths hotel 5★ with breakfast.
- Day2
Briefing and drive to Terskol
2,144 mFinal equipment check at the office from 8:00 to 10:00, then a briefing with your guide at 10:00. We load the bags and drive 174 km to the Elbrus area, about 3–3.5 hours; passport checks are possible on the way, and we stop for lunch at a roadside café. Check in to the 4★ hotel in Terskol, stroll around the village, have dinner and attend a short briefing on tomorrow's acclimatisation day.
- Day3
First acclimatisation — Mount Cheget
3,050 mAfter breakfast we make our first outing, up Mount Cheget (3,050 m) with views over the Baksan gorge, Donguz-Orun (4,454 m) and Nakra-Tau (4,277 m). Lunch on Cheget looks across to Elbrus. We ride the cable car down and walk back to the hotel.
- Day4
Second acclimatisation — on Elbrus to 4,100 m
4,100 mAfter breakfast we transfer to the Azau meadow and ride the cable car to Garabashi station (3,900 m). We then make an acclimatisation outing to 4,100 m (5.4 km), with snow-and-ice practice and a lesson in walking in crampons. Descend to the cable car and return to the hotel.
Comfort
Accommodation & meals
Pyatigorsk — Lermontov Baths boutique hotel 5★
One night in a comfortable single room with breakfast, in a historic hotel in the centre of the resort area next to the Tsvetnik park. Rooms have a private bathroom, air conditioning, TV and Wi-Fi.
Terskol — Ozon Seven Summits 4★
Three nights in a single room with a private bathroom, Wi-Fi and TV, close to the cable cars and acclimatisation routes. Breakfast and dinner are served in the hotel restaurant.
LeapRus hut, about 3,900 m
Three to five nights in a comfort module with a panoramic window facing the mountains, with shower, toilet, Wi-Fi and a sleeping bag. The modern hut combines an expedition camp with hotel-level comfort: heating, hot water, a drying room for clothes and gear, a buffet restaurant and a system of signal lights at night.
Meals
Full board: breakfast and dinner at the Terskol hotel with packed lunches on outings, a buffet at the LeapRus hut, and breakfast in Pyatigorsk.
Price details
What's included
Included
- Professional mountaineering instructors, 1 per 2 climbers on the ascent, including Masters of Sport
- All necessary premium personal equipment and clothing (except thermal base layers, fleece top, warm hat, fleece gloves and trekking socks, which you can buy from us)
- Single rooms throughout: 3 nights in a 4★ hotel in Terskol, 3–5 nights in a comfort module at the LeapRus hut and 1 night in the 5★ Lermontov Baths hotel in Pyatigorsk with breakfast
- Full board as described
- Individual airport meeting and transfer to our Pyatigorsk office before the tour and back to the airport afterwards, at a time that suits you
- All group transfers on comfortable transport
- All cable-car rides up and down on Elbrus and Cheget
- Snowcat from the hut to 5,100 m on summit day and back, plus snowcat or snowmobile from the cable-car station to the hut for you and your baggage
- Safety equipment: satellite phone, radios, GPS navigator, first-aid kit, registration with the emergency services, pulse oximeter and daily oxygen-saturation checks
- Mountaineering oxygen kit (4 L cylinder, regulator and mask) and contact with the company doctor by satellite or mobile
- Mountaineering insurance with helicopter evacuation
- All group equipment: ropes, ice screws and more
- Individual consultation with an instructor, fitness assessment and training recommendations before the climb, and access to an online preparation channel
- An individual trial hypoxic training session in Moscow at the HYPX Systems centre
- Professional photography during the tour
- Branded Elbrus Expert long-sleeve top, cap and buff, an "Elbrus" medal and a summit certificate
- Official Russian Mountaineering Federation summit badge and an entry in the official climber's book (if you reach the summit)
- Prielbrusye National Park entry fee and registration of foreign citizens in the Elbrus area
- Luggage storage in Pyatigorsk for the duration of the tour
Not included
- Flights to and from Mineralnye Vody (MRV)
- A few items of personal clothing that are not rented: thermal base layers, fleece top, warm hat, fleece gloves, trekking socks (available to buy from us)
Dates & prices
Choose your date
Small international groups. Booking is free — we confirm details with you before any payment.
24 Jul – 2 Aug 2027
10 days
Regular price€6,040Now€5,240per personGuidesAvailableBe the first
Need other dates or a private group? — we organise departures on request.
Packing list
Required equipment
What to bring for this programme. Most technical items can be rented from us — no need to fly with them.
Equipment — provided
- Crampons (Petzl Vasak)Rent
- Ice axe (Petzl Summit Evo)Rent
- Summit backpack 35–40 L, at least 70 cm tallRent
- Expedition duffel 100–120 LRent
- Climbing helmet (Petzl)Rent
- Harness (Petzl) with 3 carabiners and self-belay lanyardRent
- Headlamp (Petzl or Black Diamond)Rent
- Sleeping bag, comfort −5 to −10 °C · available at the LeapRus hutRent
- Mountain glasses, protection category 3–4 (Cebe or Julbo)Rent
- Ski goggles, category 2 or higher (Julbo or Oakley)Rent
- Thermos 1–1.2 LRent
Clothing — provided
- Mountaineering boots (double or triple)Rent
- Warm down jacket with a hood that fits over a helmet · at least 250–300 g of quality down, ideally fill power 700+Rent
- Extreme mittens (Mountain Hardwear Absolute Zero Gore-Tex Down or similar)Rent
- Down trousers or climbing breechesRent
- Softshell trousersRent
Clothing — bring or buy from us
- Trekking shoes or trainers, preferably with a waterproof membrane
- Polartec fleece jacket, 200–300 weight
- Thin helmet-liner hat
- Warm Polartec gloves
- Trekking socks · 2–3 pairs
- Thin socks · 2 pairs
- Rain poncho
- Synthetic T-shirts, compression bags, buff and cap · one T-shirt, the bags, buff and cap are included in the tour
First-aid kit
- Personal first-aid kit: gauze bandage, adhesive plaster, antiseptics, antihistamines, remedies for fever and colds, stomach tablets, elastic bandage, haemostatic, and any medication for personal chronic conditions
RentAll mandatory equipment and clothing is provided as part of the VIP price. Only a few base-layer items are not rented; you can buy them from us in Pyatigorsk or bring your own.
Your team
Guides on this tour
Certified mountain guides who speak English and lead this route every season.
Reviews
What our travellers say
55 reviews on TripAdvisor
210 reviews on Google- Google
“Комфортный тур на западную вершину Эльбруса с юга с Сергеем Тарасовым. Это был не просто тур, а кинотур! Довольна всем! Организация на высшем уровне. Питание, трансфер, безопасность, аренда снаряжения - понравилось абсолютно всё! Спасибо огромное за эмоции и впечатления!”
ННаиля Филиппова September 2026 - Google
“Пользуюсь услугами компании не первый раз и планирую дальше с ними путешествовать: отличная компания, профессиональные гиды.”
AAleks September 2026 - TripAdvisor
Подъём на Эльбрус! Западная вершина.
“Поднялись с группой на западную вершину Эльбруса! У нас был опытный гид Алексей Сикилинда, который грамотно выждал погоду, и мы успешно взошли на вершину. Были ребята, которые говорили что им всё равно на погоду, ведь они идут с Ксенией Котляр, и пошли на день раньше. Но взойти на вершину у них не вышло, и они вернулись назад. А мы зашли) Спасибо опыту Алексея). Компания была максимально разношёрстная - плотник, доктор, менеджер и торговый представитель. Несмотря на это все нашли общий язык и поддерживали друг друга во время всего тура) Что конечно же положительно повлияло на успех восхождения. В целом о поездке впечатление отличное, всё было хорошо - трансфер, снаряжение, питание. Спасибо компании Эльбрус Эксперт за прекрасный тур!”
ССергей М September 2026
FAQ
Good to know
How does the VIP climb differ from the other Elbrus South tours?
The route is the same classic South route, but you climb with one instructor per two participants, stay in single rooms in 4–5★ hotels and a comfort module at the hut, and receive individual transfers, premium gear and insurance with helicopter evacuation. On summit day a snowcat takes the group to 5,100 m, so the climb on foot takes 5–7 hours instead of 8–10.
Do I need mountaineering experience?
No special experience is required, but you must be healthy, in good physical shape and prepared for long efforts at altitude. Preparation starts before the trip with an individual consultation, a fitness assessment and a training programme from your instructor.
How do I get there and when should I arrive?
Fly into Mineralnye Vody (MRV); we meet you individually at the airport and drive you to our Pyatigorsk office, about 27 km. Arrive the day before the start or on day 1; the office receives participants from 8:00 to 18:00. After the programme we take you back to the airport at a time that suits you, and you can book your return flight once the schedule is clear.
How do I book?
You secure your place with a booking deposit of about €990, which fixes the price; you can also pay for the tour in full. The tour runs with at least 2 participants.
What happens if the weather is bad?
Day 9 serves for the descent if the group is delayed, and day 10 is a full reserve day for bad weather, so the summit push can be moved.
The mountain is waiting
Ready for your summit?
From €5,240 per person. Pick a date now — we confirm everything personally, no payment at this step.