On the southern shore of Lake Kasplya in the park area is theeco-hotel Borviha. It is a complex of wooden comfortable houses and a log main building. From the outside, it resembles a manor built in the style of Russian architecture. Inside – finish in the Empire style. Fashionable in the first half of the 19th century, the design has crossed centuries and now surrounds the exquisite charm of the guestsof “Borviha”.
Location and history
The hotel is built on the territory of the village of Pilichki, Smolensk region. This small settlement, where only 5 thousand people live, has recently been popular. Citizens and guests of Smolensk come here to relax from the bustle of the city, noise, breathe fresh air, sit with a fishing rod on the banks of the Kletz River or the Kasplyansk reservoir.
The village is located 34 km from Smolensk by highway. The nearest airport receiving international flights is located in Bryansk. The distance from it to the center of Smolensk is 270 km. You can use other airlines and fly to the airports:
- Gomel Belarus – 326 km;
- Minsk National – 333 km;
- Garbtsevo Kaluga – 335 km;
- Minsk 1 – 370 km.
Then use the services of public transport (intercity bus services or railway). From Smolensk to Pilichek there is a bus number 161. It departs from the central bus station. Get off at the penultimate stop “Pilichki”.
7 km from the village is a regional highway P133. It connects Smolensk and Nevel. The road route follows the same road as the bus route. Car owners are provided with free parking.
By train from the station Smolensk-Central you need to get to the station Lelekvinskaya (travel time 1 hour 10 minutes). Then use local transport. The distance from Lelekvinskaya to Pilichek is 12 km.
Important! The hotel does not arrange transfers. Issues related to arrival and departure, guests decide on their own.
“Great place for a weekend or vacation 5 hours drive from Moscow on the excellent Minsk highway. Here you rest your body and soul. Around the pine forest, very pleasant air. Direct access to the water to the beach of the Kasplyansk reservoir. In summer, you can ride bicycles, fry kebabs (there are enough barbecues for everyone), go for mushrooms and berries. I recommend staying in hotel rooms. The cottages have less light, and the rooms have panoramic windows» Nadezhda, Russia
Room stock
The hotel provides guests with two accommodation options – in a separate cottage or hotel room. Houses are better to rent a company or a family of 4 or more people. The rooms are usually settled by couples, single travelers and newlyweds. Both places are different in terms of cost of living, design and equipment:
- Cottages are two-storey log houses with a balcony and terrace. Available – 3 cottages. Each has 3 bedrooms (two double and one single), a living room combined with a kitchen, a bathroom with a shower, household appliances. There are no decorative elements in the design. There is ordinary furniture, a soft sofa, a wooden dining table and chairs. The view from the balcony and terrace opens onto the lake. Nearby there is a mangal zone (each cottage has its own). The paths between the houses and the main building are tiled under the paving stones. Around – pine forest with paths and well-groomed alleys.
- Hotel rooms are located in the administrative building. In the fund – 18 rooms with exquisite decoration and specially selected furniture. The windows are panoramic, there is a lot of light and space in the rooms. The bathroom is combined with a shower. There are luxury apartments for the newlyweds.
The reception desk is located on the ground floor of the main building. If there is no kettle or coffee maker in the room, you can always take them at the reception. Check-in starts from 14.00, check-out time – 12.00. For extra time will have to pay extra.
Pay attention! Pets are strictly prohibited.
“Lovely place to stay with family. We came in August with children and grandmother, lived in a cottage. I want to note the beautiful nature, proximity to the lake, own gazebo with barbecue. Unfortunately, the place is not at all adapted for wheelchair users. The second disadvantage is that it is not allowed to check in with a dog. For recreation areas located in nature, this is wrong. You can lose all customers» Olga, Russia
Meals and restaurants
Catering is handled by a restaurant decorated in the style of a hunting lodge. The dining room is designed for 48 seats. In summer, a terrace is also open. The interior uses decorative elements in the form of stuffed wild animals and birds, wooden carved furniture, forged chandeliers. Prices are above average. Boarding is not available. The kitchen is open only on the menu. Takeaway meals are available on request, so you can eat on the terrace near the house or on the balcony of the hotel room.
“The restaurant has a small menu. Here they cook delicious fish and sculpt dumplings themselves. An important advantage is the availability of a children’s menu. It’s very beautiful. Moose roam the territory, which can be fed with carrots» Tatiana, Russia
There are no restaurants or cafes in Pilichki. A supermarket “Pyaterochka” was opened, where you can buy food for dinner. Usually guests come to the hotel with their own food, which is stored in refrigerators. They are installed in each room. Those living in cottages prepare their own meals. In hotel rooms stay guests, who usually eat in the restaurant.
Leisure and entertainment
The hotel provides vacationers with leisure and entertainment services. There is magnificent nature here. In the pine forest there are paths for walking and cobblestone paths for bicycles. Sports equipment rental is available in the main building. In summer, guests like to walk on mushrooms, berries, as well as collect medicinal herbs.
Lake Kasplya is a traditional venue for sport fishing competitions. The right to fish is also granted to hotel guests. The reservoir is found pike, pikeperch, crucian carp, bream, chub, roach, redfish, minnow and crucian carp.
For the preparation of catch or kebabs there are barbecue areas. These are free-standing gazebos with a brazier. Each cottage has its own barbecue. For guests from the number of rooms there are also enough places on the territory of the complex. Guests staying at the hotel do not have to pay extra for a picnic area. Accessories, coal, ignition fluid are purchased from the administrator. The gazebos are covered with thatched roofs, electricity is provided to them, a table and benches for 6 people are installed.
You will have to pay for visiting the bath complex. The hotel is equipped with:
- Russian bath;
- Turkish hammam;
- Finnish sauna;
- infrared sauna;
- salt room;
- hot tub.
There is an indoor swimming pool. It is open all year round. Admission is paid. The pool is equipped with a geyser, countercurrent, underwater massage. Through a separate exit you can go down to the lake. Stone steps lead to it. On the upper deck there is a lounge area with sun loungers and views of the lake water surface.
Downstairs is a private beach. Boats and sap surfs are available for hire. Here you can sunbathe and swim. A walk on the lake by boat will bring pleasure to lovers of a relaxing holiday.
The sports complex is another place where vacationers spend their leisure time with health benefits. It is divided into two zones. In one there is a gym with the latest simulators. In the other half there is an indoor court for playing tennis or basketball. Badminton and darts equipment is given free of charge.
On the second floor of the restaurant there is a billiard room. Professional tables are installed here, the necessary lighting is carried out. There is a seating area. Waiters will accept an order for food and drinks.
Recreational opportunities for children
The hotel complex“Borviha” acceptschildren of any age. Baby cots are available for a fee. As of February 2021, they cost parents 300 rubles per night. The cost of extra beds must be clarified with the administrator. It may depend on the season, the number of guests and other factors.
The children’s menu of the restaurant includes chicken soup, spaghetti with sausages, naguets with mashed potatoes, meat cutlets, vegetable salad. For dessert, ice cream, milkshakes and strudel are available.
A safe children’s playground is available on site. It is decorated in the form of a wooden fort, around which there are favorite children’s entertainment facilities:
- swing:
- slide:
- rope ladders;
- Climbing wall.
The site meets safety standards and is made of environmentally friendly materials, including harmless plastic.
At any time, you can take board games or puzzles from the administrator. All rooms and cottages have satellite TV with children’s channels and free wireless internet access.
Excursions and attractions nearby
The ancient land of Smolensk region keeps the memory of the thousand-year history of mankind. Here was the trade route “From the Varangians to the Greeks”. In the vicinity of the village of Pilichki vacationers can visit:
- Ancient settlement (1.1 km) of The Dnieper-Dvina times. The settlement dates back to the 1st millennium BC. Fortified with defensive ramparts, the place once served as a reliable village for the first Smolensk people.
- Kurgan (1 km) is a funerary monument of the X century. It has a spherical shape. The height reaches 2.4 meters.
- Selishche of the mid-1st millennium BC it is located 1 km southwest from Pilichek.
- The site of primitive people of the Neolithic era is located on the banks of the river Kletz.
The hotel does not provide excursion services for vacationers. If there is a desire, you can go to Smolensk for a day and see the sights of the ancient city. There are a lot of them, so it is desirable to make the trip thematic.
The city is rich in architectural objects of historical value. Among them, Orthodox churches stand out. Three of them have survived since the 12th century. This is:
- Church of Peter and Paul on Gorodyanka;
- Church of St. John the Evangelist;
- Church of Michael the Archangel.
The oldest civil building is a forge on Lenin Street, 8a. The inactive Catholic Church of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary is built in the neo-Gothic style. It is gradually destroyed, but its majesty can be appreciated by walking along Uritsky Street.
Peter and Paul Church on Gorodyanka belongs to the pre-Mongol period. The Smolensk fortress wall, built in the period from 1595 to 1602, is a monument of federal significance. Its construction was supervised by the Russian architect Fyodor Kon. During the War of 1812, most of it was destroyed by Napoleon’s troops. Restoration work was completed on the eve of the 1145th anniversary of the founding of Smolensk.
There are 4 theaters in the city (drama, youth theater, chamber and puppet theater). There are dozens of museums. The most interesting of them are:
- Smolensk Historical Museum;
- “Smolensk – the shield of Russia”;
- “Smolensk flax”;
- “In the world of fairy tales”;
- Zoo-exotarium.
Lovers of handicraft art should look into the Creative Pottery Workshop “Smolensk Hut”.
Guests come toBorvihafor other adventures. They like the tranquility of the local nature, the coziness and comfort of the rooms. There is no need to think about what to feed the children or where to spend their free time. The complex of services is quite satisfied with the guests. The restaurant is fed, there is a wellness center with baths and other procedures, the staff is focused on the client. After the first visit here I want to come back again. It is best to come by your own transport.
