Leave a comment
Last updated on May 29, 2025
South Ossetia is a breakaway republic that declared independence from Georgia in 2008.
However, it has only been recognized as an independent country by a handful of states—Russia, Venezuela, Vanuatu, Nicaragua, and Syria—making it one of those “ghost countries” that exist in a kind of geopolitical limbo.
This separatist republic, however, has always been the most difficult to visit.
This blog tell you everything you need to know to travel to South Ossetia, including visas, how to get there, places to visit and more.
You will also like: Abkhazia travel guide
In this travel guide to South Ossetia, you will find:
Introduction to traveling to South Ossetia
Why are there two Ossetias?
In 1922, as part of a broader Soviet strategy to weaken nationalist movements and centralize control the region of Ossetia was split into two:
- North Ossetia became Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (ASSR) within the Russian SFSR
- South Ossetia became an Autonomous Oblast (AO) within the Georgian SSR – the lowest level of autonomy in the Soviet system.
Over the following decades, South Ossetia pushed for a greater autonomy, which was never granted.
South Ossetia becomes an independent territory within Georgia (1991-2008)
When the USSR collapsed and Georgia became an independent country, South Ossetia became instantly part of Georgia.
Nevertheless, South Ossetians refused to be under their control, so fighting broke out between Georgian forces and South Ossetian separatists.
A ceasefire was eventually reached, leaving South Ossetia as a de facto independent territory within Georgia. At the time, Georgians made up roughly one third of the population in South Ossetia, and the border with Georgia was open and fully operational.
Tensions, however, always remained.
South Ossetia becomes an independent country (2008)
In 2008, Georgia started a war by bombarding Tskhinvali, accusing Russia of violating agreements by sending troops through the Roki Tunnel and distributing Russian passports to South Ossetians
That short, 5-day war ended with South Ossetia becoming a fully independent country, but only recoginzed by:
It is also recognized by the non-recognized Republics of Abkhazia and Transnistria.
Read our travel guide to Transnistria.
Why isn’t Russia absorbing South Ossetia?
Russia already absorbed Crimea, while Ukraine is work in progress, why not taking over South Ossetia?
Russia already gets a lot of benefits from South Ossetia, they fully control it economically and military, but not making it formally part of Russia benefits them even further: it blocks Georgia from joining NATO, since the alliance won’t admit a country with unresolved border disputes.
How to get a visa for South Ossetia
For visiting South Ossetia you will need to apply for a permit, which will allow you to collect your visa on arrival at the border.
Permits can only be issued by the South Ossetian migration office, so you’ll need someone local – such as a friend, guide or tour operator – to apply on your behalf.
This local person doesn’t necessarily need to be South Ossetian, but Russians can also obtain the permit for you at the respective office in Vladikavkaz (North Ossetia).
Keep in mind that permits take 30 to 60 days to be issued, so apply well in advance.
What are the South Ossetian permit requirements?
A passport copy and a double-entry Russian visa.
Russia considers South Ossetia as an independent country so, when entering South Ossetia from Russia, you are technically leaving Russian territory and because the border between South Ossetia and Georgia is closed, you will need to return to Russia the same way you came, so a a double-entry visa is strictly required.
How can I get a double-entry Russian visa?
Check our updated Russian visa guide for all details.
Do you get any stamp or proof in your passport that you have traveled to South Ossetia?
No, you don’t.
Russia will issue a brand-new migration card, but they won’t stamp your passport.
Similarly, the visa for South Ossetia is issued as a separate piece of paper.
Therefore, except for your pictures and souvenirs, there won’t be any official proof that you’ve been to South Ossetia, meaning you can travel to Georgia afterwards without issues.
How to travel to South Ossetia
Traveling to South Ossetia from Georgia
The border between Georgia and South Ossetia has been closed since 2008.
Traveling to South Ossetia from Russia
The only way to enter South Ossetia is from Russia via the Roki Tunnel, located 1.5 hours from Vladikavkaz.
From the border to Tskhinvali, the capital of South Ossetia, it’s another 1.5 drive, so roughly 3 hours in total.
However, border formalities on the Russian side can take up to 4 hours, including waiting time and questioning.
In my case, we were 2 foreigners and the total waiting time was 2 hours and 50 minutes. The Russian authorities were friendly but did ask loads of questions, mostly related to my travels – based on the stamps in my passport. They also went through all the pictures on my phone, so make sure to delete any controversial photos before arriving.
On the other hand, the South Ossetian side didn’t take more than 10 minutes.
To be honest, I don’t know if there is any public transportation between Vladikavkaz and Tskhinvali but either way, I strongly recommend entering South Ossetia with the same person who applied for your permit.
South Ossetians and their culture
Ossetians are an ethnic group native to the central Caucasus.
Today, the population of Ossetians live spread across North Ossetia and South Ossetia, but they are essentially the same people, with their regional, local differences, just like most nations around the world.
Ossetian is the language spoken by all Ossetians, which is highly related to Iranian, but they use the Cyrillic alphabet and virtually everyone speaks impeccable Russian.
Other than that, while North Ossetia is today more developed and much closer to the Russian culture, South Ossetia remains more traditional, visible in the rural villages and lifestyle of most people in South Ossetia.
Also check: How to visit the Nenets in Yamalia
What’s South Ossetian’s opinion on Georgians?
The general opinion of South Ossetians toward Georgians is deeply negative.
Georgians are widely seen as aggressors and oppressors, blamed for carrying out ethnic cleansing and mass displacement.
This sentiment is particularly strong among the younger generation, who have grown up with no contact with Georgians and have been exposed to decades of anti-Georgian propaganda, largely driven by Russia.
That’s the general opinion, you asked for it 😉
There are some exceptions, of course—especially among older generations who coexisted with Georgians during Soviet times—but the general rule is that, according to South Ossetians, Georgians are the worst of all evils, and Russians are their saviours.
If you’re travelling in South Ossetia, it’s important not to contradict them—they are extremely sensitive about the topic, and I say this from personal experience.
As someone who lived in Georgia for almost a year and has a big sympathy for Georgians, I tried to give a balanced, unbiased opinion on that matter, not necessarily supporting Georgians, but suggesting that perhaps Georgia’s attack was influenced by obvious Russian provocations—that Russia was looking for an excuse—and that the only real beneficiary of the war was Russia.
However, it was simply impossible to convince them of any of this.
Money & budget for South Ossetia
After the collapse of the USSR in 1991, Georgia introduced the Georgian lari but Russia retained the ruble as its currency.
South Ossetia never fully integrated into post-Soviet Georgia after 1991 so, until 2008, they used both the Georgian lari and the Russian ruble.
When South Ossetia became an independent country in 2008, they abandoned the Lari for good, while adopting the Russian ruble as their official currency, mainly because they didn’t have any financial or base to support its own currency, plus they heavily rely on Russian aid, investments and all sorts of support.
Therefore, in South Ossetia, they use the Russian ruble.
Credit cards, ATM and exchanging money in South Ossetia
South Ossetia is economically integrated with Russia, so sanctions imposed on Russia equally apply here.
For more information, check the money section of our Russia travel guide.
Internet and connectivity in South Ossetia
Wi-Fi in South Ossetia
During my trip to South Ossetia, I didn’t really connect to Wi-Fi except for when I was at the hotel. It was fine.
Internet data in South Ossetia
There is weak 3G in cities and towns, good enough for simple browsing.
In South Ossetia, they use Russian mobile networks, so the same rules apply.
For more information, check the internet section of our travel guide to Russia.
Places to visit in South Ossetia: a 3-day itinerary
Unless you are planning to do some hiking, South Ossetia is a small region which you can easily visit in a few days.
Here are the places we visited in South Ossetia in 3 days.
South Ossetia itinerary map
Places to visit in South Ossetia in 3 days
Tskhinvali, capital of South Ossetia
Tskhinvali might be one of the hardest capital names in the world to pronounce.
Rather than a proper capital city, Tskhinvali feels more like a small provincial town. Its southern edge lies right at the border with Georgia.
The city is about 50km from Gori, a popular town in Georgia for being Stalin’s birthplace.
To be honest, there’s not much going on in Tskhinvali, the main highlights being things related to South Ossetia’s independence, such as the Parliament and several Georgian war memorials.
The city also houses a very insightful National Museum and intrepid travelers will certainly enjoy dropping by the embassies of Transnistria and Abkhazia, two breakaway republics with a similar status that recognize South Ossetia.
In fact, our local fixer turned out to be a friend of the Transnistria main representative, with whom we had a few glasses of wine.
Monastery of Tiri
Tiri is a beautiful Georgian Orthodox monastery dating back to the 8th century that for centuries, played a key role in the spread of Christianity in the South Caucasus.
While some locals – including our fixer – claimed the monastery is Armenian, evidence clearly suggests that it’s Georgian, since it lies within a region that was part of medieval Georgia, plus, architecturally, the ornamentation, and inscriptions are consistent with early medieval Georgian church styles, not Armenian.
Ertso Lake
Located at 1,700–1,800 meters above sea level, Ertso lake is a striking, alpine lake easily accessible from the road to Kvaisi, and a great stopover for a picnic lunch.
Kvaisi
Today, Kvaisi is a sleepy town located in western South Ossetia, bordering the province of Racha in Georgia.
Back in the day, however, this mountain town was the industrial and mining hub of South Ossetia, the legacy of which can be seen in the abandoned factories, faded murals, and concrete buildings.
If you are into urban exploration and crumbling Lenin statues and Soviet stuff, it doesn’t get any better than in Kvaisi.
Akhalgori (Leningor)
Akhalgori is the most politically sensitive town in South Ossetia.
Until 2008, Akhalgori was the only part in today’s South Ossetia still under Georgian government control, with over 90% of its population being ethnic Georgians.
The town saw no direct battle during the 2008 Russia-Georgia war but after the ceasefire was signed, South Ossetian and Russian forces took over that small piece of territory, displacing most of its Georgian population.
Akhalgori was the original Georgian name and South Ossetians reverted to its Soviet-era name, Leningor.
Alpine Brewery
Just outside of Akhalgori, there is a small beer producer named Alpine Brewery.
Your fixer should be able to arrange a visit , followed by a beer tasting, but don’t expect anything fancy. It’s a very local experience, where they’ll likely just hand you a few bottles for you to drink after the tour.
Stalin statue
Stalin: Georgian or South Ossetian?
Some Ossetians claim that Stalin was South Ossetian, but there’s no historical evidence to support this. If you ever hear it while traveling in South Ossetia, consider it a nationalist narrative rather than a fact: Stalin was born in Georgia, he was ethnically Georgian, spoke Russian with a Georgian accent and that claim was never promoted during Soviet times.
I have traveled extensively across all the former Soviet Union countries, but it was in South Ossetia where I for the first time I saw a full statue of Stalin (not just a bust) still standing in its original location, exactly where it was first erected in the 1940s.
Before this, I had seen other Stalin statues (only a few though) but they were either busts or had been moved to parks or open-air museums—no longer in their original settings.
As you know, most Stalin statues across the USSR were removed after the speech and report delivered by Nikita Khrushchev on The Cult of Personality and Its Consequences.
This marked the beginning of a broader process of de-Stalinization, during which monuments were dismantled, cities renamed, and Stalin’s legacy critically re-evaluated across the Soviet bloc.
More information
📢 In my Travel Resources Page you can find the list of all the sites and services I use to book hotels, tours, travel insurance and more.
More Travel Guides to Other Unrecognized Countries
Travel guides to former Soviet countries
