Oil on the beaches, drone attacks, gasoline shortages: Russia’s Black Sea coast is now a perilous place to vacation. So why do Russians keep coming?

The summer vacation season on Russia’s Black Sea coast is under threat for the second year running. In 2025, authorities in Anapa banned swimming and sunbathing on local beaches after two tankers carrying fuel oil were wrecked, triggering an environmental disaster along the coastline. In 2026, the restrictions in Anapa were lifted, but tons of petroleum products ended up in the sea again — this time from a Ukrainian drone strike on the Tuapse oil refinery. Reporters from Bereg, an independent…