Sochi:

Areas in the south of Russia have a subtropical climate, where year-round temperatures do not fall below +8°C - Sochi. The average summer high temperature ranges between 26°C and 32°C (80 to 88°F) with occasional extreme heat in some interior locations exceeding 40°C.

The resort has the warmest climate in Russia (averaging 7°C/44°F in January and February) and boasts many sanatoria and mineral baths. There are also tea plantations, the most northerly in Europe. The permanent population is about 315,400 (2004) but millions more arrive each summer, when the city is home to the annual film festival "Kinotavr" and the vacation place of Russian leaders. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Caucasian Biosphere Reserve, sprawls just north from the city.

Apart from the majestic Caucasus Mountains, pebbly and sand beaches, Sochi attracts vacation-goers with its subtropical vegetation, numerous parks, monuments, and extravagant Stalinist architecture. The local markets are made primarily of kiosks grouped together in areas with pavilions and more permanent larger structures.

Sochi is also remarkable for its sport facilities: a local tennis school spawned the careers of such notable players as Maria Sharapova and Yevgeny Kafelnikov. Kafelnikov spent much of his childhood here, while Sharapova relocated to Florida at the age of 7. Both are Grand Slam champions. In late 2005, the Russian Football Union announced that it was planning to establish a year-round training center for the country's national teams in Sochi. The city's warm climate was cited as one of the main incentives (the city's temperature averages above 14 degrees Celsius).

The 2014 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XXII Olympic Winter Games, is an international winter multiple sports event that will be celebrated from February 7 to February 23, 2014. The host city, Sochi, Russia, was elected on July 4, 2007 during the 119th International Olympic Committee (IOC) Session in Guatemala City, Guatemala.[1] This will be Russia's first time hosting the Winter Olympics (the Soviet Union had previously hosted the 1980 Summer Games in Moscow). As well, this will become the first Winter Olympics held in the subtropics.