Urup Island, Kurils, Russia

Urup is an uninhabited volcanic island near in the south of the Kuril Islands chain in the Sea of Okhotsk in the northwest Pacific Ocean. The Kuril Islands or Kurile Islands in Russia's Sakhalin Oblast region, is a volcanic archipelago that stretches approximately 1,300 km (700 miles) northeast from Hokkaido, Japan, to Kamchatka, Russia, separating the Sea of Okhotsk from the North Pacific Ocean. There are 56 islands in total and many more minor rocks.

Urup has a roughly rectangular shape and is the fourth largest of the Kurile Islands. It consists of four major groups of dormant or extinct stratovolcanos. Visitors to the island make a zodiac landing on one of Urup’s beaches. Remnants of ancient Ainu settlements can still be found on the island, as can cabins once used by Russian fur traders.

Things to See & Do

* Island exploration
* Dormant volcanoes
* Remnants of ancient Ainu settlements
* Cabins once used by Russian fur traders

General information
Cruise Season – Jan - Dec
Currency – Ruble (RUB)
Language – Russian
Population – 0
Land Area – 1,430 km2
Electricity – 2 perpendicular flat pins USA style or with a round pin below
Time - GMT plus hours nine hours
International Country Telephone Code – +7

Port Location – Visitors to the Kuril Islands leave from the Port of Korsakov.

Travel Links – The largest nearby Russian cities with airports are Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk to the west on the island of Sakhalin, and Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky to the north. The former's airport has flights on domestic carriers to Yuzhno-Kurilsk and Kurilsk.

Travelers going to the Kuril Islands arrive most quickly via plane from Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, but it is also possible to take a slower ferry from Sakhalin to Kunashir and on to Iturup.