Sochi International Airport — Sochi, Russia

Sochi's airport underwent a dramatic transformation ahead of the 2014 Winter Olympics, when Russia invested heavily in new terminal facilities and infrastructure to handle the surge of visitors to what remains an unusual location for a winter games given its subtropical Black Sea climate. Positioned 89 feet above sea level along Russia's Krasnodar Krai coastline, the airport's two runways sit between the mountains that hosted the Olympic skiing events and the beach resorts that have drawn Russian summer holidaymakers since Soviet times. The city's dual identity as both a beach resort and, thanks to the nearby Caucasus mountains, a winter sports destination gives the airport a busier and more varied calendar than most seaside airports experience. Stalin himself favored Sochi as a vacation retreat, and the city retains grand Soviet-era sanatoriums alongside the more modern Olympic-era construction. Air traffic through Sochi swells heavily during summer beach season and again during winter months when the nearby Krasnaya Polyana resort draws skiers. For Russian travelers seeking domestic beach or mountain vacations without leaving the country, AER remains one of the most important airports outside Moscow and St. Petersburg.