10 of the best Moscow restaurants

 ‘Moscow is in the middle of a food renaissance,” says Karina Baldry, a Muscovite chef and an author, now a Londoner. Whereas a decade ago rocket salads, Argentine steaks and sushi were all the rage, now – because of economic sanctions and a renewed patriotic mood – high calibre chefs are rediscovering their Slavic roots. They have started to use forgotten or newly created ingredients, such as local marbled beef and Russian mozzarella, and old cooking methods, involving the use of pechka ovens. For most Russians, eating out is still a special occasion, so even the most “democratic” places (a popular term to refer to more relaxed, less exclusive places) invest in expensive design, fabric napkins and table service. With some 12,000 restaurants in this sprawling city, we asked six Muscovite gourmands for their favourites.

“Venture outside of the touristy centre by taking the metro to Avtozavodskaya station for this gastronomical street,” says chef Karina Baldry who grew up in Moscow during Soviet times. “The food courts of my youth were either bare-shelved or exclusively for the top party echelons.” By contrast, StrEAT offers more than 30 street food stalls (mainly start-ups or small chains) from across the world: Lavka sells Dagestan-style flat pies (£1 a slice), and Crimean oysters; Kurkuma is very popular with a younger crowd for its version of Indian tikka masala, despite Russians traditionally being spice-averse. Opened in April 2018, in the not-quite-gentrified neighbourhood, StrEAT offers affordable prices (£3-£10 per dish) in a communal setting with diners sharing long tables. Karina recommends Georgian khinkali dumplings, pot-bellied pleated parcels with a mixture of beef and pork inside: “To eat them, you hold the dumpling by its doughy knot and carefully bite to suck the stock juices first, then munch on the rest. Delicious.”

Uhvat

The word uhvat refers to a long-handled wooden utensil used to slide food in and out of a pechka, a wood-fired oven found in many Russian houses until the late 19th century. Uhvat is one of the restaurants leading the resurgence in traditional Slavic cooking, with slow-cooked dishes such as pumpkin kashas (a type of porridge) with honey and linden dressing (£3.50), baked roe with pickled bramble (£14) schchi soups with fermented cabbage and chichelindas, an old recipe for pate, here made with ox tail (£5). Don’t leave without tasting toplyonoe moloko, a thick creamy dessert made by baking milk for several hours. The pechka oven features in many Russian fairytales – the Baba Yaga witch shoves children into ovens – and takes the centre stage at Uhvat. Daily rituals, such as using goose feathers to dust out the ashes, enhance the magical atmosphere.

Recommended by Pavel Syutkin, food historian, blogger and author of the USSR Cook Book

Oblomov

Tile-clad fireplaces, huge pechka ovens, plush chairs: Oblomov recreates the world of well-heeled and well-fed merchants of 19th century Russia. Oblomov is a character in the eponymous classic novel by Ivan Goncharov. There’s so much attention to detail that even the pet parrot here swears in literary Russian. However, the menu is much more than gimmickry. For a stylish lunch on a budget, start with home-pickled porcini mushrooms (£7), followed by veal and lardo borscht (£5) with half a dozen (“no less!” the menu says) little meat pies (£6). Make sure you’ve space for some home-made wild strawberry ice-cream for pudding (£5).

Severyane

“When non-Russian friends visit me in Moscow I try to show them Russia beyond its matryoshka dolls” says Alexander Sysoev, founder of the Russian Restaurant Festival. Alexander suggests starting the day at Severyane (which means “northerners”, referring to the Russian north that has been piquing the interest of Moscow chefs lately). There are twists on traditional cuisine, such as pike caviar on poached eggs (£4), blinis with Russian pastrami (£5), eclairs with crab (£11) from the Kamchatka peninsula (a region that is closer to Tokyo than to Moscow). The dimly lit atmosphere – “a cross between a Siberian hut and Hogwarts, with shaman music” as Alexander puts it – and breakfast until 4pm, makes Severyane a good option for those who’ve been partying the night before. If you come back in the evening (you should, for the slow-roasted duck with apples, £10, for example), order vodka “after which any soul would Russify,” adds Alexander.

Lepim-varim

This is Russian fast food par excellence: the dumplings are made from scratch on-site – “Lepim-varim” means shaping and boiling. One of a small chain specialising in pelmeni (a Russian version of ravioli), options include “uncle from Kamchatka” (king crab from the far east of Russia), “a mad couple” (venison and boar) and “the Caucasian prisoner” (stretchy Georgian Suluguni cheese). Order at the counter and give your name, just like in Starbucks. Regular long queues prove the success of the concept: from students to government officials and businessmen. “Ravioli are fine, of course, but pelmeni are so much better,” says Alexander.

Ottepel

“I was too little to remember Soviet realities but at Ottepel my genetic memory kicks in, registering such details as classic Soviet bevelled glasses and a separate menu section of buterbrody open sandwiches,” says Muscovite foodie Katerina Afonchenkova. These sandwiches (recently renamed bruschettas on the menu) were typical of Soviet canteens, with toppings such as rye with Latvian sprats, or herring and baked beetroot. Ottepel means thaw, referring to the period from 1953 to 1964 under Nikita Khrushchev when the communist regime was relaxed. This kind of nostalgia for the “good old Soviet days” can so easily be overdone with kitsch design elements – the venue is the restored Soviet exhibition pavilion after all – but Ottepel manages to get the balance right. The menu is vaguely Europeanised, but try some reinterpreted Soviet classics, like beetroot borscht soup with duck (£5) or fried potato cakes with mushrooms and marinated onions (£6).

Staff canteen at Arbatskaya metro station

Few know that you can dine deep within the belly of Moscow’s famous palatial metro system (the first lines were built in the 1930s under Stalin). These staff canteens mainly serve train drivers and metro personnel, but are also open to public. One of the quirkiest is Buffet Number 11 (canteens, shops and many other things were numbered during Soviet times) within Arbatskaya station. In a 1930s style, with cashiers wearing starched caps and walls covered in old-school propaganda posters, the menu has traditional Soviet “complex lunches”, including a vitaminnyj salad of shredded carrots and cabbage, a plate of borscht and light cheesecakes with fruit compote. The prices are Soviet-style too, £3-5 for the lunch menu.

Pasticceria Don Giulio

“The best cannoli in Moscow” states Dmitrij Alekseyev, a food journalist. The bakery and cafe, which also has a satellite restaurant, was set up by expat Italians in the 1990s. The pastries are made in-house daily with Russian ricotta, and strike that perfect Sicilian balance of crispy dough, light cream, citrus and dark chocolate. Try the ricotta cheese in syrniki, a type of cheesecake served with pistachio cream (£3.50). Soups are popular lunch options here, like borlotti beans with sun dried tomatoes (£3) or try the homemade sausages served with sliced oranges (£5.50). Risotto starts from £5.30. The jolly atmosphere created by Giulio, the owner, is what brings many punters back from Muscovite hipsters to Italian expats longing for dishes without dill (the herb Russians use like seasoning). Prices are chilled too, with small mark ups on wines – nothing short of a miracle in the centre of Moscow.

Dorogomilovsky market

\How to experience Russian chic on the cheap? Come to Dorogomilovsky food market (Moscow’s equivalent of London’s Borough Market) at around 10am and get a baguette from Khlebnaya Kroshka (The Breadcrumb), then top with slices of wild salmon, smoked on alder or apple tree chips from fish stall 355c (numbers are sometimes used instead of names); or fetch a peeled pomegranate to go with a lepyoshka flatbread stuffed with lots of herbs.

Cafe at the Kyrgyzstan embassy

You could spend weeks trawling through varieties of dumplings across Moscow, from Siberian pelmeni to Georgian khinkali. Some of the best are manti, dished up in the canteen of the embassy of Kyrgyzstan, the Central Asian country on the ancient trade route between China and the Mediterranean. These parcels have wrinkly dough and are filled with juicy minced lamb. “The meat comes from animals normally fed on grass and wild thyme,” Arusya says. The filling must have a generous amount of lamb fat, so best if you have them with a mildly sparkling ayran yoghurt drink or hot tea. The somewhat outdated interior of the restaurant and waitresses in colourful traditional headscarfs make the setting all the more authentic. “Like sitting in a cafe somewhere in the Near East,” adds Arusya.

Top 20 St. Petersburg Attractions

The Hermitage (The Winter Palace)

The Hermitage Museum now spans several sites, but for most visitors it is the main collection in the Winter Palace that is an essential component of any St. Petersburg itinerary. Here you'll find not only centuries of European fine art and a rich collection of Greek and Roman antiquities, but also the astonishingly opulent 18th and 19th century state rooms of Russia's imperial family.

Since the summer of 2014, much of the Hermitage's renowned collection of impressionist and post-impressionist art (in terms of artistic quality, undoubtedly the highpoint of the collection) has been transferred across Palace Square to the General Staff Building, so if your main reason for visiting the Hermitage is to see the art, then you have to consider making time for the second location, possibly with a break for refreshments between the two.

The Mariinsky Theatre

St. Petersburg's other internationally renowned cultural institution, and for some visitors an even greater draw than the Hermitage, the Mariinsky Theatre has profited in recent years from the financial and creative turmoils of Moscow's Bolshoi to become the undisputed preeminent musical theatre in modern Russia.

Renowned for the impeccable discipline and devotion to tradition of its ballet company, and blessed in Valery Gergiev with one of contemporary classical music's most exciting and exacting conductors, as well as international stars of ballet and opera including Ulyana Lopatkina, Diana Vishneva and Anna Netrebko, the Mariinsky Theatre is a world-class venue for ballet, opera and orchestral music.

Recent years have seen the Mariinsky spread beyond its historic home, the wedding-cake late-19th century opera house on Teatralnaya Ploshchad ("Theatre Square"), with the addition in 2006 of the Mariinsky Concert Hall, and in 2013 the long-awaited opening of the second opera and ballet stage, Mariinsky II. While most visitors will want to enjoy the rich atmosphere and ornate interiors of the main theatre, both new venues are beautifully designed inside, with state-of-the-art acoustics and stage technology, making them well worth exploring for music enthusiasts.

Rivers and canals of St. Petersburg by boat

If you're visiting St. Petersburg from May to October, there are a number of ways to explore the city by boat, from taking the hydrofoil to the suburban palace and park at Peterhof to enjoying dinner and live jazz on an evening cruise along the Neva. When the weather's good, visitors should really take any opportunity to get out on the water, but even the shortest visit to St. Petersburg in summer should include one boat trip along the city's central rivers and canals.

There is a wide range of different offers available at the various quays on or near Nevsky Prospekt, with larger boats offering guided tours (some in English) and on-board refreshments, and smaller boats that you can rent by the hour, choose your own route, and bring your own food and drink. All routes through the centre take in some portion of the Fontanka and Moyka Rivers and the Griboedov and Kryukov Canals. Some also head out onto the River Neva, while around midnight most of the boats in the city offer the chance to watch the opening of the Neva's bascule bridges from the water. Whatever route you end up taking, a boat trip is a fantastic way to see St. Petersburg from a different angle, and perhaps the best possible means of getting an impression of the sheer scope of the city's architectural beauty and romance.

Peterhof

When it comes to visitor attractions, St. Petersburg is as famous for the Imperial palaces and parks in the suburbs as for the museums and palaces in the city centre. Among the former, Peterhof is the one we would class as absolutely unmissbale, especially in summer when the park's incredible collection of fountains is in operation.

It took Peter the Great over a decade and a few false starts before he found the right site for his summer residence. Modelled partly on Versailles, but with many features that reflected Peter's specific tastes and interests, the park was expanded under Peter's daughter, Empress Elizabeth, to greatly surpass its French antecedent in scope and grandeur. While the Grand Palace at Peterhof is less spectacular than the Catherine Palace at Tsarskoye Selo, Peterhof excels in the diversity and range of its attractions, from the charming baroque buildings of the Petrine era to the extraordinary gilded extravagance of the Grand Cascade to the catalog of gardening styles encompassed in the Upper and Lower Parks to the ever-growing number of museums housed in the various buildings on the estate.

St. Isaac's Cathedral & Colonnade

The low-rise skyline of St. Petersburg's historic centre is dominated by the grand gold dome of St. Isaac's Cathedral, the life's work of French architect Auguste de Montferrand and the city's largest and most spectacular religious building.

Completed in 1858, St. Isaac's took over forty years to build and decorate. Its strictly European Empire-style facades and colonnades are made unique by the employment of red Karelian granite, while the interiors also meld Orthodox tradition with Catholic influence and extraordinary extravagance in the choice of materials. Different types of semiprecious stone from all over Russia form the interior walls and columns, while an abundance of original art and sculpture goes only a little way to filling the vast hall of the cathedral, designed to accommodate 14 000 standing worshipers. As well as visiting the Cathedral interiors, travelers can buy an extra ticket to climb the 300 steps up to the colonnade. From here, you can enjoy some of the best views of St. Petersburg available.

The Peter & Paul Fortress

The place where the city of St. Petersburg began, the Peter and Paul Fortress never actually saw military action, but has fulfilled a variety of functions over its three-century history, from burial place for nearly all of the Romanov Emperors and Empresses to notorious political prison to the site of key experiments in the development of Soviet rocket technology. All of these aspects of the fortresses history are celebrated in diverse exhibitions across various buildings, and it is the ramshackle charms of these various museums and collections as much as the grandeur of the spectacular Ss. Petersburg and Paul Cathedral that make the fortress an essential visitor attraction.

Church of Our Saviour on Spilled Blood

While it lacks the authentic medieval charm of St. Basil's in Moscow, the Church on Spilled Blood is nonetheless one of St. Petersburg's most instantly recognizable landmarks, its riotously colorful Russian Revival architecture making a stark contrast to the elegant neoclassicism of the State Russian Museum next door. This is part of the church's charm, in that it serves to constantly remind the visitor to St. Petersburg that, despite the Italianate elegance of most of the "Golden Triangle", you are still definitely in Russia. It's extraordinary also that a monument to mark such a tragic event (the assassination of Alexander II) should be so exuberantly colorful.

Tsarskoye Selo (Pushkin)

Home to not one but two vast 18th century palaces, surrounded by beautifully landscaped parkland with a rich variety of follies and monuments, Tsarskoye Selo is a testament to the immense wealth and lavishness of the Romanov Imperial family. The rococo Catherine Palace by Bartolomeo Rastrelli, a sister building to his Winter Palace in the city centre, is the most famous attraction, particularly thanks to the extraordinary Amber Room, but there are many other highlights to see, with almost every great St. Petersburg architect of the 18th and early-19th centuries contributing something to the ensemble.

Opening bridges

The Neva River connects Lake Ladoga to the Baltic Sea, and during the summer navigation season tens of cargo ships per day follow this important route, making it necessary to open the bascule bridges across the Neva in central St. Petersburg. This is done after midnight, and during the White Nights especially it has long been a tradition for crowds to gather along the embankments to watch the raising of the bridges. The raised arches of Palace Bridge make for one of St. Petersburg's most famous views, but its as much the atmosphere of lazy revelry and contentment inspired by the eternal twilight that makes this such an unmissable St. Petersburg experience.

Nevsky Prospekt

"There's nothing finer than Nevsky Prospekt, at least not in St. Petersburg." So begins Nikolay Gogol's famous tale of St. Petersburg's central avenue. While that story may end in disillusion and despair, there's little doubt that Nevsky is one of the world's greatest streets. Running 4.5 kilometers from the Admiralty in the west to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery in the east, Nevsky Prospekt has a hardly single building dating from after 1917. Highlights include the magnificent Art Nouveau Singer Building, the baroque Stroganov Palace, Kazan Cathedral with its curved neoclassical colonnade, the Horse Tamers statues on Anichkov Bridge, and the 18th century shopping arcade Gostiny Dvor.

Nowadays, St. Petersburg's most exclusive shopping area is actually the eastern end of Nevsky, beyond Ploshchad Vosstaniya. As well as landmark buildings and up-market boutiques, however, Nevsky Prospekt also offers an electric atmosphere and energy. Especially in summer, Nevsky is bustling no what the hour, and an increasing number of bars and cafes without outdoor seating give you a better opportunity to enjoy the avenue's living theatre.

Bronze Horseman

St. Petersburg's most famous public monument, this equestrian statue to Peter the Great is not only one of the most instantly recognizable symbols of St. Petersburg - like the Statue of Liberty for New York or the Eiffel Tower for Paris - it is also the subject of one of the greatest poems in the Russian language, Alexander Pushkin's The Bronze Horseman: A Petersburg Tale. Completed in 1782, the statue took 12 years of work by the French sculptor Étienne Maurice Falconet, recommended to Catherine the Great by Denis Diderot himself. The pedestal of the monument, the "Thunder Stone", is purportedly the largest ever moved by man.

State Russian Museum

While the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow is undoubtedly the finest collection of Russian art in the world thanks to its beautiful premises and rich collection of 20th century work, it is matched up to the October Revolution almost painting for painting by the State Russian Museum. Occupying the magnificent Mikhailovsky Palace, the Russian Museum's main collection is a treasury of Russian visual from throughout the ages, with highlights including medieval icons, atmospheric late-19th century genre paintings, and several modernist masterpieces.

Dostoevsky's St. Petersburg

While nearly every great figure of Russian literature spent some time in St. Petersburg, and many wrote works with St. Petersburg as their setting, none is so inextricably linked with the geography and atmosphere of the city as Fyodor Dostoevsky. For many travelers, it is reading his works that sparks an initial desire to visit St. Petersburg, even though his descriptions often make the city monstrous and forbidding. As St. Petersburg's historic centre has been comparatively untouched by change in the 20th century, much of Dostoevsky's Petersburg is still there to explore, and the areas around Sennaya Ploshchad and Vladimirskaya Ploshchad are rich in sights connected to his life and works.

Strelka

A small promontory of land at the eastern end of Vasilevskiy Island, the Strelka ("Spit") is right in the middle of the Neva River Delta, with magnificent views on all sides, including the Winter Palace, Palace and Trinity Bridges, the Peter and Paul Fortress and St. Isaac's Cathedral. A perennially popular site for wedding parties and bus tours to stop and take photos, the Strelka also has landmarks of its own, specifically the magnificent Rostral Columns, with their gas beacons lit for public holidays and maritime anniversaries, and the elegant classical temple of the St. Petersburg Stock Exchange, all works of the French-born architect Thomas de Thomon.

Pushkinskaya 10

Established in 1989 as a squat for independent artists, alternative musicians, and other "underground" types, Pushkinskaya 10 is an arts and performance centre in an old apartment building a short walk from Nevsky Prospekt. A warren of studios and exhibition space haphazardly linked together as the Museum of Non-Comformist Art, Pushkinskaya 10 can be somewhat bewildering for visitors, and much of the space is often inexplicably closed (the two bars, both of which are also concert venues, are by far the most accessible parts of the complex), but it's well worth visiting for the increasingly rare chance to get a glimpse of the old Leningrad bohemia and its once revered dissident art scene.

Carlo Rossi's Petersburg

Practically unknown outside Russia, this Italian-born architect was the major creative force behind great swathes of central St. Petersburg, particularly the city's grand formal squares, with their Empire-style columned facades and trademark yellow-and-white plasterwork. His most famous buildings include the General Staff Building on Palace Square, the Alexandrinsky Theatre, the Senate and Synod Building, and the Mikhailovsky Palace (the State Russian Museum). In the "Golden Triangle" of St. Petersburg's historic centre, moreover, it's hard to take more than a few steps without finding more of Rossi's work.

Kunstkammer (Museum of Anthropology and Ethnology)

The city's oldest museum, the Kunstkammer was founded in 1718 by Peter the Great himself, and is primarily of interest as a monument to the remarkable endeavours and enthusiasms of St. Petersburg's extraordinary founder. Housed in an elegant baroque building on Vasilevskiy Island, the museum has a rather pedestrian collection of ethnographic exhibits, and most visitors are drawn rather to Peter's own fascination, the huge number of deformed fetuses preserved in jars and other freaks of nature. Slightly less sensational but also of interest are the displays devoted to the great Russian polymath Mikhail Lomonosov.

Ploshchad Pobedy and Moskovsky Prospekt

St. Petersburg's historic centre is renowned for having undergone little architectural change during the 20th century. In fact, the Soviet authorities were inclined to abandon the centre, redolent of the imperial past, and develop a new city to the south, along Moskovsky Prospekt. Most visitors only see this part of town on their way to and from Pulkovo Airport, but its worth exploring for several fantastic examples of Stalin-era architecture, including the monumental House of Soviets, as well as the memorials to the Great Patriotic War in Park Pobedy ("Victory Park") and on Ploshchad Pobedy ("Victory Square"). The latter is home to a magnificent panoramic monument to the Heroic Defenders of Leningrad, which has a museum detailing the defense of the city beneath it.

Mikhailovsky Theatre

While there's no questioning the Mariinsky Theatre's position as St. Petersburg's leading venue for opera and ballet performances, it is worth paying attention to this second historic theatre on Ploshchad Iskusstv, not only because of the last decade's largely successful financial and artistic renaissance, which has seen the Mikhailovsky engage top foreign talent and gain an international reputation, but also because it can often be a more affordable and accessible way to see ballet in St. Petersburg. This is especially true when tickets at the Mariinsky are scarce during the White Nights Festival.

Yelagin Island

Accessible from the city centre in around 20 minutes by metro, Yelagin Island (also known by its Soviet-era name as the "Kirov Central Park of Culture and Leisure") rarely finds a place on tourist itineraries. It really should be more popular, however, offering not only a (comparatively) small but very elegant Imperial palace by Carlo Rossi, but also attractive parkland, a boating lake in summer and outdoor skating in winter, and the surprisingly avant-garde wonders of the Museum of Glass Art. The lack of cars on the island and the small entrance fee make it a secluded a tranquil spot, and its probably the best of the green spaces within the city if you're looking for somewhere to enjoy a relaxing walk.

Maria Sharapova

Maria Yuryevna Sharapova (born 19 April 1987) is a Russian retired professional tennis player. Although she played under the banner of Russia with the Women's Tennis Association (WTA), she has lived in and been a United States permanent resident since 1994. Sharapova competed on the WTA tour from 2001 to 2020 and had been ranked world No. 1 in singles by the WTA on five separate occasions, for a total of 21 weeks. She is one of ten women, and the only Russian, to hold the career Grand Slam. She is also an Olympic medalist, having won a silver medal in women's singles at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Sharapova achieved a rare level of longevity in tennis, with several tennis pundits and former players calling Sharapova one of tennis' best competitors.

Sharapova became the world No. 1 for the first time on 22 August 2005, at the age of 18, becoming the first Russian female tennis player to top the singles rankings, and last held the ranking for a fifth time for four weeks from 11 June 2012, to 8 July 2012. She won five Grand Slam titles — two at the French Open and one each at the Australian Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open, winning 36 titles in total, including the year-ending WTA Finals in her debut in 2004. She also won three doubles titles.

Sharapova has been featured in a number of modeling assignments, including a feature in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. She has appeared in many advertisements, including those for Nike, Prince, and Canon, and has been the face of several fashion houses, most notably Cole Haan. Since February 2007, she has been a United Nations Development Programme Goodwill Ambassador, concerned specifically with the Chernobyl Recovery and Development Programme. In June 2011, she was named one of the "30 Legends of Women's Tennis: Past, Present and Future" by Time and in March 2012 was named one of the "100 Greatest of All Time" by Tennis Channel. According to Forbes, she has been named highest-paid female athlete in the world for 11 consecutive years and earned US$285 million (including prize money) since she turned pro in 2001. In 2018, she launched a new programme to mentor women entrepreneurs.

In March 2016, Sharapova revealed she had failed a drug test at the 2016 Australian Open. She had tested positive for meldonium, a substance that had been banned (effective January 1, 2016) by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). On 8 June 2016, she was suspended from playing tennis for two years by the International Tennis Federation (ITF). On 4 October 2016, the suspension was reduced to 15 months, starting from the date of the failed test, as the Court of Arbitration for Sports found that she had committed "no significant fault" and that she had taken the substance "based on a doctor's recommendation… with good faith belief that it was appropriate and compliant with the relevant rules". She returned to the WTA Tour on 26 April 2017 at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix.

10 of the most successful and famous people in Russian civilization

Vladimir Putin

 He is arguably the most famous Russian, and his name today is almost a brand. A nature lover and pet enthusiast; a judo master and a hockey player; a former intelligence officer and a performer; Putin is Russia’s most popular and famous leader, whose daring actions, self-assured manner, limitless power, and strong charisma have made him a rock star of international politics.

He’s landed on Time’s cover nearly a dozen times, and for years he has dominated the headlines of the most influential publications. His colossal personality has served as an inspiration to songwriters, movie makers, fashion designers, alcoholic beverage producers, and etc.

Mikhail Gorbachev

This man ended the Soviet Union, as well as the Cold War. Although No. 1 on this list called the dissolution of the USSR “the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century,” Gorbachev is still hailed as a hero in every corner of the planet.

He withdrew Soviet troops from Afghanistan, proposed a plan to clear Europe of nuclear weapons, relinquished control over the Eastern Bloc, and agreed to the reunification of Germany.

It should surprise no one that Gorbachev was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1990 for his role in ending the Cold War, a conflict that shaped international politics for almost half a century.

Alexander Ovechkin

They call him the "Great Eight," and he is arguably the most famous hockey player in the world. Leading the Washington Capitals as the team’s captain, Ovechkin has been honored as the most valuable player of the NHL three times: in 2008, 2009 and 2013.

His ultimate success came in 2018, when on June 7, he finally scored victory in the Stanley Cup final over the Vegas Golden Nights. Ovechkin is the first and only Russian player who led his NHL team to victory in the Stanley Cup tournament as a captain.

Lev Tolstoy

He wrote about human feelings and purpose in such elaborate detail like no other writer before him. Larger than life, Tolstoy is arguably the most prominent writer in the history of Russian literature. His epic novel, War and Peace, is considered to be among the greatest books ever written and among the most widely recognized works of literature.

Although this masterpiece continues to inspire people to new interpretations, with the BBC’s series the latest major attempt to reinvent the novel, Tolstoy valued his other works even more. His books are the ultimate guide to living a good life. This and other achievements have made Tolstoy one of the most widely known Russians on the planet.

Pyotr Tchaikovsky

As the most famous Russian classical music composer, Tchaikovsky's style deviated from the accepted rules of Western classical music. His fame eventually transcended the borders of the Russian Empire, reaching Europe, as well as the U.S.

Even people unfamiliar with classical music will recognize his most celebrated works – Swan Lake, and The Nutcracker. The latter is an extremely popular ballet, not to mention an essential symbol of Christmas along with Santa Claus. Written more than a century ago, Tchaikovsky’s works continue to dominate modern ballet productions.

Maya Plisetskaya

Plisetskaya was an international ballet sensation that might never have happened. Even though a Jewish dancer during a time of strong anti-Semitic sentiment, she quickly won over the Bolshoi audiences, but was banned from its first major international tour because the Soviet government suspected she was prone to defecting. It took the personal intervention of Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev who vouched for Plisetskaya and issued a decree that allowed her to join the international tour.

Plisetskaya quickly conquered international stages through her extremely successful performances in New York and other major capitals. Upon her return, the Soviet leader reportedly said to her: “Good girl, coming back. Not making me look like a fool. You didn’t let me down.”

Politics aside, Plisetskaya remains a central figure in the history of classical dance and a true Russian star.

Yuri Gagarin

The world-famous picture of a handsome young man in a spacesuit is an everlasting symbol of pioneering space exploration – a monument to human inventiveness and fearlessness.

As the first man to travel to outer space, Gagarin’s fame spread like wildfire, turning him into an international celebrity. Upon his return to Earth, Gagarin went on an international tour as a symbol of Soviet achievements in space exploration. The man was welcomed as a hero in Great Britain, Canada, Germany Brazil, Japan, Egypt and other countries.

Roman Abramovich

Abramovich is one of the most publicized business tycoons in the world. He boosts his international fame with ever single move, be it buying the Chelsea Football Club, turning three Manhattan townhouses into one single mansion, or docking his massive yacht – equipped with swimming pools and a missile defense system – at various European ports.

Alexander Solzhenitsyn

The Gulag Archipelago and One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich became modern-day classics that brought their author international acclaim, together with an honorary literary degree from Harvard University.

Solzhenitsyn’s whole life was paved with extraordinary hardships, yet he became a symbol of his epoch. One of the most important Russian novelists, Solzhenitsyn received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1970. A strong critic of the Soviet system, he could not attend the ceremony because he was afraid that the Soviet government would not let him return to the country. His worst fears materialized in 1974 when he was stripped of his Soviet citizenship and forcefully deported to West Germany. Only then he accepted the prize that had been waiting for him for four years.

Joseph Stalin

The almighty and bloodthirsty Soviet tyrant ruled the country that liberated Europe from fascism and completely reshaped the international order, altering life for almost every country on the planet. The iconic image of Stalin, Churchill and Roosevelt taken at the Yalta Conference symbolized the role Stalin played in world affairs during and immediately after World War II – a leader unchallenged at home or abroad. However devastating his policies were for millions of people, he still remains one of the most controversial figures in modern Russia. Some vilify him for his crimes while others praise him for his harsh leadership and victory in the war. One thing is for sure, most people in Russia and abroad have a strong opinion about Stalin’s impact on the course of history.

Moscow Kremlin

 The Moscow Kremlin, or simply the Kremlin, is a fortified complex in the center of Moscow, overlooking the Moskva River to the south, Saint Basil's Cathedral and Red Square to the east, and the Alexander Garden to the west. It is the best known of the kremlins (Russian citadels), and includes five palaces, four cathedrals, and the enclosing Kremlin Wall with Kremlin towers. In addition, within this complex is the Grand Kremlin Palace that was formerly the Tsar's Moscow residence. The complex now serves as the official residence of the President of the Russian Federation and as a museum with 2,746,405 visitors in 2017.

The name "Kremlin" means "fortress inside a city", and is often also used metonymically to refer to the government of the Russian Federation in a similar sense to how "White House" refers to the Executive Office of the President of the United States. It previously referred to the government of the Soviet Union (1922–1991) and its highest members (such as general secretaries, premiers, presidents, ministers, and commissars). The term "Kremlinology" refers to the study of Soviet and Russian politics.

The Kremlin is open to the public and offers individual and group guided tours. You can see the Armoury Chamber, Tsar Cannon, Tsar Bell, artillery pieces, and the exposition of Russian wooden sculpture and carvings.

Origin

The site had been continuously inhabited by Finno-Ugric peoples since the 2nd century BC. The Slavs occupied the south-western portion of Borovitsky Hill as early as the 11th century, as evidenced by a metropolitan seal from the 1090s which was unearthed by Soviet archaeologists in the area. The Vyatichi built a fortified structure (or "grad") on the hill where the Neglinnaya River flowed into the Moskva River.

Up to the 14th century, the site was known as the 'grad of Moscow'. The word "Kremlin" was first recorded in 1331 (though etymologist Max Vasmer mentions an earlier appearance in 1320[). The grad was greatly extended by Prince Yuri Dolgorukiy in 1156, destroyed by the Mongols in 1237 and rebuilt in oak in 1339.

Seat of grand dukes

Dmitri Donskoi replaced the oak walls with a strong citadel of white limestone in 1366–1368 on the basic foundations of the current walls; this fortification withstood a siege by Khan Tokhtamysh. Dmitri's son Vasily I resumed construction of churches and cloisters in the Kremlin. The newly built Cathedral of the Annunciation was painted by Theophanes the Greek, Andrei Rublev, and Prokhor in 1406. The Chudov Monastery was founded by Dmitri's tutor, Metropolitan Alexis; while his widow, Eudoxia, established the Ascension Convent in 1397.

Residence of the tsars

Grand Prince Ivan III organised the reconstruction of the Kremlin, inviting a number of skilled architects from Renaissance Italy, including Petrus Antonius Solarius, who designed the new Kremlin wall and its towers, and Marcus Ruffus who designed the new palace for the prince. It was during his reign that three extant cathedrals of the Kremlin, the Deposition Church, and the Palace of Facets were constructed. The highest building of the city and Muscovite Russia was the Ivan the Great Bell Tower, built in 1505–08 and augmented to its present height in 1600. The Kremlin walls as they now appear were built between 1485 and 1495. Spasskie gates of the wall still bear a dedication in Latin praising Petrus Antonius Solarius for the design.

After construction of the new kremlin walls and churches was complete, the monarch decreed that no structures should be built in the immediate vicinity of the citadel. The Kremlin was separated from the walled merchant town (Kitay-gorod) by a 30-meter-wide moat, over which Saint Basil's Cathedral was constructed during the reign of Ivan the Terrible. The same tsar also renovated some of his grandfather's palaces, added a new palace and cathedral for his sons, and endowed the Trinity metochion inside the Kremlin. The metochion was administrated by the Trinity Monastery, and contained the graceful tower church of St. Sergius, which was described by foreigners as one of the finest in the country.

During the Time of Troubles, the Kremlin was held by the Polish forces for two years, between 21 September 1610 and 26 October 1612. The Kremlin's liberation by the volunteer army of prince Dmitry Pozharsky and Kuzma Minin paved the way for the election of Mikhail Romanov as the new tsar. During his reign and that of his son Alexis and grandson Feodor, the eleven-domed Upper Saviour Cathedral, Armorial Gate, Terem Palace, Amusement Palace and the palace of Patriarch Nikon were built. Following the death of Alexis's son, Feodor, and the Moscow Uprising of 1682, Tsar Peter escaped with much difficulty from the Kremlin and as a result developed a dislike for it. Three decades later, Peter abandoned the residence of his forefathers for his new capital, Saint Petersburg.

Imperial period

Grand Kremlin Palace, commissioned 1838 by Czar Nicholas I, constructed 1839–1849, today the official residence of the President of Russia

Although still used for coronation ceremonies, the Kremlin was abandoned and neglected until 1773, when Catherine the Great engaged Vasili Bazhenov to build her new residence there. Bazhenov produced a bombastic Neoclassical design on a heroic scale, which involved the demolition of several churches and palaces, as well as a portion of the Kremlin wall. After the preparations were over, construction was delayed due to lack of funds. Several years later the architect Matvey Kazakov supervised the reconstruction of the dismantled sections of the wall and of some structures of the Chudov Monastery, and built the spacious and luxurious Offices of the Senate, since adapted for use as the principal workplace of the President of Russia.

During the Imperial period, from the early 18th and until the late 19th century, the Kremlin walls were traditionally painted white, in accordance with fashion.

French forces occupied the Kremlin from 2 September to 11 October 1812, following the French invasion of Russia. When Napoleon retreated from Moscow, he ordered the whole Kremlin to be blown up. The Kremlin Arsenal, several portions of the Kremlin Wall and several wall towers were destroyed by explosions and the Faceted Chamber and other churches were damaged by fire. Explosions continued for three days, from 21 to 23 October 1812. However, rain damaged the fuses, and the damage was less severe than intended. Restoration works were undertaken in 1816–1819, supervised by Osip Bove. During the remainder of the reign of Alexander I, several ancient structures were renovated in a fanciful neo-Gothic style, but many others, including all the buildings of the Trinity metochion, were condemned as "disused" or "dilapidated" and were torn down.

On visiting Moscow for his coronation festivities, Czar Nicholas I was not satisfied with the Grand Palace (alias Winter Palace), which had been erected in the 1750s to the design of Francesco Rastrelli. The elaborate Baroque structure was demolished, as was the nearby church of St. John the Precursor, built by Aloisio the New in 1508 in place of the first church constructed in Moscow. The architect Konstantin Thon was commissioned to replace them with the Grand Kremlin Palace, which was to rival the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg in its dimensions and in the opulence of its interiors. The palace was constructed in 1839–1849, followed by the re-building of the Kremlin Armoury in 1851.

After 1851 the Kremlin changed little until the Russian Revolution of 1917; the only new features added during this period were the Monument to Alexander II and a stone cross marking the spot where in 1905 Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia was assassinated by Ivan Kalyayev. These monuments were destroyed by the Bolsheviks in 1918.

Soviet period and beyond

The Soviet government moved from Petrograd to Moscow on 12 March 1918. Vladimir Lenin selected the Kremlin Senate as his residence. Joseph Stalin also had his personal rooms in the Kremlin. He was eager to remove all the "relics of the tsarist regime" from his headquarters. Golden eagles on the towers were replaced by shining Kremlin stars, while the wall near Lenin's Mausoleum was turned into the Kremlin Wall Necropolis.

The Chudov Monastery and Ascension Convent, with their 16th-century cathedrals, were dismantled to make room for the military school. The Little Nicholas Palace and the old Saviour Cathedral were pulled down as well. The residence of the Soviet government was closed to tourists until 1955. It was not until the Khrushchev Thaw that the Kremlin was reopened to foreign visitors. The Kremlin Museums were established in 1961, and the complex was among the first Soviet patrimonies inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1990.

Although the current director of the Kremlin Museums, Elena Gagarina (Yuri Gagarin's daughter) advocates a full-scale restoration of the destroyed cloisters, recent developments have been confined to expensive restoration of the original interiors of the Grand Kremlin Palace, which were altered during Stalin's rule.

State Kremlin Palace

State Kremlin Palace (alias Kremlin Palace of Congresses), built 1959–1961

The State Kremlin Palace (alias Kremlin Palace of Congresses), was commissioned by Nikita Khrushchev as a modern arena for Communist Party meetings, and was built within the Kremlin walls 1959–1961. Externally the palace is faced with white marble and the windows are tinted and reflective. The construction of a large modern public building in a historic neighborhood generated an uproar, especially since the building replaced several heritage buildings including the old neo-classical building of the State Armory and some of the rear parts of the Great Kremlin Palace. Although this was not the first time that the Soviet government had destroyed architectural heritage (notably the Chudov Monastery and Ascension Cloisters) in the Kremlin and in the country in general, by the mid 1950s laws were in place effectively considering all pre-Soviet constructions as historical monuments and preventing their demolition, in some ways making the construction illegal. Nevertheless, the Palace was integrated into the larger complex of the Great Kremlin Palace with walkways linking it to the Patriarchal Chambers and the Terem Palace.

Saint Basil's Cathedral

 The Cathedral of Vasily the Blessed (Russian: собо́р Васи́лия Блаже́нного, Sobor Vasiliya Blazhennogo), commonly known as Saint Basil's Cathedral, is a Christian church in Red Square in Moscow, Russia and is regarded as a cultural symbol of the country. The building, now a museum, is officially known as the Cathedral of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos on the Moat (Собо́р Покрова́ Пресвято́й Богоро́дицы, что на Рву, Sobor Pokrova Presvyatoy Bogoroditsy, chto na Rvu) or Pokrovsky Cathedral (Покро́вский собо́р). It was built from 1555 to 1561 on orders from Ivan the Terrible and commemorates the capture of Kazan and Astrakhan. It was the city's tallest building until the completion of the Ivan the Great Bell Tower in 1600.

The original building, known as Trinity Church and later Trinity Cathedral, contained eight chapels arranged around a ninth, central chapel dedicated to the Intercession; a tenth chapel was erected in 1588 over the grave of venerated local saint Vasily (Basil). In the 16th and 17th centuries, the church, perceived (as with all churches in Byzantine Christianity) as the earthly symbol of the Heavenly City,[was popularly known as the "Jerusalem" and served as an allegory of the Jerusalem Temple in the annual Palm Sunday parade attended by the Patriarch of Moscow and the Tsar.

The building is shaped like the flame of a bonfire rising into the sky, a design that has no parallel in Russian architecture. Dmitry Shvidkovsky, in his book Russian Architecture and the West, states that "it is like no other Russian building. Nothing similar can be found in the entire millennium of Byzantine tradition from the fifth to the fifteenth century ... a strangeness that astonishes by its unexpectedness, complexity and dazzling interleaving of the manifold details of its design." The cathedral foreshadowed the climax of Russian national architecture in the 17th century.

As part of the program of state atheism, the church was confiscated from the Russian Orthodox community as part of the Soviet Union's antireligious campaigns and has operated as a division of the State Historical Museum since 1928. It was completely secularized in 1929 and remains a federal property of the Russian Federation. The church has been part of the Moscow Kremlin and Red Square UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1990. It is not actually within the Kremlin, but often served as a visual metonym for Russia and the Soviet Union in western media during the Cold War, to the point of being confused at times with the Kremlin itself by foreigners. With the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, weekly Orthodox Christian services with prayer to St. Basil have been restored since 1997.

17 Top Tourist Attractions in Moscow

 The capital of Russia is an incredible place to explore. Visitors to Moscow come away spellbound at all the amazing sights, impressed at the sheer size and grandeur of the city. Lying at the heart of Moscow, the Red Square and the Kremlin are just two of the must-see tourist attractions; they are the historical, political and spiritual heart of the city – and indeed Russia itself.

A fascinating city to wander around, stunning cathedrals, churches, and palaces lie side-by-side with bleak grey monuments and remains from the Soviet state. In addition to its plethora of historical and cultural tourist attractions, Moscow is home to world-class museums, theaters and art galleries.

Renowned for its performing arts, fantastic ballets and amazing circus acts, catching a show while in Moscow is a must. The wealth of brilliant restaurants, trendy bars, and lively nightlife means there is something for everyone to enjoy.

Tsaritsyno Palace

Once the summer residence of Catherine the Great, the stunning Tsaritsyno Palace is now a museum-reserve. The architecture is magnificent and there is a lovely park surrounding it for visitors to explore.

Located in the south of Moscow, the palace was commissioned in 1775 and recent renovations mean its lavish interior looks better than ever before with its elegant halls and beautiful staircases.

The exhibits on display look at the life of the empress as well as the history of Tsaritsyno itself. The huge palace grounds are also home to some other delightful buildings with the elegant opera house and wonderful brickwork of the Small Palace being particularly impressive to gaze upon.

VDNKh

Starting out in 1935 as the ‘All-Union Agricultural Exhibition’, VDNKh has slowly morphed over the years into the fascinating open-air museum of today. Remarkably, over 400 buildings can now be found within its confines.

The huge park complex has numerous pavilions representing former Soviet republics on show, such as those of Armenia and Turkmenistan and the distinctive architecture of each of the buildings is always interesting to gaze upon. In addition to this there is the fascinating Memorial Museum of Cosmonautics which is dedicated to space exploration and the fun Moskvarium aquarium even offers you the chance to swim with dolphins.

With lots of eateries scattered about and numerous entertainment options such as horse-riding and zip-lining, there is something for everyone to enjoy; the Friendship of Nations fountain truly is wonderful.

Kremlin Armoury

One of the oldest museums in the city, the Kremlin Armoury has a wealth of treasures; highlights include the ornate Grand Siberian Railway egg, the historic Cap of Monomakh and the stunning Imperial Crown of Russia which often has a crowd of tourists around it, jostling to take a photo.

Once the royal armory, there are loads of fascinating objects on display. Perusing the many sabers, jewelry, armor and more is as interesting as it is educational and entertaining and the swords are so finely crafted that you’ll almost wish you could pick up one and wield if yourself.

Established in 1851, the museum is situated in the Moscow Kremlin.

GUM (Department Store)

Standing for ‘Main Universal Store’ in Russian, GUM is stunning. Its wonderful skylights and beautiful facades mean it doesn’t look out of place alongside its illustrious neighbors on Red Square.

With over 200 shops, boutiques and upmarket eateries inside, it is a shopaholic’s heaven and concerned partners will be glad to find more affordable options alongside luxury brands such as Dior and Prada.

The main department store in the city, GUM was opened in 1893. The stunning architecture makes it well worth a visit even if shopping isn’t your thing.

Moscow Metro

It’s not often that public transport looks like a work of art. So many stops on the Moscow Metro will astound visitors with their beauty and elegance.

Decked in marble and with frescoes covering the walls, the stations are amazing to gaze upon and are part of one of the longest metro systems in the world, with the first stations opened in 1935.

Using the metro is the quickest and easiest way to get around Moscow and braving the crowds of commuters is well worth it for the beauty all around you.

Arbat Street

An elegant yet lively street, Arbat is full of impressive architecture and was once a popular place to live for aristocrats, artists, and academics.

A historic place, it is down Arbat Street that Napoleon’s troops are said to have headed on their way to capture the Kremlin.

Nowadays, there are many cafes, restaurants, and shops, as well as various monuments and statues to former residents such as Alexander Pushkin who was reputed to be a lover of the Russian Empress due to his massive influence in court.

Novodevichy Convent

Drenched in history, the Novodevichy Convent is located in a striking building that was once a fortress. This captivating place is well worth visiting when in Moscow.

Founded in 1524, the convent houses four cathedrals; Smolensk Cathedral is the undoubted highlight due to its delightful 16th-century frescoes.

Wandering around the grounds is like stepping back in time. The Novodevichy Cemetery is where many famous leaders of the Soviet Union are buried, such as Yeltsin and Khrushchev.

Pushkin Museum

Despite its name, the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts actually has no connection at all to the famous poet other than that it was named in his honor after his death. A delight to visit, its extensive collection focuses on European art with masterpieces by Botticelli, Rembrandt, and van Gogh all featuring.

Sculptures, graphic art, paintings and more can be found in its beautiful galleries; various sections look at themes and epochs such as the Renaissance, the Dutch Golden Age, and Byzantine art.

Among the many highlights are the clownish characters which can be found in Cezanne’s Fastnacht (Mardi Gras) and the twirling ballerinas who look so elegant in Degas’ Blue Dancers. Picasso’s Young acrobat on a Ball is also well worth checking out for its interesting use of shapes and colors.

Christ The Savior Cathedral

This gorgeous Russian Orthodox cathedral is located on the banks of the Moskva River, just a stone’s throw away from the Kremlin.

The church as it stands today was consecrated in 2000, as the original church that stood here was destroyed on the command of Josef Stalin in 1931 due to the anti-religious campaign.

With its delightful golden dome, spires and dazzling white facades, the Christ the Savior Cathedral is stunning. The interior is just as captivating to wander around, with its beautifully tiled floors and impressive altar.

Lenin Mausoleum

Opened to the public in 1924, Lenin’s Mausoleum is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Moscow. The red granite structure is located at the heart of the city in Red Square.

Lenin’s embalmed body lies in a glass sarcophagus; it is a somewhat eerie experience walking past the former leader of the Soviet Union but is well worth doing as you understandably can’t do it anywhere else in the world.

After visiting the mausoleum, head to the Kremlin wall right next to it for more graves of important communist figures such as Stalin and Brezhnev.

Tretyakov Gallery

Home to the most extensive and impressive collection of Russian fine art in the world, the State Tretyakov Gallery is definitely worth visiting when in Moscow for the wealth of amazing art pieces that it has on display.

Having started out as the private art collection of the Tretyakov brothers, there are now over 130,000 exhibits. Highlights include the iconic Theotokos of Vladimir which you will almost certainly recognise despite probably not knowing the name and Rublev’s Trinity which is considered to be one of highest achievements in Russian art.

An absolute must for art lovers, the State Tretyakov Gallery will delight visitors with all that is has to offer.

Kolomenskoye

Once a royal estate, Kolomenskoye is now a museum-reserve and lies a few kilometers outside of the city center. A captivating place to visit, there is a plethora of history on show and the site overlooks the Moskva River.

Consisting of four historical sites, there are extensive gardens for visitors to explore, as well as loads of interesting old buildings, the former village of Kolomenskoye itself and the impressive Palace of the Tsar Alexey Mikhailovich – once considered the Eighth Wonder of the World by contemporaries.

Among the many stunning sights, it is the brilliantly white Ascension Church that is the undoubted highlight – dating back to 1532.

Gorky Park

Lying alongside the Moskva River, the huge Gorky Park is a lovely place to visit. Its extensive gardens are home to numerous cultural institutions and visitors should definitely check out the Garage Museum of Contemporary Art and while the eclectic exhibits may not always feature such incredible sights as a balloon-covered rider on a zebra; they certainly always succeed in pushing back the boundaries of art.

Pop-up exhibitions and festivals can be found from time to time in the park itself and there is an open-air theatre and numerous eateries alongside a plethora of leisure activities.

Whether it’s cycling, table tennis or yoga that you are after or beach volleyball and rowing, Gorky Park certainly has it. In winter, there is a huge ice rink for visitors to enjoy.

Bolshoi Theatre

The Bolshoi Theatre is the main theater in the country. The amazing opera and ballet performances it has put on over the centuries go a long way in explaining Russia’s rich history of performing arts.

While the Bolshoi Ballet Company was established in 1776, the theater itself was opened in 1825. The glittering, six-tier auditorium is lavishly and decadently decorated; it is a fitting setting for the world-class performances that take place on its stage.

Spending a night watching a performance of such classics as The Nutcracker or Swan Lake at the Bolshoi Theatre is sure to be a memorable experience and the beauty all around you only adds to the sense of occasion

Moscow Kremlin

This famously fortified complex is remarkably home to five palaces and four cathedrals and is the historic, political and spiritual center of the city. The Kremlin serves as the residence for the country’s president. It has been used as a fort, and this fact is made clear by its sheer size. The Kremlin’s outer walls were built in the late 1400s.

Under Ivan III, better known as Ivan the Great, the Kremlin became the center of a unified Russian state, and was extensively remodeled. Three of the Kremlin’s cathedrals date to his reign that lasted from 1462-1505. The Deposition Church and the Palace of Facets were also constructed during this time. The Ivan the Great Bell Tower was built in 1508. It is the tallest tower at the Kremlin with a height of 266 feet (81 meters).

Joseph Stalin removed many of the relics from the tsarist regimes. However, the Tsar Bell, the world’s largest bell, and the Tsar Cannon, the largest bombard by caliber in the world, are among the remaining items from that era. The Kremlin Armory is one of Moscow’s oldest museums as it was established more than 200 years ago. Its diamond collection is impressive.

The Kremlin’s gardens – Taynitsky, Grand Kremlin Public and Alexander – are beautiful. The Kremlin has also served as the religious center of the country, and there is a tremendous number of preserved churches and cathedrals here. The collections contained within the museums include more than 60,000 historical, cultural and artistic monuments. Those who enjoy the performing arts will want to consider attending a ballet or concert at the State Kremlin Palace. Completed in 1961, it is the only modern building in the Kremlin.

Red Square

Lying at the heart of Moscow, Red Square is the most important and impressive square in the city. It is one of the most popular tourist attractions due to its wealth of historical sights and cultural landmarks.

Drenched in history, the huge square is home to incredible sights such as the Kremlin, St. Basil’s Cathedral and Lenin’s Mausoleum, among others. Consequently, it is not to be missed when in Moscow as it really is home to the city’s most stunning monuments.

It is here that many important moments in Russian history took place; the former marketplace has hosted everything from Tsar’s coronations and public ceremonies to rock concerts and Soviet military parades. Wandering around the massive square is a humbling experience and undoubtedly one of the highlights the city has to offer.

Saint Basil's Cathedral

Located in the impressive Red Square, St. Basil’s Cathedral is gorgeous; its delightful spires appear as if out of a fairytale. The most recognizable building in the country, the cathedral is very much a symbol of Russia. No visit to Moscow is complete without having taken in its unique and distinctive features.

Ivan the Terrible ordered the cathedral’s construction in the mid-16th century, and legend holds that Ivan put out the architect’s eyes so that he would be unable to build another cathedral more glorious than St. Basil’s. Designed to resemble the shape of a bonfire in full flame, the architecture is not only unique to the period in which it was built but to any subsequent period. For various reasons, both Napoleon and Stalin wanted to destroy the cathedral but fortunately did not succeed.

Known for its various colors, shapes and geometric patterns, St. Basil’s Cathedral houses nine different chapels that are all connected by a winding labyrinth of corridors and stairways. On the lower floor, St. Basil’s Chapel contains a silver casket bearing the body of St. Basil the Blessed. Throughout the cathedral are many beautiful murals, frescoes, wooden icons and other art works and artifacts. Outside the cathedral is a lovely garden with the bronze Monument to Minin and Pozharsky, who rallied an all-volunteer Russian army against Polish invaders during a period of the late 16th century known as the Times of Troubles.

The 21 Most Beautiful Places to Visit in Russia

 Lake Kardyvach

Sandwiched between three mountain tops and fertile alpine meadows, Lake Kardyvach’s beauty is topped off by cascading waterfalls. It is just 44 kilometres (27 miles) away from the popular Krasnaya Polyana in the Sochi region, and a good hiking destination for those adventurers who want to dip into Russia’s remoteness.

Olkhon Island

Craggy cliffs and serene bays mark Olkhon Island’s coastline, the largest island in Lake Baikal. Tucked away in Siberia’s vast wilderness, it is an important shamanic site for the Buryat people who are indigenous to Siberia.

Ussuri Bay

A short drive out of Vladivostok – a city less than 500km (311 miles) from the borders of both North Korea and China – is a unique anomaly of nature. Over time, thousands of discarded bottles and broken bits of glass have been smoothed over by Mother Nature, and now appear to be multicoloured pebbles lining the rugged shoreline.

Sergiyev Posad

Sergiyev Posad’s numerous shiny onion domes pop out over the quaint surrounding countryside. An easy day trip from Moscow, the town is one of eight that make up the Golden Ring, and is home to the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Troitse-Sergieva Lavra monastery, which is considered to be the spiritual centre of Russia.

Ruskeala

The northwesterly region of Karelia is known for its lush beauty, and the scenery surrounding the small town of Ruskeala is the region’s crowning glory. Ruskeala Mountain Park is a waterfilled ravine, where holidaymakers can boat, hike and swim.

Krasnaya Polyana

The 2014 Winer Olympics put Krasnaya Polyana’s snow-capped mountains on the map, and they remain a popular ski destination today. It is a scenic drive from Sochi up to the mountain village of the same name, from which the world-class ski fields and views can be accessed.

The Solovki Islands

In Russia’s north west, the remote Solovki archipelago in Onega Bay in the White Sea used to house a notoriously grim gulag during Soviet times. Now, however, ancient cemeteries and old monasteries lure travellers to these windswept islands.

Dargavs

In the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania, an ancient cemetery attached to the village of Dargavs remains, built into the dramatic, misty mountainside. Also called the City of the Dead, there are over a hundred stone tombs where villagers used to bury their dead along with their possessions and clothes.

Lake Teletskoye

The Altai Republic is one of Russia’s most beautiful regions, and this mountaintop lake is one of the region’s must-sees. Along the shoreline of this 70-km-long (43-mile-long) lake are steep gorges, rugged rockface, caves, waterfalls and beautiful bays.

Kaliningrad

Russia’s most westerly enclave is home to Germanic architecture, a Baltic coastline and a green Birch forest. It is the Russain gateway to the windswept Curonian Spit.

Kizhi Island

Another beautiful spot in Karelia, the 18th-century wooden churches that sit on the banks of Onega Bay’s Kishi Island are UNESCO World Heritage listed. It is estimated that the structures were built in 1713 (a clock tower was added in the 19th century) and are examples of medieval northern Russian and Scandinavian architecture.

The Valley of Geysers

Kamchatka Peninsula’s Valley of Geysers is the second largest concentration of geysers in the world. Over 40 steaming-hot geysers and springs cover an eight-km squared canyon, which lies around 180 km (112 miles) away from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky along the peninsula’s eastern volcano belt.

The Red Square

Moscow’s immense Red Square is the heart of the nation and time hasn’t weakened its historical importance or its grandiose presence. Flanked on one side by the Kremlin’s red walls and the historic GUM department store on the other, it is home to the iconic St Basil’s Cathedral and Lenin’s mausoleum.

Peterhof Palace

Technically located in a suburb of Russia’s second city, St Petersburg, the grounds and architecture of Peterhof Palace is a lavish display of baroque design and style. Often referred to as the Russian Versailles, the elaborate estate was built during Peter the Great’s reign.

The Church of Our Savior on the Spilled Blood

Domed churches and monasteries are scattered up and down Russia, but only a few are as rich in religious iconography as St Petersburg’s Church of Our Savior on the Spilled Blood. Built in the late 19th century, the church is covered in intricate mosaics inside and out.

Mount Elbrus

The Caucasus mountain range in Russia’s south, near the Georgian border, boasts the highest peak in Europe. A dormant volcano, it reaches 5,642 metres (18,511 feet) above sea level and offers spectacular views for experienced mountaineers and eager amateur adventurers.

Kola Peninsula

Almost completely within the Arctic Circle, the Kola Peninsula boasts the midnight sun in summer and brilliant displays of the northern lights in winter. The port city of Murmansk is an ideal base from which to depart into the wilderness of low mountains, tundra, abandoned villages and lakes.

Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky

The Kamchatka Peninsula was dubbed ‘The Land of Fire and Ice’ thanks to a string of over 160 volcanoes, 29 of them still active. The peninsula’s main city, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, is flanked by two and is far more accessible than the volcano belt itself.

Mount Belukha

Mount Belukha is the highest peak in the UNESCO-listed Golden Mountains of Altai. While climbing the peak requires mountaineering skill and experience, there are trekking trails for beginners as well.

Ural Mountains

The ancient Ural mountain range runs through the middle of Russia, north to south. However, the most accessible point would be around Yekaterinburg where day trips and short hikes will take you through breathtaking scenery.

Dykh-Tau

Another Caucasus snow-capped peak, Dykh-Tau hulks over the Bezengi Valley, which is known as the ‘Russian Himalayas’ because it contains the highest snow tops in the region. Its altitude and remoteness means only a smattering of people live in the valley and even less attempt to climb the majestic mountain.

10 of the best Russia holiday destinations – beyond Moscow and St Petersburg

 

Karelia, a republic in north-west Russia, is known as one the country’s most beautiful places. The nature here is breathtaking and more Finnish than Russian, with lakes, waterfalls and trees growing on giant rocks. Ruskeala is a village close to Sortavala, one of the region’s bigger towns. The main interest here is Ruskeala mountain park, with a marble canyon that is now a lake with crystal clear water, and another underground lake. You can rent boats, go diving, or hike. In summer there are light shows on the lake.

Since Ruskeala is tiny most tourists stay in Sortavala. Hostel Lämpö is a popular choice. Don’t be put off by the shabby pre-Soviet building: it is renovated inside and the location is excellent. If you’re staying for a while, there are several resorts, such as Hotel Piipun Piha, near the lake, slightly further from the town centre, which offer sauna and barbecue facilities, too.

Take the train from Ladozhsky railway station in St Petersburg to Sortavala; depending on the train the journey will take about 4-5 hours. From there several buses can take you to Ruskeala, or you can book a taxi – the drive will take about 20 minutes.

Stolby nature reserve

On the north-western spurs of the eastern Sayan mountains, the Stolby nature reserve is one of the most popular tourism destinations in Siberia. The reserve’s main attraction are its rocks and cliffs, called stolby, “pillars” in Russian, after their shape. The smallest cliffs are 55 meters high, while the highest go up to 600 metres. Rock-climbing and hiking are popular activities, although for those interested in the local flora and fauna the reserve also offers guided tours of the Siberian fir taiga that sprawls underneath the rocks: a mix of a hike and a botanical and zoological tour.

In the wooden cabins on the reserve’s grounds, surrounded by the taiga and the rocks. There are separate small cottages for six and eight people, and a hostel. The cabins area is called ‘the village’ and is a bit of a hike from the reserve’s main reception buildings but there is a car service for when you first arrive with your luggage.

Fly to Krasnoyarsk from Moscow or St Petersburg (about five hours) and get to Stolby on a bus or taxi; that journey will take around 11/2 hours.

Velikiy Novgorod

Velikiy Novgorod, also known as Novgorod the Great, is one of the most important cities in the country, often called the “birthplace of Russia”. For a long time the city was a sovereign principality, founded by merchants and ruled in relative democracy, and the unification of Novgorod with Moscow in the 15th century was an essential step towards a unified Russia. The city is an historic one and the traditional wooden architecture museum of Vitoslavlitsi is a must-visit; the open-air exhibition of Russian izbas (farmhouses) has an ancient tradition of building without nails or metal to hold the wooden planks together. The Kremlin fortress in Novgorod is also one of the oldest in Russia, dating back to the 11th century.

The Beresta Hostel with its traditional old-Russian interiors, or the Kozhevniki B&B, and its post-Soviet styles, are both good choices.

Fly to St Petersburg and take a fast Lastochka train (about 3 hours) from Moskovskiy railway station.

Pertopavlovsk-Kamchatsky

Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky is on the Kamchatka peninsula in the far east of Russia and is the most eastern town (with more than 100,000 people) in the northern hemisphere. Ecotourism in this region is a new trend, with various activities on offer from mountain and volcano hikes, sailing and kayaking to fishing and hunting trips. The town is also a foodie destination: Kamchatka crabs and other seafood are known delicacies.

In the Nachalnik Kamchatki (The Boss of Kamchatka) mini-hotel, where all the rooms are nature-themed, with names such as Winter, Forest and Bear. There are very few hostels in the town, Hostel Fiesta being one of the few, so book your rooms in advance.

The only way to get to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky from the European part of Russia is to fly: a direct eight-hour flight from Moscow (book in advance as fares are high).

Kazan

The city of Kazan, in Tatarstan, is over a thousand years old and has always been an eclectic place, balanced between the Russian Orthodox and Muslim cultures with churches and cathedrals neighbouring mosques. One of the city’s landmarks is the Söyembikä Tower in the Kremlin fortress. It’s named after the city’s last queen, Söyembikä, who, according to legend threw herself off the tower, but actually was captured by the Muscovites led by Ivan the Terrible in the 16th century, when the city was conquered. The eclectic food of the region, a mix of Russian and Tatar, is one of the city’s highlights: try the traditional tea with chuk-chuk, a sweet pastry dish.

Stereo Hostel in the city centre has a 1970s sci-fi bachelor pad vibe – and a bar onsite. If you’re looking for a quieter stay, the Stary Gorod Hotel (Old Town Hotel) is an affordable retreat in the city centre, with views of the historic Märcani Mosque.

Fly from Moscow (90 minutes) or St Petersburg (2 hours), or take an overnight train from Moscow’s Kazanskiy railway station.

Lake Baikal

Lake Baikal is the deepest in the world. Many Russians say that seeing the vast “Siberian sea” is a unique experience, and others tell stories of the Baikal monster, echoing tales of the Loch Ness monster. There are several hiking paths and in the summer you can swim in the lake, although the water is cold even in August. The shores are scattered with resorts, hotels and camping grounds, although many of them are of the Soviet times.

The Lagoon Ranch resort is on the western bank of the Baikal, in the area called the Small Sea, and offers several types of accommodation: from the most affordable two-person summer houses to double rooms and separate cabins. There are stables and a horse-riding arena, sports grounds, Russian sauna and Baikal tour guide services available.

Direct flights to Irkutsk are available from Moscow only. Buses and shuttles to the resorts leave from various locations in Irkutsk and take about three hours – ask for details when you book your accommodation.

Yessentuki

Yessentuki is a name you might see on the shelves of Russian grocery stores around the world: this historical resort town, famous for its mineral and hot springs, gave its name to a brand of a salty mineral water. The town has been a destination for the health-conscious since the 19th century.

The Kras Hotel Resort is near the city centre, has a spa and swimming pool, and some rooms dining and living room areas. A slightly cheaper option is to book a hotel close to the town’s famous baths and springs, for example Hotel Orange.

Direct flights to Mineralniye Vodi airport are available from Moscow (two hours) and St Petersburg (three hours). Some hotels offer airport pick-up, or take a train into Yessentuki – the journey is about 40 minutes on a shuttle bus and an hour on a train.

Kaliningrad

A tiny piece of Russia in Europe, Kaliningrad used to be called Königsberg, and the architecture in the city’s old town still points towards Europe and not Russia. Traces of Kaliningrad’s German heritage can be seen in the surviving Brandenburg Gate and the Fishing Village, a tourist attraction with recreated medieval-style buildings. The flea markets here are known to be the best in Russia – many collectors from all over the world come here in hope of finding relics from the second world war. The Amber museum is another popular attraction.

The city centre Utro Hostel is housed in a 19th century building, with minimalist design and big windows, and the city’s lowest prices per bunk-bed.

Flights to Kaliningrad are available from Moscow, St Petersburg, and several European cities (including Berlin, Riga and Copenhagen). Overnight trains to Kaliningrad leave from Berlin and Warsaw. If you plan to travel between other parts of Russia and Kaliningrad, you will need a double-entry visa. There is also a special short-term Kaliningrad visa available on the border. For more information visit the Foreign Affair Ministry website.

Vladivostok

Far east is a dream destination for many Russians, and Vladivostok, at the head of the Golden Horn Bay, is the heart of it. The city was founded in the middle of the 19th century. The best place for views is the Eagle’s Nest Hill, the city centre’s highest point. This is also a food destination as seafood is abundant here and because of the proximity to the Russian-Chinese borders it’s almost the only place in Russia where good Chinese food is widely available.

The Teplo Hotel is close to the railway station, for all those Trans-Siberian railway travellers, and has dormitories and private rooms. Slightly more expensive is A Hotel Amur Bay, which is in a white 1980s-designed building. Although a chain hotel (of the Azimut brand), it’s worth the price for the amazing sea views of the Golden Horn and Amur bays.

Direct eight-hour flights to Vladivostok from Moscow. Vladivostok is also the eastern terminus of the Trans-Siberian railway. Trains leave from Moscow’s Yaroslavskiy railway station – the journey will take six days.

Altai mountains

Ecotourism is booming in the region with new resorts and hotels popping up all over the Altai – known as the ‘golden mountains’. Many offer guided and themed tours of the nearby areas, such as hikes following the routes described in local legends, that are told to the visitors as they go. Sailing, kayaking and fishing are among other activities. Spa treatments are widely available with special saunas in big cedar barrels. Altai is famous for its honey and herbs, and honey treatments and herbal tea ceremonies are also offered at the local resorts.

Altika eco-hotel is one of the new developments in the region. Most rooms have panoramic views of the woods. Maryin Ostrov resort is a slightly more expensive option but also offers treatments in its spa.

Direct four-hour flights to the Gorno-Altaysk airport leave from Moscow Domodedovo. From Gorno-Altaysk there are buses and trains to the smaller villages, depending on your resort of choice. Transfer can also be organised with the resort