248 Best Sights in Russia

The monastery was founded at the beginning of the 17th century by Boris Godunov. Russia's first institution of higher learning, the Slavonic-Greco-Latin Academy, was opened in this building in 1687. Many an illustrious scholar studied here, including scientist and poet Mikhail Lomonosov (1711–65) from 1731 to 1735. Hidden inside the courtyard is the monastery's cathedral, Spassky Sobor, built in 1600–61 in the Moscow baroque style. The tower of the church is under ongoing renovation, but the interior is intact, and services are held daily.

Surrounded by white, 10-foot-thick walls, this attractive complex was the site of northern Russia's first school of higher education, dating to the 13th century. It houses several magnificent churches and is where Ivan the Terrible took refuge in 1571, when the Mongols were threatening Moscow. Dating to 1516, the Holy Gates entrance to the monastery, on the side facing the Kotorosl River, is the oldest extant structure in the compound. A six-story belfry rises high above the round-dome Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Savior.The clock in the belfry hung in the famous Spasskaya Tower of the Moscow Kremlin until 1624, when it was purchased by the merchants of Yaroslavl.

One of Moscow's most historically important theaters, this performance space is renowned for its productions of the Russian classics, especially those of Anton Chekhov (1860–1904). Founded in 1898 by the celebrated actor and director Konstantin Stanislavsky (1863–1938) and playwright and producer Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko (1858–1943), the theater staged the first productions of Chekhov's and Maxim Gorky's (1868–1936) plays. It was here that Stanislavsky developed the Stanislavsky Method, based on the realism in traditional Russian theater. After the successful production of Chekhov's The Seagull (the first staging in St. Petersburg had bombed), the bird was chosen as the theater's emblem. An affiliated, more modern theater, with a seating capacity of 2,000, also confusingly called the Moscow Art Theater, was opened in 1972 on Tverskoi bulvar, near Stanislavsky's home. The mural opposite the old theater depicts Anton Chekhov, as does the statue at the start of Kamergersky pereulok. Book ahead for tours in English.

This impressive structure was built at the end of the 18th century by Matvey Kazakov for the Moscow governor-general. During the reconstruction of Tverskaya ulitsa in the 1930s, the building was moved back about 45 feet in order to widen the street. The top two stories—a mirror image of the mansion's original two stories—were added at that time. The building now houses the city government and mayor's office. Across the street there is a statue of the founder of Moscow, Yuri Dolgoruky, astride his horse.

A collection founded in 1999 by controversial sculptor Zurab Tsereteli, best known for his enormous statue of Peter the Great on the Moskva River, is gaining respect in a city suddenly enamored with contemporary art. Works by the likes of Picasso and Dalí and, especially, artists from the Russian avant-garde movement form the core of the museum's holdings. Special exhibitions range from retrospectives of eminent Russian émigrés to debut collections to experimental video art to interactive exhibitions. The museum's main building is a restored 18th-century mansion, but there are five other branches that are also in the city center. One ticket admits you to all of the branches for the day.

Rotating collections of modern art, photography, video, and sculpture by an impressive array of mainly Russian and European artists change frequently. The museum is operated in conjunction with the Moscow House of Photography and often hosts guest lecturers, film premieres, and master classes.

Established in 1975, the philharmonic serves as Murmank's main music space. Throughout the year, the calendar is filled with musical performances from baroque to contemporary by the theater's own orchestra or visiting musicians from other parts of Russia and abroad. Other types of music get regular attention as well, including flamenco, folk, and jazz. The hall itself, however, remains classically but charmingly Soviet in style, with light teal walls separated by white pilasters and simple cushioned-wood seats.

One of the largest private collections of Eastern Christian art in the world displays icons and other Christian pieces dating back to the first century. Many of the Russian icons have been beautifully restored and the work continues under a resident master icon restorer.

This is a good place to start if you want a refresher course on Soviet history. Originally built by Giliardi in 1787, the mansion was rebuilt in the classical style after the Moscow Fire of 1812; it was once the social center of the Moscow aristocracy and its entrance is flanked appropriately by two smirking lions. The building housed the Museum of the Revolution from 1926 to the late 20th century, at which time the museum was converted to its present purpose. Although the museum retains many of the former exhibits—heavily imbued with Soviet propaganda—they have been updated to reflect the changing political climate in Russia. The permanent exhibit, on the second floor, begins with a review of the first workers' organizations in the 19th century. The exhibits outlining the 1905 and 1917 revolutions include the horse-drawn machine-gun cart of the First Cavalry Army, the texts of the first decrees of the Soviet government on peace and land, dioramas and paintings portraying revolutionary battles, and thousands of other relics. The next rooms outline the history of Soviet rule, with extensive material devoted to Stalin's rise to power before whizzing through the short post-Soviet history.

With a huge archive and the country's best collection of political posters and medals, the museum has a reputation for hosting excellent temporary exhibits. Explanations are only in Russian, but you can arrange a tour in English by calling ahead. The fine gift shop sells Russian souvenirs (including some beautiful amber) and great vintage items like flags and political-rally posters.

These wooden buildings have been moved here from throughout the region and restored. Of particular interest is the ornate Church of the Transfiguration, dating from 1756; it was moved here from the village of Kozlyatievo. The buildings can be viewed from the outside any time of year, but from the inside only from May to October.

Kamchatka's cultural landscape includes several groups of indigenous peoples, mostly concentrated now in remote areas in the north, as well as in more accessible villages like Esso and Anivgai. In these villages, people of Koryak and Even heritage practice their ancestral traditions. The Itelmen people have established a small year-round settlement in the forest close to Yelizovo, where travelers can learn more about their culture and traditions.

One of Kronshtadt's highlights is the finest example of neo-Byzantine architecture in Russia, built between 1902 and 1913 by Vassili Kosyakov. The Naval Cathedral ( Morskoi Sobor) honors all sailors who ever died in tragic circumstances and also served as a landmark for ships. In 1913, the blessing of the 230-foot-high (70-meter-high) cathedral that could seat up to 5,000 parishioners was attended by the family of the last Russian tsar, Nicholas II. However, in 1927 the Bolshevik authorities closed the cathedral and turned it into a cinema, naming it Maxim after Soviet writer Maxim Gorky. Later the cathedral also housed a club and a concert hall, with a stage replacing the altar. After a major interior and exterior renovation, the richly colored and decorated cathedral celebrated its centennial in 2013.

St. Petersburg's most famous street, the Russian Champs-Élysées, was laid out in 1710, beginning and ending at different bends of the Neva River and just short of 5 km (3 miles) long. The street starts at the foot of the Admiralty building and runs in a perfectly straight line to the Moscow station, where it curves slightly before ending a short distance farther at the Alexander Nevsky Lavra. Because St. Petersburg was once part of the larger lands of Novgorod, the road linking the city to the principality was known as Great Novgorod Road; it was an important route for trade and transportation. By the time Peter the Great built the first Admiralty, however, another major road was needed to connect the Admiralty directly to the shipping hub. Originally this new street was called the Great Perspective Road; later it was called the Nevskaya Perspektiva, and finally Nevsky prospekt.

On the last few blocks of Nevsky prospekt as you head toward the Neva are some buildings of historic importance. No. 18, on the right-hand side, was once a private dwelling before becoming a café called Wulf and Beranger; it's now the Literary Café. It was reportedly here that Pushkin ate his last meal before setting off for his fatal duel. Chicherin's House, at No. 15, was one of Empress Elizabeth's palaces before it became the Nobles' Assembly and, in 1919, the House of Arts. Farther down, at No. 14, is one of the rare buildings on Nevsky prospekt built after the Bolshevik Revolution. The blue sign on the facade dates from World War II and the siege of Leningrad; it warns pedestrians that during air raids the other side of the street is safer. The city was once covered with similar warnings; this one was left in place as a memorial, and on Victory Day (May 9 in Russia) survivors of the siege lay flowers here.

Behind the Memorial Complex is a path leading up to Nikolskaya Hill, where, in 1854, the English and French navies were barred from landing in the city. The view from the top of the hill is beautiful, and it's easy to understand why this hill was the focal point of the city's defense. Nearby are more memorials, including one for the soldiers who died in the siege of Petropavlovsk during the Crimean War in August 1854 and a monument erected on the 25th anniversary of the Kamchatka victory to pay homage to its victims. Nikolskaya Hills is a favorite place for lovers to meet or families to have a picnic.

For more than a generation, this cemetery—a fascinating collection of graves, tombstones, and other memorials—was closed to the general public in large part because Nikita Khrushchev (1894–1971) is buried here, rather than on Red Square, like other Soviet leaders. Thanks to glasnost, the cemetery was reopened in 1987, and now anyone is welcome to visit its grounds.

Khrushchev's grave is near the rear of the cemetery, at the end of a long tree-lined walkway. If you can't find it, any of the babushki (caretakers) will point out the way. Krushchev was deposed in 1964 and lived his next and last seven years in disgrace, under virtual house arrest. The memorial consists of a stark black-and-white slab, with a curvilinear border marking the separation of the two colors. The contrast of black and white symbolizes the contradictions of his reign. The memorial caused a great furor among the Soviet hierarchy when it was unveiled. It was designed by the artist Ernst Neizvestny, himself a controversial figure. In the 1960s Khrushchev visited an exhibit of contemporary art that included some of Neizvestny's works. Khrushchev dismissed Neizvestny's contributions as "filth," and asked the name of their artist. When Neizvestny (which means "Unknown") answered, Khrushchev scornfully said that the USSR had no need for artists with such names. To this the artist replied, "In front of my work, I am the premier." Considering the times, it was a brave thing to say to the leader of the Soviet Union. Neizvestny eventually joined the ranks of the émigré artists; he now lives in the United States.

Many of those buried in the cemetery were war casualties in 1941 and 1942. Among the memorials you might want to look for are those to the composers Prokofiev and Scriabin and the writers Chekhov, Gogol, Bulgakov, and Mayakovsky. Chekhov's grave is decorated with the trademark seagull of the Moscow Art Theater, the first to successfully produce his plays (including, naturally, The Seagull). Recent burials include Russia's first president Boris Yeltsin and cellist and conductor Mstislav Rostropovich. You can request a tour in English from the cemetery's excursion bureau; call and reserve ahead as they usually need advance warning. In light of the bountiful history and scant English translations, these tours can be very rewarding.

This monastery with a yellow belfry dates to the 13th century, when it was inside the Kremlin. Ivan the Great, who wanted to free up space in the Kremlin for other construction, order it rebuilt here in 1462, though none of the monastery's original 15th-century structures survived the move. The present fortification wall and most of the churches and residential buildings on the grounds date from the 17th century. In more modern times, a site just outside the monastery's walls was one of the mass graves for those executed during Stalin's purges.

You enter the monastery at the nearest entrance to the left of the Bell Tower Gate, which was erected in 1786. The first thing you see as you enter the grounds is the massive white Sobor Spasa Preobrazheniya (Transfiguration Cathedral). You may notice a resemblance, particularly in the domes, to the Kremlin's Assumption Cathedral, which served as this cathedral's model. The structure was built between 1642 and 1649 by the Romanov family, commissioned by the tsar as the Romanov family crypt. The gallery leading to the central nave is decorated with beautiful frescoes depicting the history of Christianity in Kievan Rus'.

In front of the cathedral, on the right-hand side, is the small red Nadmogilnaya Chasovnya (Memorial Chapel), marking the grave of Princess Augusta Tarakanova, the illegitimate daughter of Empress Elizabeth and Count Razumovsky. The princess lived most of her life as a nun in Moscow's St. John's Convent, forced to take the veil by Catherine the Great. During her lifetime her identity was concealed, and she was known only as Sister Dofiya. The chapel over her grave was added in 1900, almost a century after her death. In an odd twist, Princess Tarakanova had an imposter who played a more visible role in Russian history. She appeared in Rome in 1775, to the alarm of Catherine, who dispatched Count Alexei Orlov to lure the imposter back to Russia. Orlov was successful, and the imposter Tarakanova was imprisoned in a flooded, rat-infested cell in St. Petersburg's Petropavlovskaya Krepost (Peter and Paul Fortress) and died of consumption in 1775.

To the right as you face Transfiguration Cathedral stands the tiny Pokrovsky Tserkov (Church of the Intercession). Directly behind the cathedral is the Tserkov Znamenia (Church of the Sign). Painted in the dark yellow popular in its time, with a four-column facade, the church was built between 1791 and 1808 by the wealthy Sheremetyev family and contains the Sheremetyev crypt. In the rear right-hand corner of the grounds, running along the fortification walls, are the former monks' residences.

Perched at the apex of the 2,100 foot high Mount Akhun, the mountain's observation tower has become a popular tourist attraction in its own right. Built in 1936 of limestone in the Romanesque style, the 100 foot high tower offers the best panoramic views of Sochi. Ascending 200 steps to the top of the tower, you'll find the most common Caucasus fauna on display at a small exhibit and will be rewarded with beautiful views of the Black Sea, the snow-capped Caucasus Mountains, and the city of Sochi spread out along the sea's banks.

Built in the mid-16th century, this white-stone building with a steep shingled roof and narrow windows became known as the English Court because Ivan the Terrible—wanting to encourage foreign trade—presented it to English merchants trading in Moscow. It then took on the role of England's first embassy. In 1994 Queen Elizabeth II presided over the opening of the building as a branch of the Museum of the History of Moscow. Displays about Russian–British trade relations over the centuries are probably most interesting to visitors from the United Kingdom.

This small city is located between Petropavlovsk and Yelizovo, the site of Kamchatka's international airport. It is known for its geothermal deposits, which have drawn Russians and foreigners here from early times. Many small lodges have sprung up to accommodate tourists who have come enjoy the benefits of the natural springs.

Designed by Vasily Bazhenov, one of Russia's greatest architects, this mansion was erected between 1784 and 1786 for the wealthy Pashkov family. The central building is topped by a round belvedere and flanked by two service wings. In the 19th century it housed the Rumyantsev collection of art and rare manuscripts. Following the 1917 revolution, the museum was closed and the art collection was transferred to the Hermitage in St. Petersburg and the Pushkin Museum of Fine Art. The manuscripts were donated to the Russian State Library, which now owns this building. Now, after 20 years of restoration, Pashkov House is open, but only to those with a State Library card.

The beginning of Russian satirist and novelist Mikhail Bulgakov's (1891–1940) novel The Master and Margarita is set in a small park surrounding these ponds, named after the patriarch of the Orthodox Church, who once owned the area. Shaded by trees and with plenty of benches, it's a nice spot for a break, and there are several good restaurants nearby, including a pavilion near the ponds where they serve kitschy Soviet cuisine in an opulent setting. In winter the pond is used as a skating rink. The surrounding neighborhood has become one of Moscow's poshest.

Adjoining the Cathedral of the Twelve Apostles, the Patriarch's Palace houses the Museum of 17th-Century Applied Art. The exhibits here were taken from the surplus of the Armory Palace and include books, tableware, clothing, and household linen.

The golden yellow Great Palace (Bolshoi Dvorets) stands on a high bluff overlooking the river and dominates the surrounding park. The stone palace was built between 1782 and 1786 as the summer residence of Paul, son of Catherine the Great, and his wife, Maria Fyodorovna, in imitation of a Roman villa. The architect Vincenzo Brenna enlarged the palace between 1796 and 1799 with the addition of a second story to the galleries and side pavilions. Despite a devastating fire in 1803 and further reconstruction by Andrei Voronikhin in the early 19th century, Cameron's basic design survives. The building is crowned with a green dome supported by 64 small white columns. In front of the palace stands a statue of the snub-nosed Paul I, a copy of the statue at Gatchina, Paul's other summer residence.

The splendid interiors, with their parquet floors, marble pillars, and gilt ceilings, were created by some of Russia's most outstanding architects, including Quarenghi, who designed the interiors of five rooms on the first floor, and Carlo Rossi, who was responsible for the library, built in 1824. The state apartments on the first floor include the pink-and-blue Ballroom; the formal Dining Hall, where the full dinner service for special occasions is set out; and the lovely Corner Room, with walls of lilac marble and doors of Karelian birch. On the first floor, on the way from the central part of the palace to the southern section, are the Maria Fyodorovna Empress Rooms (Komnaty Imperatritsy Marii Fyodorovny), six rooms that were designed for Maria Fyodorovna after the death of Paul I. The most impressive of these is the Small Lamp Study (Kabinet Fonarik), a light-green room that overlooks the Tsar's Little Garden. The empress's library and other belongings are on display here.

Among the lavishly decorated state rooms on the second floor is the famous Greek Hall, with a layout like that of an ancient temple. Its rich green Corinthian columns stand out against the white of the faux-marble walls. The hall, which also served as a small ballroom, linked the state chambers of Paul I to those of his wife. The last room on his side is the Hall of War. Maria's Hall of Peace was designed to correspond to it. The gilt stucco wall moldings of her suite are decorated with flowers, baskets of fruit, musical instruments, and other symbols of peace. Beyond Maria's apartments is the light-filled Picture Gallery, with floor-length windows and an eclectic collection of paintings. From the gallery, via a small, pink, marble waiting room, you reach the palace's largest chamber, Throne Hall. It once held the throne of Paul I, which was removed for a victory party after Napoléon's defeat and somehow never returned.

Like the palace, the design of the park was shared by the leading architects of the day—Brenna, Cameron, Voronikhin, and Rossi. The park differs greatly from park designs of other Imperial palaces, where the strict rules of geometrical design were followed; at Pavlovsk nature was left much less controlled.

The combined length of the park's paths and lanes is said to equal the distance between St. Petersburg and Moscow (656 km/407 miles). If you walk down the slope just behind the palace to the Tsar's Little Garden (Sobstvenny Sadik), you can see the Three Graces Pavilion, created by Cameron. The 16-column pavilion encloses a statue of Joy, Flowering, and Brilliance. Directly behind the palace, a stone staircase, decorated with lions, will take you to the Slavyanka Canal. On the canal's other side, down to the left, is the graceful Apollo Colonnade, built in 1783. Its feeling of ruin isn't just due to time: it was struck by lightning in 1817 and never restored. If you bear right at the end of the stairs, you come to the Temple of Friendship, meant to betoken the friendship between Empress Maria and her mother-in-law, Catherine the Great. Beyond it is a monument from Maria to her own parents; the center urn's medallion bears their likenesses. Of the other noteworthy pavilions and memorials dotting the park, the farthest one up the bank is the Mausoleum of Paul I, set apart on a remote and overgrown hillside toward the center of the park. Maria had the mausoleum built for her husband after he was murdered in a palace coup. Paul was never interred here, however, and though Maria is portrayed as inconsolable in a statue here, historical evidence indicates that she was well aware of the plot to kill her husband.

One of the finest examples of Moscow art nouveau was built in 1905–07 by the architects Schnaubert and Zhukov. The facade of the steep-roofed and angled building, which is closed to the public, is covered in colorful mosaics. Before the revolution, Peter Pertsov and his wife lived in an apartment in the building and rented out studios for artists.

An enormous figure of the tsar stands at the helm of a ship, symbolizing his role as the founder of the Russian naval force in the 1700s. Most Muscovites agree that the statue, by Zurab Tsereteli, is an eyesore and has no place in Moscow—after all, Peter the Great moved the capital to St. Petersburg. Ongoing movements are afoot to remove the statue, but for the time being, it's here. When you finally set eyes on the colosso you'll probably understand why common nicknames for it are "Cyclops" and "Gulliver." A red light atop the 325-foot-tall monument is a warning beacon for airplanes.

At the end of the embankment is the local museum, a must for anyone who's interested in learning more about the history and culture of Kamchatka.

The extent of the city's suffering during the 900-day siege by the Nazis between 1941 and 1944 becomes clear on a visit to this sobering place in the northeastern outskirts of the city, used as a mass burial ground for 500,000 World War II victims. The numbingly endless rows of common graves carry simple slabs indicating the year in which those below them died, some from shelling, but most from cold and starvation. Memorial monuments and an eternal flame commemorate the dead, but most moving of all is an inscription on the granite wall at the far end of the cemetery: a famous poem by radio personality Olga Bergholts ends with the oft-repeated phrase, "No one is forgotten, nothing is forgotten." The granite pavilions at the entrance house a small museum with photographs and memoirs documenting the siege. (Start with the one on the right side; the pavilions are open until 5 and admission is free.) On display is Tanya Savicheva's "diary," scraps of paper on which the young schoolgirl recorded the death of every member of her family. The last entry reads, "May 13. Mother died. Everyone is dead. Only I am left." (She, too, died as a result of the war.) To reach the cemetery go to Ploshchad Muzhestva metro station, then take a public bus 123 or 178 up Nepokoryonnykh prospekt to the stop marked "Piskaryovskoye Kladbische."

Along one side of this square, cars race along the Garden Ring, the major circular road surrounding Moscow. If you approach the ring from Bolshaya Nikitskaya ulitsa or Povarskaya ulitsa, the first thing to catch your eye will be the 22-story skyscraper directly across Novinsky bulvar. One of the seven Stalin Gothics, this one is 525 feet high. The ground floor, home to a grand supermarket in Soviet times, is now occupied by clothing stores and a cafeteria called Central Restaurant House—this is worth peeking into to admire the towering ceilings and stained-glass windows inside. The rest of the building contains apartments. This area saw heavy fighting during the uprisings of 1905 and 1917 (the plaza was previously called Ploshchad Vosstaniya, or Insurrection Square). The Barrikadnaya (Barricade) metro station is very close by. Cross the ulitsa Barrikadnaya and bear right and down the hill; you'll see people streaming into the station to your right.

This square was named after the vorota (gates) of the white-stone fortification walls that once stood here. On one side of the square is a modern building with square windows; this is the office of ITAR-TASS, once the official news agency of the Soviet Union and the mouthpiece of the Kremlin. In the park in the center of the square stands a monument to Kliment Timiryazev, a famous botanist.

The busy road intersecting Bolshaya Nikitskaya ulitsa at one end of the square is the Bulvarnoye Koltso (Boulevard Ring), which forms a semicircle around the city center. It begins at the banks of the Moskva River, just south of the Kremlin, and after curving eastward, then south, it reaches the riverbank again after several miles, near the mouth of the Yauza River, northeast of the Kremlin. Its path follows the lines of the 16th-century white-stone fortification wall that gave Moscow the name "White City." The privilege of living within its walls was reserved for the court nobility and craftsmen serving the tsar. The wall was torn down in 1775, on orders from Catherine the Great, and was replaced by the current Boulevard Ring. The perfect way to get a good view of the inner city is to slowly walk along the ring—this is best done on the weekend or late at night to avoid traffic on the boulevard. Running along its center is a broad strip of trees and flowers, dotted with playgrounds and benches. Summer brings out a burst of outdoor cafés, ice-cream vendors, and strolling lovers along the boulevard.

The site of many revolutionary speeches and armed clashes with military and police forces is generally called by its former name, Insurrection Square (the adjacent metro station is still known by that name). The busy Moscow railroad station is here, and this part of Nevsky Prospekt is lined with many kinds of shops, including new stores like Stockmann and H&M, as well as art galleries and bookstores. A stroll here is not a casual affair, since Nevsky is almost always teeming with bustling crowds of shoppers and street artists.