Northern European Russia
This attractive 17th-century church is one of Vologda's oldest constructions and contains some 200-year-old frescoes. Located on the river bank opposite…
Must-see attractions in Northern European Russia
Northern European Russia
Besides exhibitions on trade between Russia's north and the Byzantine world, the history of the city and regional trades, this excellent museum (with…
Northern European Russia
One of several enchanting old wooden buildings at the eastern end of ul Leningradskaya, this little museum evokes the life of a 19th-century, 17-child…
Northern European Russia
The third largest of the Solovetsky Islands, Bolshaya Muksalma is connected to the main island by a dam built by monks in the 19th century. It's an…
Northern European Russia
Dating from the 17th century, the view from Veronica’s Veil Chapel offers wonderful panoramas right across Kizhi. Walk west across the island from Yamaka…
Northern European Russia
Vologda’s oldest museum (1885) is a compact late-17th-century stone house that belonged to the Gutman traders who hosted Tsar Peter I during his March…
Northern European Russia
The sparklingly modern Lace Museum, across the square from the kremlin, patches together some great examples of this archetypal Vologda craft, with…
Northern European Russia
On the eastern side of the main kremlin courtyard, Muppet-style wooden dolls, lacquered wood items and embroidery briefly grab your attention before the…
Northern European Russia
Those interested in the Kalevala epic poem will want to pay their respects to the kantele-plucking statue of Karelian rune singer Petri Shemeikka that…
Northern European Russia
Around 3km northwest of the village, the botanical garden enjoys a special microclimate – monks have grown vegetables and hothouse fruits here for…
Northern European Russia
Climbing the 288 steps of St Sofia’s Cathedral's separate 78.5m-high, gold-topped bell tower offers breathtaking views down upon the cathedral’s grand…
Northern European Russia
Sweeping views from this sturdy 1778 bell tower justify the somewhat claustrophobic climb from the main grassy square. Enter through a hobbit-sized door…
Prospekt Chumbarova-Luchinskogo
Northern European Russia
Arkhangelsk's appealing pedestrian street is lined with a a few surviving traditional timber houses that are in the process of being restored, cosy cafes,…
Northern European Russia
Historically important, the 1809 Vvedenskaya Church stored the hidden chattels of the Russian royals during Napoleon’s 1812 attack on Moscow. Now the…
Northern European Russia
Just outside the kremlin enclosure, the amply domed 1776 Resurrection Cathedral adds photogenic foreground to kremlin views. It also houses an art gallery…
Northern European Russia
Given the first hint of warm summer weather, Arkhangelskians emerge to stroll this broad promenade and loiter in any of its many seasonal beer-and…
Northern European Russia
This 1751 church on the city's main grassy square has an impressively Gothic bulk with unusual octagonal windows and distinctive double domes on long…
Rozhdenstva Bogoroditsy Church
Northern European Russia
The active 1680 Rozhdenstva Bogoroditsy Church is elegant despite the discordant red-green metallic gleam of its multiple domes. A stylistic effect? No,…
Northern European Russia
A long walk down a dusty road towards the southwestern end of town, this 1819 church has a small collection of local crafts, costumes and icons, plus…
Murmansk
The 1927 Fine Arts Museum hosts temporary exhibitions that range from female nude photography and Kanozero petroglyphs to severe Arctic landscape painting.
Northern European Russia
For a great picnic site, stroll about 20 minutes north of the Transfiguration Monastery to the quaint, heptagonal bell tower of Nikolski Skete.
Northern European Russia
Bereginya displays and sells a range of folk crafts and organises all manner of masterclasses – from making clay toys to traditional weaving.
Northern European Russia
Contains exhibits detailing the history of the monastery, including the ruins of monks' cells dating from the 16th century.
Kola Peninsula
Everything from classical concerts to Miss Kirovsk pageants are held in this impressive, becolumned, lemon-yellow building.
Church of the Entry into Jerusalem
Northern European Russia
Totma's most striking church, with six onion domes and a partially-restored interior. Dates from 1774.
Northern European Russia
The disused 1692 Annunciation Church catches your eye with its unusually intricate window mouldings.
Northern European Russia
Artwork by AA Borisov, dedicated to the Arctic scenery of Novaya Zemlya and settlement of the north.
Northern European Russia
This tiny but magnificently mural-covered church dates from 1601.
Northern European Russia
At this expensive-yet-low-budget theme park of sorts, visitors have to run the gauntlet of determinedly cheerful storybook characters and talking animals…
Northern European Russia
A good central starting point for exploring the town’s historic centre is Ded Moroz’s part-time ‘residence’ where the Russian Santa shows up from early…
Church of the Saviour on the Waters
Murmansk
This gold-domed church, built in 2002 from public donations, is part of a memorial complex dedicated to the memory of Murmansk's seamen who perished in…
Northern European Russia
On a fine summer's day, scores of strolling families, rollerbladers and cyclists take to the Lake Onega promenade – an appealing park area scattered…
Murmansk
In 1919 the British navy assisted the White Russians against the Reds – Winston Churchill, war secretary at the time, wanted to see if the Bolsheviks…
Northern European Russia
The circular pl Lenina is the original heart of neoclassical Petrozavodsk, skirted by matching semicircular buildings built in 1784. In its centre is a…
Murmansk
This bronze monument to a fat little cat carrying all his worldly possessions in a knapsack was unveiled in 2013 in honour of an act of incredible feline…
Northern European Russia
Unveiled to protests and arrests in 2005, a youthful statue of Yury Andropov commemorates the USSR’s 1982–84 supremo and chief of Petrozavodsk’s Komsomol …
Northern European Russia
This ramshackle 19th century church stands on the edge of Lake Lekshmo, and was used as a warehouse in the Soviet era. Today it is only used for services…
Northern European Russia
Ever wondered why you never got that bike for Christmas? You were probably sending your Santa letters to the North Pole instead of to this adorable log…
Northern European Russia
One of Vologda's more unusual sights, this bronze monument depicts a dog doing what dogs habitually do when they encounter a lamppost. Although the…
Northern European Russia
A remarkable and somewhat creepy collection of handmade creations by one of Russia’s foremost puppet mistresses. Storybook heroes, mythological creatures…
![Western Siberian Eagle Owl [Bubo Bubo Sibericus] in full flight](https://lp-cms-production.imgix.net/2019-06/531770715_high.jpg?auto=format&fit=crop&w=360&ar=1:1&q=75)
