Must see attractions in Altai

Housed in a wonderfully dilapidated 1912 merchant’s house with original art nouveau fittings, this fine museum is home to standing stone idols,…

One of the more unusual sights along the Chusky Trakt is this sublime turquoise blue sulfur lake and geyser. This is no Yellowstone-style geyser erupting…

This well-put-together museum offers a good introduction to Altai culture with a range of ethnographic exhibits, wildlife displays and local art and…

The impressively eclectic – not to mention good-value – Altai Arts, Literature & Culture Museum occupies a restored, furnished 1850s mansion. There are…

In an old brick house, the War History Museum is simple and all in Russian but the moving understatement of its Afghanistan and Chechnya memorials is…

The tourist action in Chemal revolves around this canyon near the confluence of the Katun and Chemal Rivers. Despite power lines and summer crowds, views…

From the centre of town walk about 500m south along central ul Pchyolkina, past small Park Pobedy, then turn right toward the river at the signpost to…

A herd of two dozen European bison live in a semiwild status as they range across the meadows and forests of this 'farm'. European bison were hunted to…

From June to September, there are many daily lake trips (R800 per person) to Korbu Waterfall. You have a choice between fast, noisy hydrofoils (four hours…

On the northern edge of the Varota Sartikpayev Gorge, a wobbly footbridge leads across a stunning canyon to a craggy island in the Katun River on which is…

The city’s Federal Security Services (FSB) headquarters is worth a peek. The bearded dude in the courtyard is Felix Dzerzhinsky, Cheka (KGB and FSB…

Near the train station in pl Pobedy, the War Memorial consists of a statue of a grieving mother with her lost son, an eternal flame and a very long list…

Founded in 1823, the reasonably interesting Regional Museum is Siberia’s oldest. Top exhibits include intriguing models of various 18th-century industrial…

This bulbous-domed brick building is the most appealing of the city’s many churches and has a fine, gilded interior.

Completed in 2006, this attractive wooden church boasts a wonderfully photographic backdrop of rolling lush hills.

This unique Lenin monument sees the revolutionary apparently dressed up as a bullfighter.

This blue-domed church frequently bustles with activity and is well-worth checking out.

Grand, renovated 1916 theatre with concerts and theatrical performances.

Splendid example of wooden-lace architecture.

Splendid example of wooden-lace architecture.