Russia Travel Guide

Russia travel tips & advice

St. Petersburg is Russia’s most cultural city. It was originally built by Peter the Great to be the capital of the country. For the time, the idea was very revolutionary, since the site that is today St. Petersburg sat on a swamp. The architecture, museums and street scenes of today’s St. Petersburg will keep you busy for several days. There are Tsarist palaces, winding canals and beautiful architecture, much of it built by Italian architects. St. Petersburg, therefore, feels more like Europe than Moscow and other Russian cities, whose architecture is more steeped in the Soviet era.

And, of course, no trip to Russia would be complete without a visit to Moscow, the country’s capital. Visit Red Square where you can view Lenin’s body, see the Kremlin and tour the beautiful St. Basil’s Cathedral. There’s also a really good shopping area adjacent to Red Square. Arbat Street is the home to art and culture in Moscow. Moscow is filled with parks, which are particularly beautiful in spring and fall.

Vladivostok is also worth a visit. This part of Russia was off limits to foreigners during the Soviet era, but today you can enjoy Golden Horn Bay and hop on the ferry to enjoy the nearby islands and their beaches. You can also tour old Soviet forts here and even an old Soviet era submarine.

Yekaterinburg is another popular Russian city, set in the Ural Mountains. The town is notorious for the many Romanov deaths that took place there, including the execution of Tsar Nicholas II. Today, however, it makes a great home base for enjoying winter mountain sports.