Traveler’s Choice. 7 places in Russia, where you should visit at least once in your life

President of Pro-Vision, author of the Vinogradov.story community

“Russia is not only the largest country in the world, but also one of the most versatile. Within the state border you can find subtropics and permafrost, deserts and waterfalls, abandoned villages and modern metropolises – in short, everything that is interesting to people with the most diverse tastes. But there are some places on the map of Russia that everyone should visit at least once, and I will tell you about them.

Kurils and Sakhalin

Only 5-7 years ago the dream to visit Sakhalin and especially the Kurils remained a dream: air transportation was irregular and cosmically expensive. Today it has become much easier to visit the most remote parts of the country – you can successfully “catch” subsidized tickets and arrange with locals for comfortable trips to the most impressive locations. And there is a lot to see.

These are the lava plateau of Yankito, and snow-white rocks of the bay Spacious, and fumarole fields in the Kurils. And Bird Cape, and Tikhaya Bay on Sakhalin. And, of course, the almost legendary Aniva lighthouse, which will undergo restoration very soon. Those who want to catch it in its mysterious “wild” image should hurry up.

Curonian Spit

Beautiful and symbolic right after a trip to Sakhalin will be a trip to the Kaliningrad region – to the western limits of Russia. In this modest in size region you can spend more than one month with delight, moving from medieval Chernyakhovsk and Sovetsk to resort Zelenogradsk or Yantarny.

But perhaps the first place guests should visit is the Curonian Spit, which stretches a narrow strip of dunes and forests between the Baltic Sea and the Curonian Bay. The Dancing Forest and Efa Heights located here are almost legendary – how different they are from what the inhabitants of “big” Russia are used to seeing. And the stormy sea in the neighborhood together with the leaden northern sky make a very unusual impression.

Putorana Plateau

The mysterious Putorana is among the top ten hard-to-reach places in Russia, and it is a great luck to visit here. In the depths there are still places where no man has ever set foot. Canyons, summitless mountains, boundless taiga, thousands of lakes and waterfalls – all this attracts adventurers, but remains the privilege of very few.

Eight months of the year winter is fierce here, and therefore the most impressive locations like the highest in the country Talnikovoye waterfall are inaccessible. And in the remaining months Putorana is visited by no more than two thousand people – to enter this number is worth any money.

Kola Peninsula

Go to the Kola Peninsula – the most affordable way to “close” several goals of the traveler at once: to get acquainted with the Arctic Ocean, to see the northern lights and to look at whales. And also – to walk on the real tundra, to see a nuclear icebreaker and to taste northern specialties.

And if Teriberka doesn’t seem authentic enough for you, you can always “turn” to the less known Rybachy: here you can enjoy the severe reserved beauty of the Russian Arctic without hurry and in complete solitude.

Winter Baikal

There are places on the map of Russia, which in the high season are flashed in the social networks’ feeds almost every day. But their crazy popularity does not make them bad – on the contrary, every year more and more tourists want to get here.

One of these places is winter Baikal. It is enough to see these 50 shades of Baikal ice just once to fall in love for life. And then you can go ice skating, ride a hovercraft to Baikal’s iconic locations and climb up to the viewpoints. And after walking around, you’ll be glad to try Buryat buuza, which are cooked correctly only here and nowhere else.

Kamchatka

The edge of the world, the land of bears, the country of volcanoes – all these epithets describe Kamchatka accurately, but not exhaustively. To visit here means to swim in the Pacific Ocean, to learn to distinguish geysers from fumaroles and to see legendary toponyms from contour maps – Russkaya Bay, Opasny Canyon, Vachkazhets, Avacha Volcano and the Valley of Geysers. And for dessert – to watch Kamchatka bears in their natural habitat, on the Kuril Lake. And make sure that every 10th inhabitant of Kamchatka is a bear.

Yamal on Reindeer Herder’s Day

Life beyond the Arctic Circle, when there is endless tundra and prolonged winter all around, may seem sad and monotonous. But the key word here is “seem”. In reality, Yamal residents live a full and rich life, where there is no place for sadness and despondency.

Proof of this is the Day of the Reindeer Herder, which is celebrated annually in the village of Aksarka. At the moment of the common holiday it is easy to see everything that the tundra lives: ride reindeer, taste northern delicacies, get acquainted with local residents and visit a real tent. And realize that life beyond the Arctic Circle does not stop, but, on the contrary, runs at the speed of a first-class reindeer sled.