✨ Today we would like to tell you about one of the most ancient Russian cities, located in the Republic of Dagestan.

Derbent is a city where sights with a thousand-year history fit laconically into the landscape of modern urban life.

🪶 Derbent was founded as a Persian fortress back in the V century and served as a ‘’barrier gate‘’ against foreign conquerors. A monumental testimony to that era is the citadel ‘Naryn-Kala’, situated on a picturesque hill. The Dag-Bary (or Great Caucasian Wall) runs from it high into the mountains, and it is considered to be one of the three largest fortifications in the world, along with the Great Wall of China. In 2003, the Naryn-Kala site was included in the “World Heritage Sites” list of UNESCO.

🪶 Not far from the fortress there is the House of Peter the Great. With the strengthening of the Russian Empire in the 18th century, the significance of the East Caucasus increased, therefore, Derbent due to its geographical position, was a link between Europe and Eastern civilisations. Economic and political interests forced Peter the Great to take into consideration the ‘Eastern question’ and so he started preparations for his “Persian campaign”.

🪶 On 27 July 1722 Peter I and his troops landed on the northern coast of Dagestan and moved towards Derbent that they entered on 23 August. The naib of the city presented Peter the Great with the keys to the city gates. This is how, thanks to Peter the Great, Russia strengthened its position in the Caucasus.

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🍂 Before heavy colds and piercing wind, Russians face a miraculous, albeit usually short, golden fall, probably the most “instagrammable” time of the year.

Golden autumn takes over the whole of Russia for an almost elusive time of the year. Somewhere it arrives earlier, somewhere later, marvels with its splendor and disappears with the first leaf fall.

We have compiled a selection of picturesque places in Russia, where one may observe the golden autumn. Enjoy!

🍁 Plyos, Ivanovo region

Urbanization has not affected the charm of Plyos despite the status of a city. It remained practically the same as it was a hundred - two hundred years ago. You may admire the golden autumn there late September - early October. It is worth to stroll along the ancient streets, look into the House-Museum of Isaak Levitan and try “angles” with bream - that's the name of local fish pies. For memorable photos you should go up to the Cathedral Hill. Here you can often see artists who paint Volga landscapes.

🍁 Samarskaya Luka, Samara region

Samarskaya Luka is a national park in the Samara region. Here, the Zhigulev Mountains rise above the Volga, such a landscape is atypical for the East European plain. The highest point is the 381-meter high Observer Mountain. The place attracts not only hiking enthusiasts, but also rock climbers. The boundaries of the Samarskaya Luka include the Kuibyshev Reservoir, which is often compared in scale, picturesqueness and purity with lake Baikal.

🍁 Kronstadt, St. Petersburg

Nowadays Kronstadt is becoming more and more attractive for tourists. In particular, the “Island of Forts” with strolling alleys, panoramic swings, a rock garden, a beach, a food court and cafes has appeared here.

In the fall, there are fewer tourists and the sea waves are stronger than usual due to the winds, which makes an impression. In the Summer Garden and Petrovsky Park, the trees are colored in dozens of shades.

Do not miss such a beautiful period in Russia with mild weather and scenic views!

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✨ Our latest publication on the indigenous peoples of the Russian North has garnered great interest and positive feedback! Let's continue exploring this mysterious region and its ancient sanctuaries, which still draw visitors seeking spiritual support.

🔮 Sacred Lake Lama

Located in the Krasnoyarsk Territory, Lake Lama is uninhabited but serves as a base for tourism. Its eastern end is considered a site of ancient power, with Evenk wooden idols found there. Local lore suggests that the last Evenk shamaness lived there in the late 1930s. The lake’s waters are sacred to northern peoples, believed to grant wishes, and ancient bronze artifacts from the 18th century B.C. have been discovered.

🔮 Whale Bone Alley, Chukotka

Yttygran Island, an ancient settlement of Eskimo hunters, features the Whale Bone Alley, discovered in the 1970s. Dating back to the 14th-16th centuries, this impressive structure consists of rows of gray and bowhead whale bones, believed by some to be a sacred site, while others think it was used for drying boats.

🔮 Idols of Vaygach Island

In the Nenets Autonomous Area, Vaygach Island houses approximately fifteen surviving stone idols, once used for spiritual offerings by northern peoples. Although uninhabited until the 1930s, it became a mining settlement named Varnek, primarily worked by prisoners. Today, around one hundred residents remain.

🔮 Stolb Island, Yakutia

Stolb Island, in the Lena River delta, is sacred to the Yukaghir people. Local legend holds that it was created by a shaman grieving his daughter. Visitors traditionally leave offerings like candy or coins, a practice that continues among rare tourists.

🔮 Labyrinths of the Russian North

The largest stone labyrinths, known as "Babylons," are found on the Solovetsky Islands and elsewhere in the Russian North, often near water. Systematic reports began in the 19th century, but mentions date back to the 16th century. Their exact purpose remains unclear, though many believe they had ritual significance.

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Discover Russia from a bird's-eye view!

Explore the 5 most scenic cable cars in Russian cities! With hundreds of cable cars operating not just at ski resorts but also as urban transport, these routes offer breathtaking views and unique experiences.

Here are our top picks:

🏔 Mount Mashuk, Stavropol Krai

Climb to one of Pyatigorsk's most popular spots! Take a scenic cable car ride that whisks you to the top in just five minutes. Built in 1971, these cabins hold up to 20 people and offer stunning panoramas of Pyatigorsk and the Caucasus Mountains.

🏔 Ai-Petri, Crimea

This cable car ascends to the Ai-Petri plateau at over 1,000 meters above sea level. It's a must-visit for breathtaking views of the Black Sea and the majestic mountains surrounding it.

🗻 Rosa Khutor, Krasnodar Krai

Experience the thrill of 32 ski lifts at Rosa Khutor! While they mainly operate during ski season, you can still reach Rosa Peak (2,320 m) and explore mountain routes year-round.

🗻 Vorobyovy Gory, Moscow

Connect the scenic Vorobyovy Gory and Luzhniki sports complex in just 10 minutes. Get ready to see Moscow from a whole new perspective!

🗻 "Gorny Vozdukh," (“Mountain Air”), Sakhalin Island

Located in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, this eastern ski resort features a cable car that offers stunning views of Sakhalin Island. The route spans 1.5 km and connects two stations in each section.

❓ Which cable car will you ride first? Share your thoughts in the comments!

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The Golden Ring is considered the main tourist route of Russia. It includes eight main cities: Sergiev Posad, Pereslavl-Zalessky, Rostov Veliky, Yaroslavl, Kostroma, Ivanovo, Suzdal and Vladimir.

✨ To travel around all the cities on the Golden Ring, you will need at least a week!

And if you look at the small cities along a way, even a month is not enough.

🗺 This route was "drawn” on the map by Soviet journalist Yuri Bychkov in 1967. He came up with the idea that you could get from Moscow to Yaroslavl and Kostroma one way, through Vladimir and Suzdal, and return by another - through Rostov and Pereslavl-Zalessky.

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🤍💙❤️Where to stroll in St Petersburg in the fall? Travel tips.

▪️ The Summer Garden was Peter the Great's favorite creation and a triumph of landscape design at the time. Marble sculptures, slender alleys with gazebos, a colorful variety of fall foliage – the park looks especially bright in this season. And, if you get cold, there are many cafes along the way, where you can hide from the weather.

▪️ Mikhailovsky Garden. Near the Mikhailovsky Palace (Russian Museum), in the very center of the city, there is also a cozy garden. From there, you can enjoy views of the Church of the Savior on the Blood, the Griboedov Canal and the Ethnographic Museum. In the garden itself, the Rossi pavilion from 1825 with columns and a terrace has been well preserved.

▪️ The views of St. Isaac's Cathedral are impressive, both inside and out. And, if you climb the colonnade, you'll see the whole city in fall colours.

▪️ The Peter and Paul Fortress is the first structure of St. Petersburg. Today, it is a UNESCO monument and one of the most interesting museums in the city. And, every midday, the traditional noon shot is fired from the Naryshkin Bastion.

▪️ Yelagin island. This island in the northern part of St. Petersburg belonged to statesman Ivan Yelagin in the 16th century. There, he built a luxurious palace and laid out a park in the English style. However, already in the 19th century, the palace passed to the Imperial Romanov family and the park was opened to all comers. The park is divided by many ponds, channels and canals and you can walk around it all day long.

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🌅The First Ministerial Conference of the #RussiaAfrica Partnership Forum is to take place on 9-11 November in Russia’s Sochi. This southern coastal city is beautiful at any time of the year and gives travellers unforgettable experiences. For those who will participate in the conference we reveal how to spend 3 perfect days in #Sochi.

🇷🇺 Day 1
Visit the Sochi Arboretum. It is interesting not only for hundreds of species of subtropical trees and plants. It is also an original garden and park complex, where you can ride a cable car to the upper station, observe the mountains and the sea.
Take a taxi or a carsharing service (they are everywhere in the city, it's very convenient!) and head to Stalin's dacha in Matsesta, one of Sochi's districts.
Have a dinner at a restaurant on the seafront, listen to street musicians and go dancing after a glass (or two) of local sparkling wine.

🇷🇺 Day 2
Take a walk to the seafront. Admire the Marine Station building in the Soviet art deco style. Stroll on the promenade along the sea, popping into mini cafes and stores.
Sochi often hosts various other sporting events, as well: marathons, triathlons, tennis tournaments and many more. Attend a soccer match at the Fisht Olympic Stadium, where the 2018 FIFA World Cup was also held, or watch an ice hockey game at the neighboring Bolshoy Ice Dome.
Visit Sochi Park and take a ride on the amusement rides and Ferris wheel.
From 7 pm to 8 pm, a spectacular performance is waiting for you by the Olympic flame – the Singing Fountain Show.

🇷🇺 Day 3
Head to the mountains. You can get there by train, bus, taxi or carsharing, as there are convenient parking lots even high up in the mountains.
Buy a ticket and ride to the top of Rosa Peak (2,320 meters). Take a swing over the abyss, ride chairlifts to waterfalls or just enjoy the view of the Caucasus Range. Remember to dress warmer, as, even in summer, it's quite windy and cool up there.
In the evening, you can check out the Krasnaya Polyana Casino. There are only a few authorized gambling zones in Russia and this is one of them.

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The Moscow Metro subway system continues to grow rapidly. In 2023 alone, 14 new stations were opened and, in the last five years, more than 40! Each has its own, unique design. And Muscovites voted for the most successful ones.

🚝 Elektrozavodskaya

This ‘Big Circle Line’ station opened in 2020. You can transfer from it to the station of the same name on the ‘blue’ Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya line. On one of its walls is a huge glass panel called ‘Battle of Heroes’ depicting a historical plot and the image of the defender of Old Russia. An interesting view of the image opens from the large round openings of the pedestrian gallery.

🚝 Michurinsky Prospekt

This ‘Big Circle Line’ station was opened in 2021. You can transfer from it to the station of the same name on the ‘yellow’ Solntsevskaya line, opened earlier, in 2018. The main feature of the design of this station are the red columns and ceiling panels with LED lighting. Some of them depict Chinese ornaments symbolizing the “friendship of nations”.

🚝 Nagatinsky Zaton

This ‘Big Circle Line’ station opened in 2023. When going outside, passengers get a picturesque view of the Moskva River. Therefore, the station was decorated with huge mosaic panels depicting fish.

🚝 Filatov Lug

This station on the ‘red’ Sokolnicheskaya line was opened in 2019. It’s an above ground station and its large panoramic windows let in daylight all year round. The designers were inspired by the stations of the 19th century: Waterloo in London, Pennsylvania Station in New York and Kievsky railway station in Moscow. Hence the abundance of glass and high vaulted ceilings.

🚝 Airport Vnukovo

This station on the ‘yellow’ Solntsevskaya line was opened in 2023. It is absolutely unique not only for Moscow, but also for the whole of Russia, as it is the first (and, so far, the only) subway station that leads directly to an airport! That is why its design is reminiscent of the civilian airplanes by the Tupolev Design Bureau, which the airport is dedicated to.

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🇷🇺The Russian rail system is one of the largest in the world. Given the vastness of Russia’s territory, train journeys are commonly measured in days, rather than in miles or kilometres.

Trains serve almost every town and city in Russia. Railroad travel is a safe, comfortable and inexpensive way to get around.

Check out the most picturesque railroad routes in Russia, according to ‘Russia Beyond.’

🚃 Trans-Siberian Railway

The world's longest railroad is also the most scenic and picturesque. For a whole week, the train travels from Moscow to Vladivostok across the entire country, crossing 8 time zones, with the scenery and time zones constantly changing beyond the window.

🚃 Vorkuta – Labytnangi.

This railroad above the Arctic Circle is part of the ambitious ‘Soviet Transpolar Mainline’ (‘BAM’) project, which was never completed. It links the largest northern cities of Vorkuta and Salekhard and runs right along the northern part of the Ural Range. The mountains there are low, often without peaks, covered with snow almost all year round and surrounded by tundra.

The train travels slowly and you'll have about 10 hours to admire the rugged beauty of the Polar Urals.

🚃 Circum-Baikal Railroad.

It was built at the beginning of the 20th century to connect the western and eastern parts of the Trans-Siberian Railway. Today, it has become one of the most popular tourist routes in Russia.

The railroad goes around the southern part of the lake and passes through 38 tunnels cut into the rocks. Overall, the journey will take approximately five hours.

🚃 Adler – Rosa Khutor.

It takes less than an hour to get from the Black Sea coast to the famous ski resorts. The modern ‘Lastochka’ electric train operates between the two regions.

Sit by the window, because, this way, you will see picturesque views of the Caucasus Mountains, the Mzymta River and the ski lifts.

🚃 Tuapse – Adler.

If you prefer sea views, take a train ride from Tuapse to Sochi and Adler. Right along the Black Sea coast is a railroad line connecting the Adler Olympic Park to the city of Tuapse. The trip takes about 2.5 hours.

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