Hermitage Museum, Saint Petersburg

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Best time to travel: mid June-Sept
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Museum of art and culture, with 3 million items
  • Contains the largest collection of paintings in the world
  • Founded in 1764

Saint Basil’s Cathedral, Moscow

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Best time to travel: April-May
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Church that is now a museum
  • Built from 1555-1561 under Ivan the Terrible
  • Commemorates the capture of Kazan and Astrakhan
  • Was the city’s tallest building until 1600

Lake Baikal, Siberia

Best time to travel: Jan-April, Oct-Dec
Ease of travel: Moderate
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $$$

  • Rift lake located in Russia situated in southern Siberia
  • Lake Baikal is the world’s largest freshwater lake by volume, containing 22–23% of the world’s fresh surface water, more than all of the North American Great Lakes combined
  • It is the world’s deepest lake, with a maximum depth of 5,387 ft, and the world’s oldest lake, at 25–30 million years
  • Baikal is home to Buryat tribes, who raise goats, camels, cattle, sheep, and horses on the eastern side of the lake, where the mean temperature varies from a winter minimum of −2 °F to a summer maximum of 57 °F

Kremlin, Moscow

Best time to travel: April-May
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Fortified complex in the centre of Moscow founded by the Rurikids ruling dynasty
  • It is the best known of the kremlins (Russian citadels), and includes five palaces, four cathedrals, and the enclosing Kremlin Wall with Kremlin towers
  • In addition, within this complex is the Grand Kremlin Palace that was formerly the Tsar’s Moscow residence
  • The complex now serves as the official residence of the President of the Russian Federation and as a museum

Church of the Savior on Blood, Saint Petersburg

Best time to travel: mid June-Sept
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Russian Orthodox church in Saint Petersburg, which currently functions as a secular museum and church at the same time
  • The structure was constructed between 1883 and 1907
  • The church was erected on the site where political nihilists assassinated Emperor Alexander II in 1881
  • The church was funded by the Romanov imperial family in honor of Alexander II, and the suffix “on [Spilled] Blood” refers to his assassination

Mount Elbrus

Best time to travel: June-Sept
Walk difficulty: Hard
Ease of travel: Hard
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $$$

  • The highest and most prominent peak in Russia and Europe, it is situated in the western part of the Caucasus and is the highest peak of the Caucasus Mountains
  • The dormant volcano rises 18,510 ft above sea level; it is the highest stratovolcano in Eurasia, as well as the tenth-most prominent peak in the world
  • The eastern summit was first ascended in 1829 by Khillar Khachirov, and the western summit in 1874 by a British expedition

Peterhof Palace, Saint Petersburg

Best time to travel: mid June-Sept
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Series of palaces and gardens located in Petergof, Saint Petersburg, commissioned by Peter the Great as a direct response to the Palace of Versailles by Louis XIV of France
  • Originally intending it in 1709 for country habitation, Peter the Great sought to expand the property as a result of his visit to the French royal court in 1717
  • The architectural style employed became the foundation for the Petrine Baroque style favored throughout Saint Petersburg