TOP of the best sights of Yaroslavl

It is unlikely that you will find many cities that could seriously compete with Yaroslavl in terms of the number of attractions. The city with a thousand-year history not only cherishes its memories of the glorious old days, but is also constantly developing, adding new monuments and attractions. Today, experts count about eight hundred interesting and memorable places in Yaroslavl.

On the one hand, there are beautiful views of the Volga River and the opposite shore, on the other, there are continuous historical and architectural monuments. Take pictures of every house in a row, and you can't go wrong! And almost every one of them has a museum open today.

In fact, Yaroslavl owes much of its excellent embankment to Emperor Alexander I. It was he who, having visited Yaroslavl in 1823, allocated 20 thousand rubles – a lot of money at that time — to strengthen the coast washed away by the Volga floods. And a little later, the emperor donated another 70 thousand rubles for landscaping and installation of cast—iron grilles.

To walk the entire Volga embankment from beginning to end is already a feat. Therefore, do not deny yourself the pleasure of sitting on a bench under the flowering lime trees. And if you're lucky, you'll also get to see a concert by amateur or professional musicians in the Myakushinsky Descent area.

The snow-white walls and the dominant clock tower make the complex look like a huge motor ship. The team of designers and builders of the Yaroslavl River Railway Station was awarded the RSFSR State Prize for this work.

And a small hint: the Vanilla Sky restaurant, specializing in working with local specialties and natural products, operates on the territory of the river station.

Nikolai Alekseevich Nekrasov is a Russian poet, writer, and publicist who studied in Yaroslavl. From the pedestal, the poet seems to admire the Volga, dedicating poetic lines to it.

The monument was erected in 1958 by the sculptor G. Motovilov and architect L. Polyakov.

Here you can immerse yourself in the old days, in Russian life, learn a lot of unusual facts about seemingly simple things such as watches, irons, bells. Gramophones, gramophones, and music boxes literally come to life in the stories and under the hands of the guides. All the exhibits are in working order: you can listen to them, touch them and take pictures.

Opening hours: from 10:00 to 19:00.

Each hall of the museum is dedicated to a specific country: the Netherlands, Italy, France, Japan. Bright art objects are collected in small rooms — incredibly beautiful canvases, sculptures, objects. For example, here you can see a wonderful portrait of Benjamin Franklin by Duplessis: one of the versions of this work is depicted on a $100 bill.

In addition to the permanent exhibition, temporary exhibitions can be visited. For example, admire Redon's still life, which decorated the house of Alain Delon. Or a painting by Georges Seurat, one of whose works was recently sold at Sotheby's for 5 million euros.

The museum has a small garden with exotic plants.

Opening hours: 10:00 – 18:00, weekends are Monday, the last Tuesday of each month. 

The bell tower is built in a tent style, which is nonsense from an architectural point of view. However, the main value is inside. These are six-tiered frescoes depicting scenes from the life of Elijah the Prophet and other saints, as well as an iconostasis containing one hundred icons.

The square is named after the Demidovsky Pillar located in its center. At the moment, the landmark is included in the list of natural objects that are subject to protection.

Interestingly, it was originally called Kalinin Street, after the courtyard of a mid—17th-century street dweller named Kalina.

Now there are a large number of cafes, restaurants and shops located on the street, aimed at visitors to the city.

The museum is very popular with young visitors and therefore deservedly ranks among the top 10 museums in Russia recommended for visiting with children.

The unique interactive museum, located just a block from Yaroslavl's museum embankment, allows you to see in miniature the life of the cities of the country's most famous tourist route and will be remembered for many years, not only by a child, but also by adults.

Opening hours are daily from 10:00 to 20:00. 

At Myakushinsky descent on the Volzhskaya embankment there is one of the most famous and highly publicized sights of the city — an open round six-column gazebo.

According to popular rumor, the governor, whose house is located opposite, himself sat in this gazebo on Sundays at the samovar and treated tea to strolling townspeople.

In modern Yaroslavl, the gazebo is often called the "Gazebo of Love" — a rare wedding is complete without a photo shoot on its background, and the cast-iron grill nearby is covered with locks.

Indeed, if the Museum of Foreign Art is associated with a mini-Hermitage, then the art museum is a mini-Tretyakov Gallery. How amazing are Makovsky and Korovin! How airy Savrasov and Golovin are! The museum is full of names and interesting works: Bryullov, Kramskoy, Polenov, Levitan, Shishkin, Repin, Roerich… Yaroslavl Art Museum is the largest art museum in the Russian province.

Opening hours: 10:00 – 18:00, weekends are Monday, the last Tuesday of each month. 

Here you can just walk under the crowns or around the fountain, enjoying the peace and the view of the manicured flower beds. Admire the magnificent staircase of the Governor's House. Or visit an exhibition of modern sculpture. Musical evenings and festivals are held in the garden during the warmer months.

On the antique drawers of cupboards and dressers there are invitational inscriptions "Open me!".

The exposition is based on collections of porcelain, silver, cast iron, household items from the collection of the honorary citizen of the city, philanthropist Vadim Orlov. The museum has five exhibition halls, which, according to guest reviews, contain "a huge number of incredibly beautiful things." Russian Russian porcelain collections include Gardner, Popov, Safronov, Kuznetsov, Miklashevsky, Russian and European silver, and cast-iron works by Lanceret, Bach, Klodt, Aubert, and other prominent Russian masters.

Opening hours: from 10:00 to 19:00. The day off is Tuesday. 

It was built in the second half of the 17th century and served as the main entrance to the fortified city from the river. Over time, the tower happened to be an arsenal, and then a tavern. Now there is a cafe with a pleasant view of the river.

Adjacent to the tower is Medveditsky ravine, partially covered with earth, the one where Prince Yaroslav defeated the bear.

The chambers were built in the 17th century as the Yaroslavl residence of Metropolitan Jonah Sysoevich. Later, the building housed the house of the first Yaroslavl governor A. Melgunov. Empress Catherine the Great stayed there, and it was here that she wrote 5 comedies for the Russian theater.

Today, the Metropolitan Chambers have a rich collection of ancient Russian art.

Opening hours: from 10:00 to 18:00. The days off are Monday, the last Tuesday of each month.

The temple burned several times, was destroyed, and in the 30s of the last century it was blown up.

The Assumption Cathedral, rebuilt for the millennium of Yaroslavl, impresses with its size, as well as the whiteness of the walls and the dazzling gold of the five domes. The temple is active.

An excellent example of landscape design, the park begins on the upper tier (Chopped City) and seems to flow down to the lower tier of the Spit Arrow, covering it from spring to autumn with a gorgeous floral blanket.

The park is interesting because there is a lot of water here. Firstly, these are the rivers themselves, which washed away the spit— the Volga and Kotorosl. Secondly, the "singing" fountains, along the wide paths around which it is so pleasant to stroll! And, thirdly, there are many small irrigation fountains for watering, in which tangled rainbows jump on a sunny day.

A twenty-meter granite stele on a high pedestal, topped with a bronze double-headed eagle with outstretched wings, was installed on the lower tier of the Arrow in 1010. Sculptures of historical characters and paintings of the most significant events for Yaroslavl are located in a circle.

The monument was erected in 1995 in honor of the millennium of the baptism of Rus not far from the location of the Dormition Cathedral, which was destroyed at that time. The famous icon of Andrei Rublev became a source of inspiration for the authors of the composition — sculptor Igor Treyvus, artist Nikolai Mukhin and architect Arkady Bobovich.

The stone is installed exactly in the place from which Yaroslavl is believed to have started. It's actually carved in stone.: "Yaroslav the Wise founded Yaroslavl at this place in 1010."

Despite the fact that the construction of the left bank of Kotorosli began in the 11th century, the area began to acquire its modern appearance in 1944, when the City Committee of the CPSU (b) decided to "build a new embankment from Strelka to the American Bridge with its landscaping modeled on the Volga." More than four thousand residents – women, children, and the elderly, having defended their work shifts, worked here in the evenings and on weekends on clean-up days to make a gift to their beloved city. And to the relatives who were expected from the front.

Later (in 1985), a small gazebo rotunda was installed on the site of the Kotoroslnaya Embankment adjacent to Strelka. The wonderful views from it quickly brought the rotunda to the list of the most romantic places in the city.

The temple complex in the Korovnitskaya Sloboda of Yaroslavl on the right bank of the Kotorosli River includes the churches of St. John Chrysostom and Our Lady of Vladimir, the bell tower and the Holy Gates. The center of the composition is the bell tower "Yaroslavskaya candle" built in 1680, so named for its extraordinary height — 37 meters.

The complex is considered the birthplace of Yaroslavl tiles, which are distinguished by their amazing beauty. Since 2021, St. John Chrysostom Church has been included in the tourist route "To the homeland of Yaroslavl tiles" with master classes in painting.

Entertainment for guests of all ages is concentrated in the park: from children's carousels and trampolines to an extreme "Crazy Train" built like a roller coaster, large pendulum swings and an Octopus carousel with double rotation. The shifter house and the giant's house are very popular.

There is a cafe in the park, bicycles, scooters, segways, boats and catamarans are available for rent.

The park is open daily from 11:00 to 22:00. 

As well as the image of the All-Merciful Savior, transferred to the church from the Podzelenskaya Tower of the Yaroslavl Kremlin, along with a section of brickwork. The temple also houses the revered images of the Queen of Heaven "Yaroslavskaya", "Addition of Mind" and "Softening of evil Hearts".

Every August, St. Michael the Archangel Church serves as one of the venues of the Preobrazhenie Choral and bell Music festival. There is even a wooden bell tower on the temple grounds to demonstrate the bell ringers' skill.

The chapel, built in honor of the victory of the people's militia over the Polish invaders during the Time of Troubles, is familiar to every Russian, without exception, as it is depicted on a thousand-ruble bill.

The museum occupies the territory of the former Spaso-Preobrazhensky Monastery with the cathedral of the same name from the early 16th century and powerful walls decorated with battlements and loopholes. The treasures of the sacristy of Yaroslavl monasteries and temples are kept here, and a unique exposition dedicated to the "The Word of Igor's Regiment" is presented, the manuscript of which Count Musin-Pushkin unexpectedly found in the monastery's book depository.

The current cathedral is made of stone, which was new for his time, and was built by Moscow craftsmen led by an Italian architect.

Attention! In order to preserve the frescoes, the temple is open to the public only from May to October.

The place chosen for the monument itself is unusual – it is not installed on a wide street or square, but in a former Rope Gap where merchants' warehouses were once located.

Near the monument you will find several cafes and restaurants, the Residence of the Empress Maslenitsa Museum and the Bear Corner show Museum.

The tile decoration is not only very rich, but also executed with excellent artistic taste.

The prince shows visitors a lowered but sharp sword and a mock-up of the city, which is familiarly nicknamed "cake" by the people.

The monument was created by sculptor O. Komov and architects N. Komova and A. Bobovich. The monument was unveiled on October 23, 1993 on Bogoyavlenskaya Square with the participation of the first President of Russia Boris Yeltsin.

The walls, which reach a height of 17 meters and a width of 6 meters, are equipped with narrow loopholes for shooting and ladles for pouring boiling tar on enemies. However, unlike its wooden predecessor, which stopped the onslaught of the Poles in 1609, and then burned down in a terrible fire, the stone tower did not participate in the battles. It is better known as the gate of the Earthen City on the road towards Uglich. Its name, Znamenskaya, came from the fresco icon of the Sign of the Mother of God placed on one of the walls. The name was also passed on to the church, which was built two hundred years later.

Over time, the residents fell in love with the tower so much that when in the 18th century the defensive structures began to be dismantled for bricks, Yaroslavl merchants chipped in and bought the landmark from the city authorities.

There are benches and beautiful flower beds, a cafe and a restaurant, children's playgrounds. In 2009, a sculpture of Peter and Fevronia, patrons of family, love and fidelity, was unveiled on the boulevard. The boulevard was especially loved by Yaroslavl bohemian youth, who call it "Broadway".

During the siege of the city by the Poles, the Yaroslavl people were helped by the intercession of the Yaroslavl-Kazan Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos. For the miraculous salvation of the city and in gratitude to the Most Holy Theotokos, the Yaroslavl people built this monastery.

Currently, the Yaroslavl Provincial Gymnasium named after St. Peter is located on the territory of the monastery. Ignatius Bryanchaninov and the Regent School at the Yaroslavl Theological Seminary.

There is a lot of greenery in the park, there are fountains, benches, playgrounds for children and sports, bike rental, places for skateboarding and roller skating. A sculpture of a bear fishing, created by Zurab Tsereteli, is installed on one of the alleys. Moreover, visitors to the park are sure that if you rub the nose of an animal, it will bring happiness and good luck in business.

This is the tallest Ferris wheel along the Golden Ring route, its height is 65 meters. The Yaroslavl Ferris Wheel was also included in the Russian Book of Records as the "Ferris Wheel with the brightest one-way illumination."

There are 27 cabins on the wheel, decorated in the styles of the cities of the Golden Ring, as well as VIP cabins of increased comfort. 180 people can ride on the attraction at the same time.

However, he also has his own mysteries. Thus, a boulder was laid under the foundation of the temple, left over from the ancient pagan sanctuary of Mokoshi, located earlier on this site.

Despite its location away from the sightseeing routes, the temple attracts tourists with its unique wall paintings — multicolored frescoes made by the best Yaroslavl masters of painting of the 17th century, as well as the generous use of Yaroslavl tiles.

Another important feature of the temple is that craftsmen from other cities did not participate in its construction and decoration. From a financial point of view, the church was built "by the whole world." That's probably why the construction took 16 years. In 1687, two churches, a large summer one in honor of the Beheading of John the Baptist and a small winter one in honor of the Ascension of the Lord, were ready.

The church turned out to be so successful that 310 years later, in 1997, its image was placed on a thousand—ruble bill.