Novgorod

The city of Novgorod The Great (Novgorod Veliky) is located between Moscow (530km) and Saint Petersburg (108 km). Its population is estimated at 230,000 people. Novgorod is inscribed on the World Heritage List.

History

Novgorod was first mentioned in manuscripts as early as 859. Together with Kiev, Novgorod was a very important cultural, social, and economical centre in Rus, and was the capital of one of the first European democracies, the Novgorod Republic, addressed publicly as "Lord Novgorod the Great". This independence came to be resented by the Muscovite autocrats; eventually Ivan the Terrible forced it into submission. It has ever since been a backwater kind of place.

By plane

Novgorod Airport is not operational. It was a busy airport during the time of the USSR. The planed replacement Krechevitsy Airport is also not open to civil aircraft.
Closest airport is Pulkovo Airport (LED).

By train

The Novgorod-Na-Volhove train station is located 1.5km west of the city center, the river, and the Detinets (Kremlin).
Russian Railways operates trains between the Novgorod-Na-Volhove train station and Saint Petersburg's Moskovskiy Vokzal station (3 hours, early morning and late evening, ~) as well as Moscow's Leningradskii Vokzal station (8 hours, overnight, +). The trains to/from Saint Petersburg are all seated and can be uncomfortable, although there is a lot of leg room. The overnight trains to/from Moscow feature soft berths and compartments for an additional charge.
All trains and elektrichkas make a brief stop in Chudovo, where you can get out of the train and use a very unpleasantly dirty bathroom.
Left luggage services are available at the Novgorod-Na-Volhove train station.

By bus

The bus station in Novgorod is located across the street from the train station.
Several buses run daily from Saint Petersburg's Main Bus Terminal to Novgorod (several daily, 4 hours, ~). Buses to Moscow operate only during the summer, but the trip is long and inconvenient. Buses also operate to Tver, Pskov, Riga, and other cities in the Novgorod region.

By bus

Novgorod has both bus and trolleybus systems. Running approximately every 5 minutes, buses and trolleybuses will get you to every part of the city. Bus & trolleybus route maps and timetables are available online in Russian.

By foot

Novgorod is a walking-friendly city, and if you like long walks, everything in the city is within walking distance. The advantage is also that you have a chance to see the beautiful architecture of the city.

By bicycle

Bicycles are a perfect way to get around Novgorod. Bicycle and rollerblade rental are available at the "Shooting Club" on the Main Alley of the Kremlin Park. Phone: +7 921 731 74 32.

By taxi

Taxis are cheap and plentiful.

Several buildings make up the Historic Monuments of Novgorod and Surroundings.

• KremlinNovgorod's Kremlin, or Detinets, is free to visitors and includes many of the main places of interest in the city. Admission is free, and two gates (one from the footbridge on the river; the other by Sofiyskaya Square and the Lenin Statue) are open to pedestrians. A beach along the bank of the river can be accessed from a gate inside the Kremlin wall.

Monuments

• Aleksandr Nevsky Monument"Whoever comes to us with a sword, from a sword will perish..."... Prince Aleksandr has been a legendary hero for all Russians. Famous for the "Battle on Ice" against the Livonian knights. Aleksandr was canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church.

• Monument of the Millennium of RussiaThis iron statue is in the park in the center of the Kremlin. It was created in 1862 and is ringed by an interesting panorama of famous individuals in Russian history up to that time. Russian Tsars and Patriarchs appear on one half of the panorama, and cultural figures on the other half.

• Monument Novgorod Militia 1812

• Monument to St. Peter and Fevronia

Religious buildings

• Cathedral of the Virgin of the Sign

• Church of Andrew Stratilat

• Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin at the Marketplace

• Church of the Assumption on the Volotovo Field

• Church of the Intercession

• Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin

• Church of the Saint Great Martyr Fedor Stratilat on the Brook

• The Church of the Transfiguration

• Church Of Nikolai Bely

• Church of Peter and Paul

• Church of St. George at the Marketplace

• Church of St. Philip the Apostle and St. Nicholas

• Church of Saints Boris and Gleb

• Church of Spasa-na-Iliene

• Church Simeona Bogopriimtsa

• Church of Theodore Stratilates on the Brook

• Demetrios Solunskiy Church

• Holy Spirit Monastery

• Monastery of The Virgin Nativity

• Paraskeva Church at the Marketplace

• The Roman Catholic Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul

• St. Basil's Cathedral

• St. George Monastery

• St. Nicholas Cathedral

• Saviour Church on Nereditsa

• St. Sophia CathedralThis eleventh-century cathedral is the centerpiece of Novgorod's religious buildings. The iconostasis and frescoes inside are especially interesting. On the north-west exterior of the cathedral, see the Magdeburg Doors, a bronze twelfth-century German creation with reliefs of biblical scenes and, allegedly, the doors' sculptors themselves in one of the scenes.

• Yaroslav's CourtAcross the footbridge from the Kremlin is the old commercial district, which is marked by a long arcade along the river bank. Within the commercial district are several churches, many of which are in typical Novgorod style: a square base topped by a dome. Some wooden houses in Yaroslav's Court also hold temporary museum exhibitions.

• Zverin Monastery

Museums

• Center of Musical Antiquities

• Faceted Chamber Museum

• Fine Arts Museum

  phone: +7 816 2 87 22 65
  address: 2, Pobedy-Sophiyskaya Square
  A collection of Russian art, including Repin and other 19th and 20th Century artists.

• Kokui Tower Museum

• Likhudov Building Museum

• Museum of History and Art

• Nikolskiy Cathedral Museum

• Sofiyskaya Zvonnitsa Museum

• State Art Museum of Novgorod Land

• Vitoslavitsy Museum of Folk Wooden ArchitectureThe museum is in the forest near the shore of Lake Ilmen. It is a collection of rural houses from around Novgorod region that were transported to the area in the 1960s to create this museum. Includes wooden churches, traditional houses, and even a windmill and blacksmith's shop.

• Vorotnaya Bashnya Gostinogo Dvora Museum

Theatre

• Novgorod Drama Theater

  phone: +7 816 2 77 34 45, +7 816 2 77 74 92
  address: 14 Velikaya st.

• Novgorod Philharmony

  phone: +7 (816 2) 77 37 48, +7 (816 2) 77 37 34, +7 (816 2) 77 27 77 (booking office)

Other

• DinoLand Family Entertainment Centre

Festivals

• Christmas fortune-telling

  address: Vitoslavlitsy

• King Festival

  phone: +7 816 2 65 54 53
  address: 32А Mira bul.
  Mid-April. They sometimes hold performances in English

• International Bell Ringing Festival

  address: Vitoslavlitsy

• International Music Festival and the International Young Pianists ContestApril-May

• Ivan Kupala Day

  address: Ilmen-lake

• Summer festival "Sadko"You can see real old-Russian folklore. "Sadko" based on Russian medieval epic Bylina. Adventurer, merchant and Musician from Novgorod. Also the main character from a Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov opera.

Cinema

• Novgorod Cinema

  phone: +7 816 2 62 62 43
  address: 9 Lomonosova st.

• Russia Cinema

  phone: +7 (816 2) 77 73 36 (booking office),+7 (816 2) 77 42 55 (automatic teller machine)
  address: 66 Chernyakhovskogo st

Souvenirs, particularly wooden handicrafts and birch-bark paintings, can be found at many locations, including the souvenir market on Sennaya Square (to one's right as one faces the Kremlin from Sofiyskaya Square and the Lenin Statue).

Budget

• "The central cooking", dining room

  phone: +7 816 2 69 32 33
  address: 2/13 Fedorovskiy Ruchey st.
  Dirty cheap place to eat. Self-service

Mid-range

• Cafe Charodeyka

  phone: +7 8162 730-879
  address: Ul. Volosova 1
  A comfortable, trendy cafe with excellent food and coffee, a short walk outside the Kremlin walls. For both salads and main courses, you choose your own ingredients and sauces from a list on the menu. English menu. Has a sidewalk cafe in the summer.

• Derzhavnyy

  phone: +7 816 2 90 58 78, +7 816 2 73 21 33
  address: 5/2 Gazon st.
  Freaking good food, Russian cuisine. Although prepare to wait as they tend to cook it for quite long. Portions aren't particularly big, so grab few ones.

• Fregat Flagman

  phone: +7 911 600 66 06, +7 816 2 606 606
  This is a real-size ship - restaurant with some great views over the Kremlin and surroundings

• Ilmen

  phone: +7 816 2 77 70 60,+7 816 2 77 71 92
  address: 2a Gazon st.
  Some OK food, small portions. They serve quite fast.

Honey mead is a local favorite.

Budget

• Yaroslav Hostel

  address: Nikolskaja Street #4
  Bright colors!

Mid-range

• Hotel Acron

  phone: +7 8162 73-69-08, +7 8162 73-69-12
  address: Ul. Predtechenskaya 24
  One of the less expensive decent options in the city center.

• Intourist

  phone: +78162 77-42-36
  Located in central part of a town (10 mins walk from Kremlin). All rooms are ensuite and have been recently renovated. Breakfast is not included in the price and costs pp. There is a restaurant inside hotel.

• Sadko Hotel

  phone: +7 8162 66-09-20
  address: Ul. Fedorovsky Ruchei
  Mid-range, clean, renovated 3-star hotel with restaurant.

• Volkhov Hotel

  phone: +7 8162 33-55-48
  address: Ul. Predtechenskaya 24
  Mid-range 3-star hotel

Splurge

• Beresta Palace

  phone: +7 8162 94-09-10
  address: Ul. Studentechskaya 2
  Novgorod's top class hotel, with the most amenities, a moderate distance from the city center.

• Moscow
• Pskov
• Saint Petersburg
• Tver