Destinations > Ural

Yekaterinburg

The capital of the Ural Region, the city on the border of Europe and Asia, Russian Klondike, and the center of metallurgy and jewelry

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Let’s Explore it

A Mix Between Historical Heritage & Urban Bustle

Yekaterinburg stands on the eastern part of the Ural Mountain chain. The city was founded in 1723 on the river Iset and during the 18th century turned into the major metallurgical center of the region. For a long time, Ural’s severe climate and wild vegetation made the occupation of the land very difficult: before the reign of Ivan the Terrible, there was no much interest in the region to conquer these lands.

However, during the 16th century, iron mines began to be exploited and forts were built to protect merchant counters – it was the beginning of Ural’s colonization. It was found that the region was very rich in natural resources: iron, steel, copper, nickel, gemstones. Further, at the beginning of the 18th century, the Ural region acquired the interest and large-scale iron production was launched.

short city information

LOCAL TIME	UTC+5
CLIMATE	Temperate/Severe
POPULATION	1,5 million people
HOW TO GET	2,5 hours by plane from Moscow
HIGHLIGHT	Burial of the Romanovs, Europe/Asia Border

types of tourism

Excursion

industrial

nature

Theme

The most heartbreaking tragedy

The Romanovs

Today, tourists come to Yekaterinburg to learn about the tragic end of Romanov’s dynasty, how Tsar Nicholas II and his family lived out their last days. A magnificent cathedral, Church of All Saints, was built in honor of the Romanov sainthood, on the site of Ipatiev House, where the imperial family was executed. Another pilgrimage site is Ganina Yama monastery, a former iron mine, a burial place of the Romanovs. The monastery complex has seven wooden churches, which symbolize seven members of the Tsar’s family.

Two continents

Window to Asia

The Ural mountain chain is the natural boundary between Europe and Asia, Central Russia, and Siberia. Like the northern capital – St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg has always played a role in opening up the Russian territory to other regions. St. Petersburg is widely known as “the window to Europe” and Yekaterinburg – “the window to Asia”. One of the main attractions of Yekaterinburg is a borderline between Europe and Asia as you will have a unique opportunity to stand on two continents at the same time!

A young lady with long hair in front of a river and modern buildings, a sing in Russian language “I love Yekaterinburg” in her hands

A marble obelisk with a two-headed eagle on the top on a square in a forest, stairs in front of the obelisk, signs in Cyrillic saying “Europe” and “Asia”

Photo provided by Yekaterinburg Tourism Board

The beauty of the Region

Around Yekaterinburg

The Ural region is characterized by a wide variety of amazing natural landscapes. Around Yekaterinburg, there are a lot of national nature reserves, which are worth visiting to see how wonderful and diverse the nature of Russia is. You can enjoy picturesque views of mountains and rocks, caves, rivers, lakes, forests, and waterfalls.

The main mountains of the region, the Urals, stretched from north to south for more than 2.5 thousand kilometers. A great mixture of the historical, cultural, and natural legacy of Yekaterinburg won’t leave someone indifferent.

The Precious Masterpieces

Stone-Cutting & Jewelry Art Museum

The Urals are rich with precious and semi-precious stones. Minerals have been extracted here for many centuries. During its historical development, the region has been closely connected with jewelry art.

You can visit the Stone-Cutting and Jewelry Art Museum and enjoy the fascinating collections of unique jewelry created by the best masters of the region in different decades. The Emerald room is a pride of the museum. Besides the amazing unique emeralds, the collection includes alexandrites, phenacites, aquamarines, and beryls. Everyone is welcomed to enjoy the real precious masterpieces.

Yeltsin Centre

Labyrinth of Russian History

This cultural complex, built in 2015, is devoted to the history of Russia in the 1990s. The collapse of the USSR, the formation of a new way of life, reforms, and crises are reflected in archival and multimedia materials. The centre is proud of its high-tech information equipment and collections of genuine objects of the bygone era.

Boris Yeltsin was the first president of the new country in those times. You can visit his museum and get acquainted with his personal items, way of life, and political work.

A modern building illuminated at night, all the wall of the building is a large screen with blue lights, a fresco of a man on a wall on the right

Complex of two high modern buildings, one of them is of cylinder shape, another looks like an illuminated box

A modern building in Yekaterinburg with a sign in Russian language near the entrance, white walls with black dots without windows

A museum room with a retro bus inside, two visitors of a museum look at the pictures on the wall

A modern white building of unusual shape with sign in Russian language next to the entrance

The complex was built in Yekaterinburg for a reason. It was here that Boris Yeltsin spent many years of his life and achieved political heights. The centre will help you to feel like a real participant in the events that have changed the political system of the biggest country in the world.

Fabulous Palace

Sevastyanov's House

This amazing site is one of the main landmarks of Yekaterinburg. The bright image of the building draws any attention, it can be found in guides, on souvenirs, postcards, etc.

The mansion dated back to the beginning of the 19th century and belonged to the local assessor Sevastyanov, who transformed the classical facility into a real masterpiece. The decoration was rather complicated with elements of Gothic and Baroque, due to which it looked like a fabulous palace. Nowadays the building is a residence of the governor of the region.