Vologda’s multidomed, attractive kremlin is the city’s historical centrepiece, a 17th-century fortified enclosure built as a church administrative centre to accompany St Sofia’s Cathedral next door. Peeking into the various museums that surround the crumbling courtyard makes for a good introduction to Vologda's city history, natural history of the region and folk art.
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Kremlin
Top choice in Northern European Russia
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
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Powerful five-domed St Sofia’s Cathedral has a soaring interior smothered with beautiful 1680s frescoes. The astonishingly tall iconostasis is filled with…
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2.54 MILES
Painted in circus-tent stripes, the powerful fortress towers of this active 14th-century monastery are photogenically reflected in the river, best viewed…
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0.03 MILES
The natural history section has clearly benefited from the untimely demise of numerous regional species of wildlife, such as the dramatically posed…
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0.24 MILES
This attractive 17th-century church is one of Vologda's oldest constructions and contains some 200-year-old frescoes. Located on the river bank opposite…
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0.19 MILES
One of several enchanting old wooden buildings at the eastern end of ul Leningradskaya, this little museum evokes the life of a 19th-century, 17-child…
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1.32 MILES
Vologda’s oldest museum (1885) is a compact late-17th-century stone house that belonged to the Gutman traders who hosted Tsar Peter I during his March…
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0.09 MILES
The sparklingly modern Lace Museum, across the square from the kremlin, patches together some great examples of this archetypal Vologda craft, with…
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0.04 MILES
On the eastern side of the main kremlin courtyard, Muppet-style wooden dolls, lacquered wood items and embroidery briefly grab your attention before the…
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The natural history section has clearly benefited from the untimely demise of numerous regional species of wildlife, such as the dramatically posed…
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Climbing the 288 steps of St Sofia’s Cathedral's separate 78.5m-high, gold-topped bell tower offers breathtaking views down upon the cathedral’s grand…
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On the eastern side of the main kremlin courtyard, Muppet-style wooden dolls, lacquered wood items and embroidery briefly grab your attention before the…
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Powerful five-domed St Sofia’s Cathedral has a soaring interior smothered with beautiful 1680s frescoes. The astonishingly tall iconostasis is filled with…
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Just outside the kremlin enclosure, the amply domed 1776 Resurrection Cathedral adds photogenic foreground to kremlin views. It also houses an art gallery…
0.09 MILES
The sparklingly modern Lace Museum, across the square from the kremlin, patches together some great examples of this archetypal Vologda craft, with…
0.19 MILES
One of several enchanting old wooden buildings at the eastern end of ul Leningradskaya, this little museum evokes the life of a 19th-century, 17-child…
0.24 MILES
This attractive 17th-century church is one of Vologda's oldest constructions and contains some 200-year-old frescoes. Located on the river bank opposite…