What to see in Astrakhan in 3 days - attractions, museums, ready-made routes

First day Second day Third day Museums of Astrakhan Stories, routes and tips from tourists with photos Where to stay in Astrakhan Excursions from Astrakhan for 3 days

The many faces of Astrakhan is a city in which you want to spend more time. Some are attracted by the centuries-old history and mixture of cultures, other tourists like to wander through ancient quarters with an oriental flavor, while others like to visit noisy markets and enjoy fish gastronomy. In 3 days in Astrakhan you can have time to fully explore the city, attend cultural events and take a river walk along the Volga expanses.

What to see in Astrakhan in 3 days? It is worth making a list of attractions that interest you in advance. By planning each day, you will have time to see the multicultural city from different angles. But don’t forget about spontaneity: turn into atmospheric courtyards and alleys, have picnics in cozy parks and try unusual dishes - Astrakhan has something to surprise even sophisticated tourists.

Assumption Cathedral Photo: © Andrey Panin

First day

Start your acquaintance with Astrakhan with the White City . This is the historical heart of the cultural center of the Lower Volga and Caspian regions. It is here that the iconic sights of the city are located, including the Astrakhan Kremlin . It is convenient to start the tourist route of the first day from the Annunciation Monastery and then move towards the Kremlin. To get acquainted with the ceremonial architecture of Astrakhan, choose one of the streets: Sovetskaya or Esplanadnaya. The appearance of both streets was formed in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

On Sovetskaya Street you will pass by the historical building of the Drama Theater , the Mariinsky Gymnasium and the Agababovsky School , the merchant houses of Karyagin and Bagirov , as well as the Persian Compound . On Esplanadnaya Street there are: the house of the merchant Dogadin , the estates of Timofeeva and Frangulov , as well as a number of other interesting stone mansions. Approaching the Astrakhan Kremlin from the eastern side, you will find yourself in the Brotherly Garden . In pre-revolutionary times, the local aristocracy spent time here. During the Soviet period, the garden was turned into a memorial complex with burials of soldiers and the Eternal Flame.

Eternal flame in the Brotherhood Garden Photo: © Igor Tsarev

Astrakhan Kremlin

The Kremlin in Astrakhan was built at the end of the 16th and beginning of the 17th centuries. But, subsequently, the fortress was completed. The Astrakhan Kremlin received its modern appearance at the end of the 18th and beginning of the 19th centuries. Now it is a tourist complex with museums inside historical buildings. The architectural ensemble is perfectly preserved. Solid fortress walls 1.5 km long encircle it on all sides. The height of the walls of the Astrakhan Kremlin is from 3 to 8 meters; defensive towers have been preserved on almost every side. The most interesting for tourist sightseeing are: Prechistenskaya bell tower - the main gate of the Kremlin; Red twelve-sided tower with loophole and archery; Torture tower with exhibitions “Architecture of Old Astrakhan” and “History of Legal Proceedings”.

The main attraction of the Kremlin inside the walls is the Assumption Cathedral . The temple, built at the turn of the 17th–18th centuries in the Moscow Baroque style, is considered one of the architectural masterpieces of church architecture. Together with Lobnoye Mesto it forms a single ensemble - a unique phenomenon for Russia. Other architectural masterpieces of the Astrakhan Kremlin: Bishop's House ; Trinity Cathedral , similar to an ancient tower; Tseykhgauz . An external inspection of the Kremlin territory will take from 1–1.5 hours, the visit is free. You can view the exhibitions inside the buildings with a single ticket: 300 rubles. for an adult and 120 rubles. for the child.

More details: Astrakhan Kremlin

Trinity Cathedral Photo: © Igor Tsarev

Next, the route of the first day in Astrakhan will go towards the Volga embankment (Gorodskaya branch). From Lenin Square , move towards Swan Lake - a small reservoir with swans and an openwork rotunda. Next - to the Arc de Triomphe and from it along Governor Anatoly Guzhvin Avenue to the monument to Peter I on Petrovskaya Embankment . Walking along Petrovskaya and further along the Red embankment, you will see fountains and sculptural compositions, ancient stone mansions and bridges over the Kutum river. It is better to choose a place for lunch on Petrovskaya Embankment - there are many snack bars, snack kiosks and restaurants, including floating ones. You can end the day at the Big Isady , a historical bazaar founded several centuries ago. Here you can buy Astrakhan edible souvenirs and try local delicacies.

Detailed route: What to see in Astrakhan in 1 day

Swan Lake Photo: © Igor Tsarev

Second day

Astrakhan was a city of eastern merchants for many centuries. On the opposite bank of the White City canal. Warvation has long been the site of settlements. Representatives of different nationalities lived compactly in each of them: Armenians, Indians, Persians, Tatars and others. Therefore, settlements are named in accordance with the nationalities that once lived here: Tatar, Persian, Armenian, Agryzhanskaya. Pre-revolutionary buildings have been preserved in the areas: wooden houses with openwork carvings, secret courtyards and, in some places, vegetable gardens.

It is convenient to start the route from the Kriush and then follow this way: Morskaya Sloboda - Armenian Sloboda ( St. Hripsime Church and the Shiite mosque of Baki ) - Persian Sloboda with the remains of the Persian mosque - Agryzhanskaya Sloboda (Central or Red Mosque No. 1 ) - Tatar Sloboda with the Black , White and Nogai mosques.

Black Mosque Photo: © Maksim Starostin

Church of John Chrysostom

Leaving the Tatarskaya Sloboda along Volzhskaya Street, you will find yourself in the historical district, which was previously called “Bezrodnaya Sloboda”. Fugitive Russian peasants settled here. the Church of St. John Chrysostom was built . It was built in 1820 on the site of a dilapidated wooden church. The stone temple in the style of late classicism has its own bell tower with a tragic fate. The bell tower was destroyed twice and was restored only in 2001.

Details: Church of St. John Chrysostom

Panoramic view of the Church of St. John Chrysostom

St. Vladimir's Cathedral

The route of the second day in Astrakhan then follows Bakinskaya Street towards the Admiralty Spit. Going out to the canal. Varvation, you will see the majestic Vladimir Cathedral . It was erected at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries - for the 900th anniversary of the baptism of Rus'. The large-scale building, 50 meters high, is covered with a Byzantine-style dome with a diameter of 12 meters. On the outside, the walls are decorated with carvings and stucco. In front of the temple there is a monument to Prince Vladimir and a small park.

Details: Vladimir Cathedral

Vladimir Cathedral Photo: © Igor Tsarev

The final part of the route of the second day is a walk along the canal to the square named after. Heydar Aliyev . Then you can cross the Friendship Bridge between Russia and Azerbaijan , which is decorated with fountain jets. On the Volga embankment you can take a break, have lunch or go on a river walk. The motor ship runs along the Gorodskaya and Volga branches three times a day from Wednesday to Sunday. The route is especially picturesque at sunset. The duration of the river boat trip is 1.5 hours. You can also go for a walk on the river bus. It runs more frequently - 4 flights on weekdays and every hour on weekends.

Detailed route: What to see in Astrakhan in 2 days

Photo: © Maksim Starostin

The third day

3 days in Astrakhan is enough to explore not only the city’s attractions, but also the natural beauty of the region. Usually, tourists devote the third day in Astrakhan to trips around the Astrakhan region. Depending on your interests, the route can be built in different ways.

Astrakhan Biosphere Reserve

The reserve is located in the delta of the Volga River. An area of about 70 thousand hectares is home to more than 280 species of birds, a quarter of which are rare species. Here you can see white cranes - one of the rarest bird species. Red-listed Egyptian herons and Dalmatian pelicans are also found here. Therefore, the most popular type of tourism in the reserve is ornithological excursions. Hikers should take a walk along the “Rediscovered Delta” eco-trail . The trail, equipped with a wooden deck, passes through 4 islands. The total length of the route is 1.7 km. During your walk you will see reed thickets, willow forests, and lotus fields. For an additional cost, you can purchase a boat excursion to the place where the Volga flows into the Caspian Sea.

Panoramic view of the Volga delta

Reserve "Stepnoy"

The flat area on the border with Kalmykia is a unique section of the feather grass steppe. Here you can observe rare species of mammals and birds in their natural environment: the Red Book saiga, steppe eagle, demoiselle crane and others. The area of the reserve looks especially beautiful in April-early May, when the steppe begins to bloom: wildflowers interspersed with bright tulip patches stretch over many kilometers of an absolutely flat plain.

Bogdinsko-Baskunchaksky Nature Reserve

The protected area is located near the border with Kazakhstan. There are two unusual natural attractions of the region here: salt lake Baskunchak and Mount Bolshoye Bogdo . During the warm season, you can swim in Lake Baskunchak or take spa treatments in its healing mud. Mount Bolshoye Bogdo, 149 meters high (the highest point of the Caspian lowland), is interesting for its “singing” effect. The steppe wind blows through the caves and craters of the mountain, which is why it seems that the Big Bogdo is “singing”.

Details: Bogdinsko-Baskunchaksky Nature Reserve

Lake Baskunchak Photo: © Nomad

Sturgeon farm "Beluga"

At the sturgeon and beluga breeding farm you can learn more about the fishing industry in the Astrakhan region. Here, in conditions close to natural, is the only place in our country where these large fish are bred. On the farm you can see beluga weighing up to a quarter of a ton and 25–30 years old. Sturgeon and beluga caviar are obtained here without killing, and the farmed fish are often released into the Caspian Sea. At the farm you can purchase fish products - not only smoked fish and sturgeon caviar, but also original fish pates and gift sets.

Details: Sturgeon farm “Beluga”

Cultural-historical

The scenery for the historical film “Horde” was erected on the site of a real city, the capital of the Golden Horde. The city, founded by Batu Khan, is located 130 km from Astrakhan, in the Kharabalinsky district. The reconstructed city introduces visitors to the life and lifestyle of an eastern trading settlement of the 13th century. Residential buildings and craft workshops, a shaman's yurt and a device for providing the city with water are reproduced here with historical accuracy. To immerse yourself in the atmosphere, guests are offered to shoot with an ancient bow or ride a camel.

Details: Cultural and historical

Saray-Batu Photo: © acvazul-v2010

Watermelon Museum

An unusual museum is located in the city of Kamyzyak. The museum complex includes: melon fields where tourists can see how watermelons grow in natural conditions; an exhibition hall with all varieties of watermelons and an illustrative history of the development of melon growing in Russia; tasting area. At the end of August, the Russian Watermelon Festival is held at the museum.

You won’t be able to see all the natural beauty and historical places in one day. But you can visit several objects located close to each other. Thus, a visit to the Bogdinsko-Baskunchaksky Nature Reserve is combined with a visit along the way. The road from Sarai-Batu to Lake Baskunchak will run along the Volga towards Akhtubinsk. The Watermelon Museum in the city of Kamyzyak can be visited on the way to the Caspian Sea. The Stepnoy nature reserve is convenient for visiting on the way to Kalmykia.

Mount Big Bogdo Photo: © Nomad

Weather

Today
Tomorrow

January 22
, Saturday
Partly cloudy
+2 °C during the day0 °C at night
January 23
, Sunday
Cloudy, light snow
0 °C during the day - 3 °C at night
January 24
, Monday
Clear
-5 °C during the day -7 °C at night
Weather for 2 weeks

The climate of Astrakhan is temperate continental, with pronounced seasonality. Air masses move freely across the flat territory, so it is hot and dry in summer, and thaws often occur in winter. There is little precipitation during the year, water evaporates quickly, and snow cover does not last long during the winter months. Eastern winds and hot winds blow in the city, bringing dust and increasing drought. The hottest month is July, the coldest month is February. Regardless of the season, the days are almost always clear or, in extreme cases, partly cloudy. The best time for a holiday in Astrakhan is the beginning of autumn: the weather is still warm, the annoying midges disappear, and the legendary local melons are ripening in the fields.

Museums of Astrakhan

The list of Astrakhan attractions to see in 3 days should include several museums. The city has more than a dozen cultural and interactive entertainment institutions, where you can learn more about the history of the Astrakhan land, the culture and way of life of its peoples, and about great personalities who were natives of Astrakhan.

Local Lore Museum of Astrakhan

It is best to get acquainted with the history of the region and its nature at the Astrakhan Museum of Local Lore. Founded in the 19th century, the local history museum has more than 300 thousand exhibits in its collection. One of the most interesting exhibitions of the museum introduces visitors to the animal and aquatic world of the region: stuffed animals of huge fish and steppe animals, dioramas demonstrating the wildlife of the Astrakhan region. You can get acquainted with the treasures of the Astrakhan Khanate at the exhibition “Gold of the Nomads”. Separate exhibitions are dedicated to weapons from different centuries and urban life in the 19th century.

More details: Astrakhan Local Lore Museum

of the Astrakhan History Museum , located in the former house of Ulyanov-Lenin’s grandfather, introduces the history of the city In the halls of the house-museum, the interiors of pre-revolutionary rooms have been recreated. You can learn about the creative personalities of Astrakhan at the Museum of Culture . You can also learn more about the lives of famous people in the memorial houses of the poet Velimir Khlebnikov and the painter Boris Kustodiev . Their works are exhibited in house-museums - paintings and sketches by Kustodiev, collections of Khlebnikov’s poems published during his lifetime, personal belongings of the creators, archival photographs. The Museum of Military Glory will introduce you to the military history of the city.

Art lovers should visit the art gallery, rich in artistic masterpieces. Dogadina . Paintings by Levitan, Kuindzhi, Tropinin, Shishkin, Malevich and Chagall are exhibited here. In the house-museum of merchant Tetyushinov , located in an openwork wooden tower, the atmosphere of a merchant's mansion is recreated, and at the end of the excursion, guests are invited to a tea party.

You can entertain children by visiting the Astrakhan Planetarium . In addition to observing the starry sky and the movement of the planets in the interactive hall, here you can see an exhibition dedicated to the life of astronauts. The exhibition features spacesuits of astronauts, tubes with their food and other household items. The program for visiting Astrakhan with children also often includes a toy museum with unusual examples of wooden and Soviet toys; sturgeon museum with aquariums. For a country trip with children, you can take a trip to the Baba Frosya Zoo . An open area of 2 hectares is home to large feline predators, steppe animals, ungulates, raccoons, ostriches, and birds of prey. The journey from Astrakhan will take about an hour.

Detailed material: Museums of Astrakhan

Stories, routes and tips from tourists with photos

You can find out which attractions to see in Astrakhan in 3 days and which are not, from the reviews of tourists. Travelers share their personal routes around Astrakhan and the region, and tell how to plan your time wisely. In the reviews of tourists you will find practical advice on organizing a holiday, as well as recommendations on where to buy Astrakhan souvenirs and get acquainted with local cuisine on a budget. From travelers' reports you can find inspiration for a future trip and unusual options for walking around Astrakhan.

“Astrakhan” - a photo album about a trip to Astrakhan for 3 days.

All reviews about trips to Astrakhan

Rent a Car

In order to move freely around the city, and even more so to get to the fishing bases in its vicinity without any problems, it is better to rent a car. There are several private companies in Astrakhan offering car rental with or without a driver. A domestic car can be rented for 1000 RUB per day, an economy class foreign car for 2200-5000 RUB.

Recently, traffic jams in Astrakhan have become a frequent occurrence. The reason for this is the abundance of uncontrolled intersections, narrowings, road breaks, as well as inconsistent traffic lights. In addition, the city clearly does not have enough parking spaces. The problem is especially acute in the center: there are often no parking spaces even at municipal facilities and shopping complexes. Drivers are forced to leave their cars in unauthorized places, right on the edge of highways. But if you wish, you can always find paid parking.

Where to stay in Astrakhan

Housing offers in Astrakhan are found throughout the city, but the White City - the historical center or areas near it - will be convenient and pleasant for tourists. The neighborhoods within the boundaries of the Volga, the Varvatsia Canal and the Kutum River are home to the Astrakhan Kremlin, the Brotherhood's Garden, many museums and ancient mansions. The best 4 and 5 star hotels in the city are also located here. There are few private offers in the very heart of the city; there is more choice in the rest of the city.

An excellent option for the summer is housing on the banks of the Volga, everyone will notice its wonderful view from the window. In addition to apartments, these include the Azimut and Grand Hotel Astrakhan hotels.

Astrakhan Hotels
Hostels for Budget Travelers
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Guest houses in Astrakhan

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What to try

Astrakhan cuisine is a vibrant mixture of gastronomic traditions of all the peoples who have ever inhabited the ancient land. Most local dishes are prepared from fish and vegetables. Here you should definitely try balyk: once upon a time this was the name given to dried sturgeon, but now this name has spread to other valuable species of fish with the back salted and then air-dried.

Astrakhan housewives often prepare jam from unusual ingredients: vegetables (the most delicious is tomato) and walnuts.

Another interesting dish is “he”, borrowed from the Kazakhs: it is raw fish (most often pike), marinated in wine or apple cider vinegar. People in Astrakhan also love meat: kebabs and lula-kebabs here are no worse than in the Caucasus. Among the soups, the rich “triple” fish soup deserves attention. The secret of its preparation is simple: each type of fish (sturgeon, bream, pike perch, etc.) is boiled separately, and the “simpler” varieties are used for the broth, and the “more noble” ones are added a couple of minutes before readiness, and the soup is served with them to the table. Real delicacies are smoked sterlet, sturgeon “noodles,” pike and carp caviar. The ideal drink to complement all this fish diversity is Astrakhan beer, which is praised by both locals and tourists.