The Best Places to Visit in Russia by Travel Influencers

Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd, then Leningrad, is a city situated on the Neva River, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. It is Russia's second-largest city after Moscow.

Moscow is the capital and most populous city of Russia. With over 12.5 million residents living within the city limits of 2,511 square kilometres as of 2018, Moscow is among the world's largest cities, being the most populous city entirely within Europe, the most populous urban area in Europe with over 17 million people, the most populous metropolitan area in Europe with over 20 million people, – the Moscow Metropolitan Area, and also the largest city on the European continent.

Petergof or Peterhof, known as Petrodvorets from 1944 to 1997, is a municipal town in Petrodvortsovy District of the federal city of St. Petersburg, located on the southern shore of the Gulf of Finland.

Sevastopol is the largest city on the Crimean Peninsula and a major Black Sea port. Since annexing Crimea in 2014, the Russian Federation has administered Sevastopol as a federal city.

Gelendzhik or Gelenjik is a resort town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the Gelendzhik Bay of the Black Sea, between Novorossiysk and Tuapse.

Vyborg is a town in, and the administrative center of, Vyborgsky District in Leningrad Oblast, Russia. It lies on the Karelian Isthmus near the head of the Vyborg Bay, 130 km to the northwest of St.

Krasnoyarsk is a city and the administrative center of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, located on the Yenisei River. It is the third-largest city in Siberia after Novosibirsk and Omsk, with a population of 1,035,528 as of the 2010 Census.

Vladivostok is a city and the administrative centre of the Far Eastern Federal District and Primorsky Krai, Russia, located around the Golden Horn Bay, not far from Russia's borders with China and North Korea.

Sochi is a city in Krasnodar Krai. It is located in Western Russia, on the Black Sea coast near Russia's southern border. The Greater Sochi area, which includes territories and localities subordinated to Sochi proper, has a total area of 3,526 square kilometers and sprawls for 145 kilometers along the shores of the Black Sea near the Caucasus Mountains.

Rostov is a town in Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, one of the oldest in the country and a tourist center of the Golden Ring. It is located on the shores of Lake Nero, 202 kilometers northeast of Moscow. Population: 31,792; 34,141; 35,707.

Ruskeala is a rural locality under the administrative jurisdiction of the town of republic significance of Sortavala in the Republic of Karelia, Russia.

Yoshkar-Ola is the capital city of the Mari El Republic, Russia. Yoshkar-Ola means red city in Mari and was formerly known as Tsaryovokokshaysk before 1919, as Krasnokokshaysk between 1919 and 1927 and Charla.

Kazan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia. With a population of 1,243,500, it is the sixth most populous city in Russia.

Polyany is a settlement in Vyborgsky District of Leningrad Oblast, Russia, on the Karelian Isthmus. Before the Winter War and Continuation War it was the administrative center of the Uusikirkko municipality of the Viipuri province of Finland.

Berdyaush is an urban locality in Satkinsky District of Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia. Population: 5,304; 5,672; 6,530.

Prokopyevsk is a city in Kemerovo Oblast, Russia. Population: 210,130; 224,597; 273,838.

Murmansk is a port city and the administrative center of Murmansk Oblast in the far northwest part of Russia. It sits on both slopes and banks of a modest ria or fjord, Kola Bay, an estuarine inlet of the Barents Sea.

Poperechnaya Gora is a rural locality in Karayarsky Selsoviet, Karaidelsky District, Bashkortostan, Russia. The population was 21 as of 2010. There are 5 streets.

Tuapse is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated on the northeast shore of the Black Sea, south of Gelendzhik and north of Sochi. Population: 63,292; 64,238; 63,081. Tuapse is a sea port and the northern center of a resort zone which extends south to Sochi.

Kotlas is a town in Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Northern Dvina and Vychegda Rivers. Population: 60,562; 60,647; 68,021.

The Peter and Paul Fortress is the original citadel of St. Petersburg, Russia, founded by Peter the Great in 1703 and built to Domenico Trezzini's designs from 1706 to 1740 as a star fortress.

The Cathedral of Vasily the Blessed, commonly known as Saint Basil's Cathedral, is a Christian church in Red Square in Moscow, Russia and is regarded as a cultural symbol of the country.

The Winter Palace was the official residence of the Russian Emperors from 1732 to 1917. Today, the palace and its precincts form the Hermitage Museum.

Red Square is a city square in Moscow, Russia. It separates the Kremlin, the former royal citadel and now the official residence of the President of Russia, from a historic merchant quarter known as Kitai-gorod.

The Cathedral of Christ the Saviour is a Russian Orthodox cathedral in Moscow, Russia, on the northern bank of the Moskva River, a few hundred metres southwest of the Kremlin.

The Catherine Park is the large landscaped area to the south of the Catherine Palace, located in the town of Tsarskoye Selo, 25 km south-east of St. Petersburg, Russia. The park has two parts: a formal 18th century Dutch-style garden and a natural English garden.

Lake Baikal is a rift lake located in southern Siberia, Russia, between Irkutsk Oblast to the northwest and the Buryat Republic to the southeast.

Petergof or Peterhof, known as Petrodvorets from 1944 to 1997, is a municipal town in Petrodvortsovy District of the federal city of St. Petersburg, located on the southern shore of the Gulf of Finland.

The State Historical Museum of Russia is a museum of Russian history wedged between Red Square and Manege Square in Moscow. Its exhibitions range from relics of prehistoric tribes that lived on the territory of present-day Russia, through priceless artworks acquired by members of the Romanov dynasty.

Tsarskoye Selo was the town containing a former Russian residence of the imperial family and visiting nobility, located 24 kilometers south from the center of Saint Petersburg. The residence now forms part of the town of Pushkin.

Palace Square, connecting Nevsky Prospekt with Palace Bridge leading to Vasilievsky Island, is the central city square of St Petersburg and of the former Russian Empire.

GUM is the main department store in many cities of the former Soviet Union, known as State Department Store during the Soviet era. Similarly-named stores operated in some Soviet republics and in post-Soviet states.

Kolomenskoye is a former royal estate situated several kilometers to the southeast of the city center of Moscow, Russia, on the ancient road leading to the town of Kolomna. The 390 hectare scenic area overlooks the steep banks of the Moskva River. It became a part of Moscow in the 1960s.

Koryaksky or Koryakskaya Sopka is an active volcano on the Kamchatka Peninsula in the Russian Far East. It lies within sight of Kamchatka Krai's administrative center, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.

Senty Church is a Christian church built in 965 in the territory of modern Karachay-Cherkessia. It is situated on the left bank of the Teberda River, near the village of Nizhnyaya Teberda, 18 km south of Karachaevsk.

Alexander Gardens was one of the first urban public parks in Moscow, Russia. The park comprises three separate gardens, which stretch along all the length of the western Kremlin wall for 865 metres between the building of the Moscow Manege and the Kremlin.

Mount Kazbegi is a dormant stratovolcano and one of the major mountains of the Caucasus located on the border of Georgia's Kazbegi District and Russian Republic of North Ossetia–Alania.

Lake Teletskoye is the largest lake in the Altai Mountains and the Altai Republic, Russia, and has depth up to 325 meters. Situated at a height of 434 m above the sea level, the lake is 78 km long and 5 km wide and lies between the mountain ridges Korbu and Al-tyntu, on the junction of the Sailughem Mountains and the Western Sayans.

The Moscow International Business Center, also known as Moscow-City, is a commercial development located just east of the Third Ring Road at the western edge of the Presnensky District in the Central Administrative Okrug of the city of Moscow, Russia.

Avachinsky is an active stratovolcano in Russia. It is situated on the Kamchatka Peninsula in the Russian Far East. Avachinsky lies within sight of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, the capital of Kamchatka Krai.