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10

Samara Travel & Sightseeing Guide

Filed Under Russia

A trip to Samara
Samara is an important city in Russia - equal parts industry and culture - with a population of well over a million people. Not far from Moscow, Samara briefly served as a sort of secondary capital city during WWII. Local colour draws on the university as well as the wealth of artists and authors that have grown out of Samara’s past, and this in conjunction with its modern infrastructure and thriving automobile and aerospace industries give Samara a satisfying self-sufficiency.

Flights to Samara
Samara is served by Kurumoch International Airport, located a little over 20 miles north of the city centre. This facility handles an annual throughput in excess of a million passengers, most of whom are bound for Moscow and other Russian cities. Lufthansa flies to Frankfurt and CSA Czech links up with Prague. If you are looking for a cheap flight to Samara try lastminute.com.

The local metro system is currently under development. At present, there are eight stations that only access a few of the most essential areas downtown. Samara is a regional hub for the Russian rail network, and several trains depart for Moscow on a daily basis. If you’re travelling by hire car, you’ll find Samara along the M5 motorway that runs from Moscow to Togliatti.

Samara

Sightseeing in Samara
Most of Samara’s tourist appeal centres on its brief capital spotlight during WWII. Lenin’s remains were evacuated to Samara for a short time, and Stalin’s Bunker remains a primary highlight for tourists. Originally built as a safe house in case Moscow fell to the Germans, it sits on Kuybyshev Square directly behind a row of apartment buildings.

The city is full of monuments to Soviet ideals along with a lot of Stalin-era architecture. The new Orthodox Church in Samara is a pleasing structure, and the Freedom Statue also has a consistent cloud of tourists hovering around its base. Located next to the White House, this area enjoys exceptional views of the Zhiguly Mountains and the Volga.

Fun by night – eating drinking and partying
Samara is fully equipped to fulfil all of your partying needs. Restaurants in and around the city centre represent a variety of tastes and there’s plenty to eat beyond the hardy Russian staples. In general, fine dining is little less expensive in Samara than it is in Moscow.

The nightlife in Samara is heavy on dance clubs and discos. Some of the most popular dance spots are KINUP, Beerja, Aura, Long Bar and Postel. Meanwhile, the downtown bars focus on beer and spirits, and the food menu in these places is more of an afterthought.

Fun by day - shopping and activities
Walking tours of downtown Samara are nice, and there are plenty of shops and marketplaces where you can pick up a souvenir or something to eat. For a break from city life, a walk along the Volga can be equally rewarding. Hydrofoils up and down the river afford an outside perspective on the city along with a window into the life of local farmers. While the river’s not that well-maintained, this is still a wonderful way to view the countryside.

Daytrips
There are a few excellent daytrip opportunities for tourists based in Samara. The Zhiguli State Reserve (part of the Zhiguli mountain range) is a beautiful, forested park frequented by nature lovers and even UFO-hunters. The latter are responding to occasional tabloid reports on the Zhiguli Mountains. These mountains are often likened to those found in Switzerland.

The Tatarstan region is situated north of Samara. Its capital city of Kazan is a popular tourist destination here in the Volga River valley, and visitors will find opulent architecture in this wealthy city (Russia’s third-richest). The Kazan Kremlin is the primary attraction, surrounded by intriguing legends and home to a host of notable features.

West of Samara is the Ulyanovsk region. The region’s capital city by the same name was Vladimir Lenin’s hometown; there are numerous sites devoted to the city’s hometown hero, including a sprawling memorial centre, museums and several of the leader’s former houses which are now open for tours.

Must-see attractions
Among Samara’s must-see attractions are the Iverskiy Female Cloister (opposite of the equally popular Zhigulensk’s Beer Factory) and the mid-19th-century Strukov Botanical Garden. The cloister is a relatively recent addition to the city though its architecture remains reminiscent of bygone ages. The nuns support the cloister through knitting and embroidery.

Khlebnaya square is a common start- and end-point for tours of the city. In years past this square was an important loading point for the local bread factory. Before it hosted the bread exchange, the square was home to three churches, and a recent resurgence in local heritage produced the rebuilt ‘Old Fortress’ that stands here today.

The Gothic cathedral was erected at the turn of the 20th century. Its facade is a brilliant specimen of fine masonry crafted in such a way to breathe life and lightness into what might have been a heavy and imposing structure. Two 150-ft spires soar above the city, visible from virtually every vantage point.

Samara is also known for its opera and ballet house. This theatre opened its doors in the 1930s and epitomises the architecture generated under Stalin’s regime. The bronze statue in front of the opera house memorialises V V Kuibyshev, a famous Russian revolutionary.

Best time to go
It is best to visit Samara during the summer (late May to early September) when average daytime temperatures exceed 20°C. Sightseeing is easiest this time of year as there are around ten hours of sunshine every day. Rainfall is greatest during the summer months, so tourists may have to divide their time between indoor and outdoor activities. The weather is drier during the winter months, though temperatures can drop well below freezing and daylight hours are shortened substantially.

Rainy day suggestions
If it rains during your visit to Samara, there are plenty of indoor activities worth looking into. The local Art Museum is housed in the Volgo-Kama Bank building, constructed early in the 20th century. Inside is a pleasing collection of artwork (sourced locally and from greater Russia) spanning the past two centuries. The Aerospace Museum is a tribute to the city’s prominence in the Russian space-exploration industry. The exhibits encompass 2,500 items spanning photographs, technical documents and scaled-down models.

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