Irkutsk Travel Guide

0 followers

Share
Share post
- Copy link
- Share via...

City Introduction

Irkutsk is one of the great cities of Siberia and is known for its location close to Lake Baikal, one of the highlights of Russian nature. The city’s history began with Ivan Pokhabov’s trading post in 1652, and it developed rapidly with first road connection to Moscow in 1760 and later also as an important station on the Trans-Siberian Railway.

Many buildings from the history of Irkutsk have been preserved. These include about old wooden houses and the churches for which Irkutsk is known. The Holy Cross Church from the middle of the 18th century is a beautiful example of the fine Siberian Baroque, which you can see in several places in the city, where there are a number of 18th century churches.

You should also take a walk in the area Quarter 130. Here old wooden houses stand next to each other and give a fine impression of former Irkutsk. Not far from here you are in the city’s modern center, where you can also find many beautiful buildings from not least the late 1800s to today.

On a trip to Irkutsk, a visit to Lake Baikal is a must for most people and it is a great experience. It is the deepest lake in the world and the richest in water, and it lies like a sea in Siberia with a special nature around it. In the area you can e.g. see the famous Baikal seal and an interesting open-air museum with houses and architecture from Siberia.

Top Attractions

Cathedral of the Epiphany/Собор Богоявления: This beautiful church was built 1718-1746. It stands in the historic center of the city on the banks of the Angara River. A former church was built here in the late 17th century close to the then Kremlin in the walls of Irkutsk. After a fire, the present church was built, and it is one of Irkutsk’s oldest stone buildings.

130th Quarter (Irkutskoy Slobody)/130-й квартал (Иркутской Слободы): The 130th Quarter is the name of a beautiful area where you can see a large number of old wooden houses from 18th century Irkutsk. People built houses here that were then outside the city, and the place continued to be like a village in the city for centuries. In 2010, a comprehensive conservation project was started for the unique neighborhood.
Znamensky Nunnery/Знаменский женский монастырь: This monastery was founded in 1762 and is today one of the largest and oldest monasteries in Siberia. The monastery is one of the city’s most famous sights with its beautiful Siberian baroque architecture and richly decorated interior. Historically, the monastery has been used as an exile for Decabrists who had taken part in the uprising against Tsarism on December 26, 1825.

Church of the Holy Cross/Крестовоздвиженская церковь: The Church of the Holy Cross is a masterpiece of Siberian Baroque architecture. The church was built as a wooden structure in 1719, and construction in stone was started in 1747. The church was completed in 1760, and it is known for both the beautiful exterior with many spires and colors and for being the only church in Irkutsk that has preserved the original decoration in the interior.

Other Attractions

Irkutsk Academic Drama Theater/Иркутский академический драматический театр: When a traveling theater troupe came to Irkutsk and stayed in the city in 1850, the history of this theater began. The following year, the governor general of the region had a wooden theater building erected for the troupe, which thus had a permanent stage. The theater developed continuously, and in the years 1894-1897 the current theater building was constructed.
Kazan Church/Казанская церковь: The colorful Kazan Church was built in the years 1885-1892. The style is Byzantine and the church is adorned with fine frescoes. You can also see an impressive icon wall at 13 meters/42 feet in height. It is produced by Chinese artisans in Indian granite.

Church of Our Savior/Спасская церковь: This is the oldest church in Eastern Siberia. It was built in 1706 and stands as a church and historical monument from early Irkutsk. On the outside of the church you can see murals from the 19th century, which is not repeated in the church’s interior. The building was a museum during the Soviet Union until 1990, when it was rededicated as a church.
Irkutsk State Circus/Иркутский Государственный цирк: The circus tradition goes back a long way in the history of Irkutsk, and the first circus building was erected in 1868. In the 20th century there were up to six summer circuses and a winter circus that entertained the city’s children and adults. The current circus building opened in 1964, and here you can see fine performances in accordance with the great circus tradition throughout Russia.

Irkutsk Regional Museum/Иркутский областной краеведческий музей: At this museum you can experience stories and finds from the region around Irkutsk. The museum was founded in 1786, while the current museum building was built in 1883, which was in the years following the fire in 1879 that destroyed large parts of the city.
Irkutsk City History Museum/Музей истории города Иркутска: At this museum you can see many aspects of Irkutsk’s history and depictions of life in Irkutsk through time. In addition to the interesting collections and the exhibition you can enjoy the beautiful museum building.

East Siberian Coal Company/Компания Востсибуголь: Vostsibugol/Востсибуголь is the name of a Russian coal company with mines around i.a. Irkutsk and Krasnoyarsk. The headquarters are located in Irkutsk, the beautiful and impressive main building looks almost like a city castle. The building was constructed in Stalinist empire architecture in the years 1946-1948 on the site where one of Irkutsk’s churches had been located since the beginning of the 18th century. It had been demolished in 1932 under Stalin’s rule in the Soviet Union.
Khudozhestvennyy Cinema/Кинотеатр Художественный: Cinemas are most often places where you enjoy a good movie, but here you can also enjoy the beautiful building that opened as a cinema theater in the 1910s after a renovation of the old Fars Theater/театра Фарс. The theater magnate Don-Othello bought the place in 1917 and ran it as one of his many cinema theaters in the city, all of which were nationalized in the 1920s-1930s Soviet Union. You can still see other of the old cinemas such as Don Othello Cinema/Кинотеатр Дон Отелло.

Irkutsk Railway Station/Иркутск-Пассажирский: Irkutsk is an important city and station on the Trans-Siberian Railway, which arrived in the city in 1899, when the city’s railway station opened. The distance from Moscow is 5,185 kilometers/3,222 miles and you can continue 4,104 kilometers/2,550 miles further east to Vladivostok on the Pacific Ocean. The railway station building is beautiful as a small castle and stylistically inspired by the large constructions in St. Petersburg.
The Supreme Soviet/Верховный Совет: This large building, also called the Gray House / Серый дом, is one of the city’s most impressive constructions from the time of the Soviet Union. The house was built 1938-1959 as the local Supreme Soviet, which was the regional parliament. The regional parliament and administration still have seats in the building. Formerly the Kazan Cathedral / Казанский собор was located on this site, but it was demolished in 1932.
Lenin Monument/Памятник В.И. Ленину: In the Soviet Union, a statue of the head of state and revolution Lenin was erected in most cities. The statue in Irkutsk was originally cast in Leningrad in 1940, but only inaugurated in 1952. The statue stands in a beautiful facility along Karl Marx Street, one of the city’s major thoroughfares.

Irkutsk Museum of Art/Иркутский областной художественный музей: At the Art Museum in Irkutsk you can see various interesting collections. For example, you can see ancient Russian art with icons and wooden sculptures and art from different cultures in the Baikal region. Here are also recent Russian art, European paintings by i.a. Dutch and Flemish artists and works from several Asian countries. The museum was established in 1936.
The East Siberian Railway Building/Здание управления Восточно-Сибирской железной: The Trans-Siberian Railway is probably the world’s most famous and impressive railway line. It connects Moscow with Vladivostok and countless intermediate cities. The line was built in stages and reached Krasnoyarsk in 1895. In 1899, the first train arrived in Irkutsk, and the same year the line was extended to connect to Lake Baikal. The East Siberian Railway is headquartered in this large building; the company was formed in 1934 by merging two companies.
Bronstein Gallery/Галерея Бронштейна: This is a gallery where you can see a fine collection of contemporary art in the form of not least paintings, sculptures and graphic art. You can, for example, see a number of paintings from the 1950s to the present day, some of which are motifs from the Irkutsk area by Lake Baikal.

Day Trips

Lake Baikal/Озеро Байкал: Lake Baikal is one of the most famous and magnificent places in the colossal lands of Russia. The lake holds about 20% of the world’s fresh water, and it is up to 1,637 meters/5,387 feet deep. The lake is beautiful and is like an ocean that suddenly appears when you drive here from Irkutsk. Wildlife is for the most part endemic, and good examples are the Baikal seal and the fish omul. Hundreds of streams and creeks flow into Lake Baikal, while the Angara River is the only outlet of the lake.
Irkutsk Architecture-Ethnographic Museum Taltsy/Иркутский архитектурно-этнографический музей Тальцы: This very interesting open-air museum is located on the banks of the Angara River. The museum was established in 1966, and in the museum area you can see a number of beautiful houses from the 17th century to the 19th century Irkutsk region. One can i.a. see farmhouses, churches and a Buryat yurt. Here is also a wooden fortress built around the year 1630 in Ilimsk about 500 kilometers/310 miles north of Irkutsk. In addition to the buildings themselves, you get a good impression of the historical way of life in the area.

Listvyanka/Листвянка: If you want to see Lake Baikal from Irkutsk, you usually come to the town of Listvyanka, where you can take a walk along the lake, taste the salmon fish omul and visit the Baikal Museum/Байкальский музей. At the museum you can get a good insight into i.a. the wildlife in and around Lake Baikal. The daily life with locals and tourists also makes the place exciting.

Circum-Baikal Railway/Кругобайкальская железная дорога: Circum-Baikal is a railway which until the mid-20th century was part of the main line of the Trans-Siberian Railway. The stretch formed the line from Irkutsk along first the left bank of Angara and then along Lake Baikal to Mysovaya on the east coast of the lake. When a new and shorter route between Irkutsk and Slyudjanka opened in 1949, the beautiful railway line with countless viaducts and tunnels from Irkutsk via Port Baikal/Порт Байкал to Slyudyanka was taken out of the Trans-Siberian Railway. Today, there are trains that tourists can use between Slyudyanka and Port Baikal, which is an unforgettable piece of railway and engineering.

Slyudyanka/Слюдянка: The town of Slyudyanka is a small town located as a station on the Trans-Siberian Railway on the southwest shore of Lake Baikal. The city grew due to the railway, and it is today visited partly for the view of Lake Baikal and partly as a starting point for the beautiful Circum-Baikal Railway.

Angarsk/Ангарск: Angarsk is a relatively new city located as a station and city northwest of Irkutsk. The city was founded in 1948 and today has over 200,000 inhabitants. As such, the city has no classical sights, but it stands as an example of one of the many relatively large cities that were established and built during the Soviet Union. That way you can experience a planned city with wide boulevards and large residential squares.

Shopping

Modnyj Kvartal/Модный Квартал, ul. 3 Ijulija 25/ул. 3 Июля 25, МодныйКвартал.рф
MTTs Novyj/МТЦ Новый, Sovetskaja ul. 58/Советская ул. 58
Sezon/Сезон, ul. Sverdlova 36/ул. Свердлова 36, sezon-irk.ru
Shopping streets: Ulitsa Uritskogo/Улица Урицкого, ul. Karla Marksa/ул. Карла Маркса
Market: Tsentralnyj Rynok/Центральный рынок, ul. Tjekhova 22/ул. Чехова 22, irkcr.ru

With Kids

Circus: Irkutskij Gosudarstvennyj Tsirk/Иркутский Государственный цирк, Proletarskaja ul. 13/Пролетарская ул. 13
Children’s Railway: Detskaja Voctochno-Sibirskaja Zheleznaja Doroga/Детская Восточно-Сибирская железная дорога, Ostrov Junost/Остров Юность
Natural History: Irkutskij Oblastnoj Kraevedcheskij Muzej/Иркутский Областной Краеведческий Музей, ul. Karla Marksa 11/ул. Карла Маркса 11

Practical Links

Irkutsk tourism: myirkutsk.info
Russia tourism: www.russiatourism.ru
Irkutsk city transport: irkget.ru
Russian Railways: rzd.ru
Irkutsk Airport: iktport.ru

City History

Geolocation

In short

Overview of Irkutsk

About the upcoming Irkutsk travel guide

Contents: Tours in the city + tours in the surrounding area
Published: Released soon
Author: Stig Albeck
Publisher: Vamados.com
Language: English

About the travel guide

The Irkutsk travel guide gives you an overview of the sights and activities of the Russian city. Read about top sights and other sights, and get a tour guide with tour suggestions and detailed descriptions of all the city’s most important churches, monuments, mansions, museums, etc.

Irkutsk is waiting for you, and at vamados.com you can also find cheap flights and great deals on hotels for your trip. You just select your travel dates and then you get flight and accommodation suggestions in and around the city.

Read more about Irkutsk and Russia

Russia Travel Guide: vamados.com/russia
City tourism: myirkutsk.info
Russia tourism: www.russiatourism.ru
City transport: irkget.ru
Russian Railways: www.rzd.ru
Airport: iktport.ru

Buy the travel guide

Click the “Add to Cart” button to purchase the travel guide. After that you will come to the payment, where you enter the purchase and payment information. Upon payment of the travel guide, you will immediately receive a receipt with a link to download your purchase. You can download the travel guide immediately or use the download link in the email later.

Use the travel guide

When you buy the travel guide to Irkutsk you get the book online so you can have it on your phone, tablet or computer – and of course you can choose to print it. Use the maps and tour suggestions and you will have a good and content-rich journey.

White Churchs • Lovely Wooden Houses • Angara • Lake Baikal