Yekaterinburg sits in a travel-friendly position, attracting visitors from many directions. A flight from Moscow takes about 2.5 hours, from Kazan roughly 1.5 hours, from Novosibirsk around 2 hours, and from Sochi about 3 hours. Even from Vladivostok, the journey is doable in about seven hours. This makes Yekaterinburg a favored weekend escape. According to the national project Tourism and Hospitality Industry, Sverdlovsk region tourism rose by 30 percent during the May holidays this year compared with last year, with an overall projected total of 1.8 million visitors in 2022.
Two to three days are plenty to experience the city, enjoy local dining, raft on the river, and explore the Sverdlovsk region on a nature trail.
things to do in the city
Many locals describe Yekaterinburg as a city of constructivism, since a number of buildings of this early 20th century architectural style still stand here. About 140 surviving examples line the center, with buildings like a tractor-shaped Main Post Office or a sickle-shaped Iset Hotel serving as memorable markers.
From the outside, the city’s architecture may seem varied rather than uniform. A single 19th century roof can shelter a hotel, a church, and a shop. Yet a common thread is the city’s green roofs, a nod to its malachite mining history and its emblem after the metal’s local significance, though the wealth of palace construction in St. Petersburg swiftly shifted the symbol toward other places.
The traditional starting point for city exploration is thought to be the Kremlin, yet Yekaterinburg follows a different path. The city’s early power came from industry, not a fortress. Its dam, crafted in Yekaterinburg, helped a factory begin operations three centuries ago, and Plotinka today serves as a popular meeting place and a gateway to discovering the city.
To aid visitors, the volunteer project Yekaterinburg’s Red Line offers a 9 km route highlighting the city’s key sights. The City Quarter hosts 39 sites, including the Yeltsin Center, the Historical Square Museums, Sevastyanov House, the Temple of Blood, the Vysotsky Skyscraper, and the Vysotsky Museum. The Ernst Neizvestny Museum and the Hermitage Ural Center are also on the route. Tours can be booked, or travelers can use the map to guide themselves.
Beyond the Red Line, there are blue routes for pilgrims, yellow lines for cyclists, and a purple path for street art. The routes are marked on pavement and while some have faded, they still help visitors navigate.
Travel culture in the city is diverse. There are guided author-led tours through former industrial districts, constructivist and modernist zones, factory districts, and the old 18th–19th century quarters. Street art is a highlight, with the city hosting the Stenograffia festival and the Carte Blanche partisan festival each summer. Works by Tim Rad, Slava Ptrk, and Pokras Lampas are visible around town, with roughly 600 outdoor pieces overall. Notable works include Zesar’s Amor on the Kursk embankment and a rain-activated inscription near the embankment.
For those who prefer indoor exhibitions, the world’s oldest surviving wooden sculpture, the Shigir Idol, resides in the Yekaterinburg Museum of Local History.
where to eat and have fun
Yekaterinburg stays active well after nine at night. The dining scene remains busy with little trouble finding a seat in popular spots. Among late-night favorites are cocktail bars that avoid the word Collective in their signage. If a seat is scarce, visitors can check out Shalom Shanghai, Gem, Nelson Sovin, and Scoundrels, or sample fare at Citizens, Tours, Reptiles, Crabs and Wine, C, Hmeli Suneli, Lost and Found, Barboris in the Yeltsin Center, Double Grill & Bar, and Momo.
Gastronomic exploration is easy with new venues opening weekly and food bloggers keeping a pulse on the scene. The Ural Cuisine Festival debuted this year with dishes featuring fly agaric and crispy nettle pies. Locals also enjoy performances at Kolyada Theater, led by playwright Nikolai Kolyada, and at the Yekaterinburg State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre. The city’s premier music event, Ural Music Night, attracts hundreds of thousands of attendees from around the region.
outings in the region
Parking in the city is limited, but a short drive opens access to true Urals nature. Sverdlovsk region offers excellent rafting opportunities on rivers such as Chusovaya, Rezh, and Iset. The Gora Belaya tourist cluster is expanding, including 16 settlements and natural attractions like the Chusovaya River Nature Park, Visimsky Racecourse, the Maral Farm, and the Gora Belaya ski resort.
Nearby towns also offer unique sights. In Sysert, visitors can try sapsurfing and visit the Summer Factory Museum-Factory. Verkhnyaya Pyshma features the UMMC Museum of Military Equipment and Russia’s largest automobile museum. Nevyansk presents the Nevyansk Icon House and stories of the Demidov family. The Sverdlovsk region hosts sites connected to the fate of the Romanov family, though those places carry a solemn note with the city’s own royal history in Yekaterinburg.