There are about 5 top things to do when you arrive in Russia. However, don’t be too happy seeing all that list of things to do in Russia before going to immigration office.

There, you should get your immigration card that you should fill with some information. You should describe your personal, the length of stay in Russia, the inviting company’s name and more. Make sure all of the information you provide is correct and similar to those you have in your visa. A single different information will cause you some questions at the border, thus delaying your plans.

After you pass the immigration office, you are free to go. So, here are 5 top things to do when you arrive in Russia.

1. Grand Palace

You may have heard about Catherine Palace with its famous Amber Room. You may  know about the famous Hermitage Museum which people also know it as Winter Palace as well. However, those are only a few of all palaces in Russia. There is also another palace named Grand Palace.

When you enter the palace, there are a lot of grand room, including the Chesme Hall. It has many paintings. Most of them are about Russia’s destruction of the Turkish fleet at Çesme that occurred in 1770. Some other highlights are East and West Chinese Cabinets, the Picture Hall and Peter’s Study. Meanwhile, the biggest room in the palace is Throne Hall. In this room, you can see Peter the Great’s red velvet throne at the center.

The palace is open everyday from January to September. It is open around noon and 2 p.m., and again from 4.15 p.m. to 5.45 p.m. This is due to the guides being in other places at other times.

2. Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts

If you know about Hermitage Museum, you may want to go to this Museum. Located in Moscow, the place is a foreign-art museum. It has three branches that exhibit a range of European art works. Those include masterpieces from ancient civilizations, the Italian Renaissance and the highlight which is Dutch Golden Age.

In the main building, you can enjoy many masterpieces from Italian Renaissance. There are works from famous artists, such as Botticelli, Tiepolo and Veronese. Rembrandt is the star in the museum. One of his work in the house is his painting of Portrait of an Old Woman. In Ancient Civilization section, there are ancient Egyptian weaponry, jewelry, ritual items and tombstones. Meanwhile, Greek and Italian Courts section contains plaster-cast reproductions of the masterpieces from Ancient Greece and Rome as well as those from Renaissance.

3. Gorky Park

Tired of going to museums seeing arts in close space? You can try visiting Gorky Park, instead. Its official name is Maxim Gorky’s Central Park of Culture and Leisure. Designed by architect Konstantin Melnikov in 1920s, it offers what the name says, culture and leisure. Isn’t it interesting to enjoy culture while having a little leisure?

There are many things to do, such as cycling, rollerblading, beach volleyball, urban and extreme sports, table tennis andS pétanque. If you want to go around such wide park, you can rent a bicycle. You can also rent a skate during winter as the pond turns into the city’s biggest ice-skating rink.

There are a lot of art objects in the park when there is an exhibition or festival although the center for exhibition is Garage Museum of Contemporary Art. There are also a lot of small kiosks with Gorky Park Food Row as the main cluster.

4. Stolby Nature Reserve

Located right across the river from Krasnoyarsk’s city center, it is one of Russia’s national parks. The name comes from its highlight which is Stolby, fingers of volcanic rock. It pokes out on the top of a mountain.

Seeing the rock serves a good opportunity for you to do hiking. You just need to follow the track which is around 7 km near Hotel Snezhnaya Dolina. Otherwise, you can take year-round chairlift at Bobrovy Log Ski Resort. Then, you hike for about the same distance through the park.

Although new paths and steps can help you going alone there, you probably want to go on a Tour Service. However, you still need to be careful as ticks are dangerous around May and July. Make sure you receive tick protection or pre-departure encephalitis jabs before going.

5. Ice Bather’s Hut

You may find it extreme and impossible at the same time. But  Murmansk’s “walruses” swore that bathing in icy waters brings health to your body.

The bather’s hut has been there since the Soviet Era. It is on the edge of Lake Semyonovskoe. If you want to get there, take off at the Semyonovskoe Ozero bus stop. After crossing the road, track back for around 250 m to a path that leads to the lake. Don’t forget to bring a towel.

Although the hut is only open to club members, the “walruses” are usually happy to explain there interest in icy waters that they believe to be beneficial for their health. If you get the permit, you can see it yourself. Make sure not to put your head under water while having a bath there.

Those are 5 top things to do when you arrive in Russia. You can also read top stunning tourist attractions in Russia.