Novosibirsk is a relatively new city, which was founded in 1893. This makes it quite a few centuries younger than Moscow and St Petersburg and around a thousand years younger than Veliky Novgorod. One might wonder, what to do in Novosibirsk? Here you won’t find 500-year-old fortresses, medieval monuments and ancient churches. It is an industrial city, and it’s one that grew quite quickly. Today the population of Novosibirsk exceeds 1.6 million people. Novosibirsk might not be the world’s most exciting city, but it’s one of the popular stops on the Trans-Siberian Railway.
Just another day in Novosibirsk for a couple walking by the opera house
Here are our suggestions on what to do in Novosibirsk in one day
1. Visit one of the quirky museums
In Novosibirsk you can find a museum of happiness, museum of death, museum of USSR and more. Give one of them a try, especially if you speak Russian!
2. Take photos of city’s peculiar monuments
As in some other Russian cities (remember Yekaterinburg?), there are a few statues in Novosibirsk that are a little unusual. These include monument to the traffic light on Serebrennikovskaya Street, monument to the laboratory mouse knitting a double-helix on Prospekt Akademika Lavrentyeva, monument to electrician or to the first date. Challenge: get a photo with a local person!
In 1936 next to this place one of the first traffic lights in Novosibirsk was places; in 2006 this traffic light got its own monument!
3. Go for a walk on Ulitsa Bogdana Khmelnitskogo
Bogdan Khmelnitski street is a busy street in Novosibirsk that has been declared a cultural heritage in 2017. Here you can find Maxim Gorky Culture Palace, examples of different architecture styles and multiple local businesses. Make sure you’re wearing comfy shoes, as this street is almost 6km long!
4. Spend some time in the Central Park
It’s definitely not a NYC-style central park, but it’s a lovely place to be while finding out what to do in Novosibirsk. There are also some roller coasters, fun for both – kids and adults! This park is a part of everyday lives of many people in Novosibirsk, where communities get together. In summer you can witness concerts and dancing, while in winter you can come in for some ice skating.
5. Visit Zoo or Botanic Gardens
Novosibirsk Zoo is one of the top Zoos in Russia. It is home to over 11000 animals and is an active participant of different scientific research projects and endangered species breeding programs. Botanical Garden has a large park, which can be interesting not only for botany lovers, but also for those who like spending time outdoors.
6. Try Russian food
It’s a must to try dumplings while you are in Russia, and Siberia is famous for its Siberian dumplings. But besides that, there are plenty of Russian dishes to try, and you might find that cuisine in Novosibirsk is different from the one in Moscow! Read this article to find out what food to try in Russia.
7. Check out traditional sightseeing spots
Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, 100-Flat Building, Opera and Ballet Theater and Lenin’s square – these are some of the places tourists visit while in Novosibirsk. Be aware though that distances between places might seem short on the map, but they are longer than you might think.
Theater of Opera and Ballet
Alexander Nevsky Cathedral
Hopefully here are more than enough ideas for one day. If you stay longer, try to get outside the city. Wherever you are, Russian nature is vast and incredible and definitely worth exploring.
If you’re travelling in Balkans, check out our other articles:
Top 5 Cities to Visit in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Places to Visit in Montenegro, the New Zealand of Europe
This looks like a great itinerary for a weekend! I think I would spend a day just photographing local churches, they have an amazing architecture!
That’s true, definitely different than churches in many other parts of the world 🙂 Thanks Irina!
Thanks for introducing me with Novosibirsk. Never heard about this place because everyone write about St. Petersberg and moscow. Would love to explore it and capture it in my camera.
True, but Russia is huuuuuuuuuuuge and definitely worth exploring 🙂
I’d never heard about Novosibirsk but after seeing your post, it definitely seems like a place worth visiting!
Honestly, unless you know someone local or plan outside town activities, I won’t know what to do there for more than 1-2 days! But it’s interesting enough stop in Russia!
This is definitely a place worth to visit. Added this place in my list.
Yay! 🙂
Russia is one of those countries that I have dreams of exploring end to end. I have so far only visited St Petersburg. Would love to do a train journey around the country some day.
Oh, that’s so great, that’s exactly what we did. But on the other hand, it’s so huge that even with that train ride you explore probably less than 1% of the country 🙂 Highly recommended though!
That Cathedral is beautiful! I also love the Traffic Light Monument! Hope to make it someday! Pinned on my Cathedral Bucket List board!
Hope so too Cate! If you like this kind of cathedrals, maybe you would also enjoy the ones in Sofia and in Belgrade!
Thanks for such a crisp itinerary. The ‘Theater of Opera and Ballet’ looks interesting! The 19th-century, Byzantine-style Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, with its golden domes looks so magnificent!!
Thanks Richa! The Cathedral is not very big in comparison to many many others in Russia and Europe, but it’s beautiful.
I made it to Novosibirsk, and those things are quite close to what I have done there myself. Not a bad city to visit, expecially in summer.
True! And in summer it’s not all grey with some sunshine 🙂
Novosibirsk looks a really friendly and cultured city. Not heard much about it before coming across your post, but thanks for sharing!
No worries! Russia is full of places most people haven’t heard of 🙂
Novosibirsk seems like a great place to explore. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral looks beautiful. I have a thing for cathedrals 🙂 I’d love to visit the Museum of Happiness (it sounds intriguing) and try the Russian cuisine.
Anjali, then you would really enjoy many places in Russia – they have some very beautiful cathedrals!
Wow, you have done so many things in Novosibirsk in 1 Day. I would love to go to Central Park during summers to see some live performances. Thanks for sharing all details about Novosibirsk.
Hah, yes, we were quite active! Actually when we were in a central park, there were doing dancing lessons (or just dancing?) for older people it seems, that was really sweet!
Novosibirsk was always on my list and I hope to visit this city in Russia one day. I just checked the weather now it is freaking cold out there now! I believe I will visit it in summer :))) Thanks for great list of things to do in city.
Oh yes! In the country where I’m from right now also -16..) but I’m in Singapore haha. Hope you get to go there! Thanks for your comment 🙂
It was really interesting to read about Novosibirsk. It surely has some lovely places to spend time at. The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral looks incredible too! I did love to make a visit to Novosibirsk soon.
Thanks Anjali! One day you hopefully will! 🙂