Lakes, rivers and historic routes give Polatsk District its own character. The district lies in the Polotsk Lowland and includes 377 bodies of water: 312 lakes and 65 rivers. The lakes cover a total of about 106 square kilometres; Lake Yanovo is one of the larger ones. The Western Dvina is the main river. Forest fund land accounts for 62 percent of the area. Those looking to combine culture and landscapes will find a range of themes here for planning a trip—from multi-day routes to places whose history spans centuries.
Choose routes by duration and theme
The listed routes vary considerably in the time they require. Route No. 1 is a three-day tour from Polotsk through the village of Gomel and Lake Yanovo, returning to Polotsk. It combines an experience of Polotchina’s natural environment with a rest stop at Lake Yanovo. Route No. 2 takes two days and passes through the central part of the fortified area of Polotsk; it includes a visit to the local history museum in Forinovo. Route No. 3 is planned as a one-day excursion. The itinerary includes a rest stop by a lake, a museum visit and an introduction to the history of Azino. The duration makes it easy to tell whether a tour takes a single day or several days of travel.
The route list also includes a seven-day water route covering 130 kilometres. It is therefore on a different scale from the one- to three-day excursions. Check water conditions and access before departure; for the listed tours, current conditions and museum access should also be confirmed before travelling.
Cultural monuments and landscapes
The district is home to more than 130 historical, cultural and architectural monuments. Churches, Catholic churches and manor houses are part of its heritage, and many are considered to be very well preserved. In Bykovshchina, the Paklevsky-Kozelov estate is listed as a protected architectural monument: a manor house with a park dating from the 19th century. Check physical access on site. The Volotovka Ridge is designated a geological natural monument of national significance.
The combination of water and forest is also reflected in the figures: in addition to the lakes, numerous rivers shape the landscape, while forest fund land makes up a large part of the district’s area. Lake Yanovo appears both in the description of the larger lakes and on Route No. 1. Those incorporating the tour into their trip plans can compare its three-day duration with the shorter excursions, rather than treating all the routes as equally long outings.
Polotsk in the wider travel destination of Vitebsk Region
As a distinct cultural destination within the wider travel destination of Vitebsk Region, Polotsk offers a different perspective from the routes through Polatsk District. Polotsk was first mentioned in 862 and was the central city of the Principality of Polotsk from the 10th to the 13th century. Its development was fostered by its location on the “From the Varangians to the Greeks” trade route. The Polotsk National Historical and Cultural Museum-Reserve comprises eleven museums.
One of Polotsk’s notable buildings is Saint Sophia Cathedral, originally built between 1044 and 1066 at the confluence of the Western Dvina and Polota rivers. It is open to visitors and hosts organ and chamber music concerts; check visiting hours and the concert programme in advance. The cathedral contains fragments of 11th-century masonry, an almost completely preserved floor plan or foundation, and frescoes from the late 11th century. The Spaso-Euphrosyne Monastery is also part of Polotsk’s cultural heritage: in the 12th century, it had a school for children and a scriptorium.
Discover more destinations: Ropna, Talachyn District, Orsha District, Ushachy District
Go to the wider travel overview: Vitebsk Region.
