Izhevsk brings together a variety of themes for a city stay: wildlife, seasonal activities on the pond, theater history and technology.

Wildlife, water and a long circular route

The Udmurtia Zoo is an 11-hectare recreation area within Izhevsk. Its collection includes more than 750 animals from 240 species. The zoo’s own program includes daily performances by Pacific and Atlantic walruses on the stage in their enclosure. The animal collection and presentations give a visit to the zoo a different focus from the city’s cultural attractions.

In the warm season, you can walk along the landscaped promenade on Izhevsk Pond or go out on a yacht, boat or catamaran. These activities combine a walk by the water with several ways to get out on the pond; they are explicitly seasonal. For a different way to explore Izhevsk, the “Progulki s Izhikami” circular route is 24 kilometers long. It can be covered on foot, by public transport, by bicycle or by scooter. The route and the different ways of getting around offer a separate planning option alongside individual visits around the city.

City history between stage and technology

A new building was constructed at Central Square in 1984, giving the music theater its own venue. In 1993, the theater was granted the status of the State Opera and Ballet Theater of the Republic of Udmurtia. The two dates distinguish the construction of the venue from the later institutional designation. Another urban landmark is the monument to the Izhevsk gunsmiths: it stands in the center at the intersection of Sovetskaya and Sverdlova Streets, near the promenade.

The Izhevsk Motorcycle Museum of the Koschuchkov family is dedicated to the history of motorcycle manufacturing in the USSR. Its exhibition is based on the private collection of Artyom and Pavel Koschuchkov, featuring motorcycles from the Izhevsk Motor Plant. It includes a roadworthy Izh-49 in its original configuration. In Izhevsk, these offer different ways to engage with the city’s history: the music theater stage, a monument to gunsmiths and a collection focused on motorcycle manufacturing.

The Church of the Dormition of the Mother of God, in the far part of Izhevsk, also has a clear historical connection. Its construction followed a decision by the Zarechny Volost Assembly on September 27, 1910. The date refers to the decision, not to a documented completion date for the church.

More themes in the Republic of Udmurtia

In the wider destination of the Republic of Udmurtia, there are more cultural and historical themes to explore. The Peter Tchaikovsky Museum in Votkinsk opened in 1940. Its exhibition includes a reconstruction of the interior of a house from the mid-19th century. Exhibits include furniture from the 18th to the 20th centuries, porcelain, postcards, paintings, books and the Wirth piano on which the composer learned to play. The museum offers a different focus from Izhevsk’s city history and technology themes.

The Ludorvai Museum Reserve comprises more than 20 buildings dating from the late 19th to the early 20th century. It presents the everyday life of Russians, Besermyans and Udmurts from the 19th to the early 20th century. Among its notable structures is a tent-shaped windmill: Fyodor Dragomirov built it in 1912 in the Udmurt village of Chem-Kuyuk. Architecture, everyday history and the story of a single building can be explored here as distinct themes.

Those interested in landscapes and plants will find another thematic contrast in the Republic of Udmurtia: Sharkan Nature Park lies between the Ita and Sharkan rivers and covers about 16,000 hectares. It is home to 507 species of higher plants, about half the republic’s total flora. The park is divided into five functional zones: a protected and reserve zone, a zone for organized tourism and recreation, a traditional-use zone, and a buffer zone. This layout describes the character of the park without implying that the different zones are equivalent.

Discover more destinations: Zvenigovsky District, Izhevsk, Uvinskiy District, Zavyalovskiy District, Sarapul'skiy District.

Go to the main travel overview: Republic of Udmurtia.