Landmarks and Sights
Lake Baikal is the deepest freshwater lake in the world. Due to its unique natural properties, Baikal is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This is not only a natural phenomenon, but also a treasury of the material and spiritual culture of Central Asia, as evidenced by archaeological sites, ritual shamanistic texts, petroglyphs and preserved rites of the Baikal Buryats.
Irkutsk, the capital of the region, is one of the most beautiful cities in Russia, combining a unique architectural style and cultural traditions of the Siberian city. In Irkutsk, there are many monuments of wooden architecture, unique churches, objects of architecture and engineering, theaters, the oldest museums in Russia and abroad. A special place is occupied by the historical and architectural complex “Decembrists in Irkutsk”. The restored historical part of the city - “130 quarter” (“Irkutsk Sloboda”) also attracts much attention of the city guests.
Sloboda serves as the cultural and tourist center of Irkutsk - here wooden houses of historical value are restored, lost buildings are restored, blacksmith and pottery workshops, souvenir shops, cafes are opened, the House of Music of the world-famous pianist - Denis Matsuev, whose life and work are closely connected with Irkutsk and Baikal.
The Circum-Baikal Railway is an architectural and historical monument of the beginning of the 20th century. You can see not only stunning views of Lake Baikal, but also a huge number of unique engineering structures: long tunnels, many stone and reinforced concrete galleries, bridges, viaducts. This unique railway is rightly called a feat of engineering thought by Russian and Italian engineers, an open-air railway museum.
In the village of Listvyanka, located 70 km from Irkutsk at the source of the Angara River, the only river flowing from Lake Baikal, the sacred Shaman-stone rises. In ancient times, Buryats brought people suspected of a crime to this stone, and if the next morning they did not find a person here, then his guilt was considered proven. In Listvyanka, you can visit the Baikal Museum and make a virtual dive to the bottom of Lake Baikal, visit the nerpinaria and see the performance of Baikal seals, take the funicular to the observation deck of the Chersky Stone, from where a magnificent view of the source of the Angara River, Lake Baikal and the mountains of Haman-Daban opens.
Olkhon Island, the largest island on Lake Baikal - a mystical and reserved place, the center of shamanism. Until now, shamans from all over Southeast and Central Asia often gather here, confident that the ruler of the underworld Erlik Khan lives here. The island is rich in archaeological sites, historical legends and ancient legends. The most popular and mysterious place on Olkhon is Cape Burhan. The cape ends with a two-peaked rock called the Shaman-rock. The Shaman-rock is the most famous symbol of Lake Baikal, not a single photo album about the lake can do without its image.
In Olkhonsky district the most popular holiday destinations on Lake Baikal are located. Here, in picturesque bays, the water warms up so much that you can swim, and then rest on sandy beaches. Local recreation centers also attract outdoor enthusiasts - here you will find perfect conditions for scuba-diving, fishing and hunting.
Although the peak of tourist activity in the Irkutsk region falls in the summer, in winter the region offers no less opportunities for an interesting, eventful vacation. In winter, Baikal is especially beautiful. The landscapes of the winter lake will not leave anyone indifferent: hundreds of kilometers of the most transparent ice sparkling in the sun; giant hummocks, ice caves, snow-capped mountain peaks. Amazing transparency of ice allows you to see the bottom of the lake near the shore and look into its blackening mysterious depths. In winter, people come to Lake Baikal for real adrenaline. Tourists are offered a large number of extreme types of recreation, giving a tremendous emotional charge.
Main routes
Green Line Route
The main walking route of the city of Irkutsk, which combines the main monuments, historical places, architectural sights and allows tourists to navigate in the city. In total, there are 30 objects along the route.
5 km
On foot
Irkutsk-Taltsy-Listvyanka
Most tourists begin acquaintance with Lake Baikal precisely by visiting Listvyanka, because this is the nearest settlement to Irkutsk right on the shore of Lake Baikal. During the tour, you will walk along the shore of Lake Baikal, go up on the chairlift to the observation platform of Kamensky Chersky, from where a beautiful panorama of Lake Baikal opens, you will see the famous Shaman rock and visit the fish market. In addition, you will visit the Taltsy architectural and ethnographic open-air museum. The museum complex on the banks of the Angara River is a unique opportunity to get acquainted with the material and spiritual culture of the Baikal peoples - there is a volost village of Russian settlers, an Evenki yurt, a Tofalar camp, and a Buryat ulus.
Circum-Baikal Railway
This is not only a historical monument, reflecting the heroic period of the construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway. The Circum-Baikal Railway is an integral component of the tourist resources of the Baikal region, a tourist attraction that entices both Russian and foreign tourists with its uniqueness. Indeed, Circum-Baikal Railway is an architectural and landscape reserve, where a huge number of engineering structures are concentrated on a relatively small section of the Baikal coast, many of which are not only unique, but also extremely picturesque. Speaking about the Circum-Baikal Railway today, it refers to its western part, stretching almost 100 kilometers from the source of the Angara River to Slyudyanka, consisting of state protection of federal significance as a complex monument of history, culture and urban planning, nature, as a reserved road.
"The Great Baikal Trail"
Around the Baikal Lake stretches the Great Baikal Trail, allowing tourists to get acquainted with the unique wildlife of Lake Baikal. In 2018, the Great Baikal Trail was recognized as Russia's best brand in the nomination “Tourist and Ecological Routes” according to a study conducted by the Rating Information Communication Center and the “Tourism & Leisure in Russia” magazine on domestic and inbound tourism.
https://greatbaikaltrail.org/
"Nomad's Star" (Irkutsk - Ust-Orda)
The one-day route includes a visit to the sacred Buryat place - barisana, the Golden Horde ethnopark (a visit to the contact zoo with animals traditional for nomadic peoples, a workshop on sculpting buuza, a visit to the Center for Folk Crafts, an introduction to the Buryat yurt, a master class by weaving from horsehair), datsan “Tubden darjalin” (meeting with a lama-astrologer, a lama-tibetologist, drawing up individual horoscopes at the request of guests).
Irkutsk-Baikalsk - "South coast of Baikal Tour"
The route includes: a visit to a granite beach, warm Lakes, a waterfall on the Utulik River, riding on a chair lift, a boat trip.
Also, 40 of the most popular tourist routes of the Irkutsk region are plotted on an interactive map. The routes are divided by type and category of difficulty, so that each group can know in advance what difficulties can wait on the way. The information resource provides information about the route isolation, potential dangers, accessibility for certain categories of citizens, the necessary equipment and complexity category. Also on the route page you can find out how long it will take to go through it and see photos of some sections.
Hotel sector
Baikal Business Center
http://bbc.ru/en/Baykalskaya St., 279, Irkutsk, Irkutsk Region, 664050
rooms from 3990 rub
Courtyard Irkutsk city center (Marriot)
https://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/iktcy-courtyard-irkutsk-city-centerIrkutsk, st. Chkalova, 15
rooms from 4650 rub
Ibis Irkutsk Center
https://all.accor.com/hotel/8540/index.en.shtmlIrkutsk, st. Polina Osipenko, 5
rooms from 4200 rub
"Krestovaya pad" Hotel complex
http://en.krestovayapad.ru/pos. Listvyanka, st. Gornaya 14A
rooms from 4400 rub
Legend of Baikal
http://www.legend-of-baikal.ru/Listvyanka, Istok Angara St., 11
rooms from 3000 rub
Ski resort "Mountain Sobolinaya" - is one of the most attractive places in Eastern Siberia for lovers of outdoor activities. There is snow from November to May, which allows you to enjoy snowboarding and skiing all winter. For your stay at your disposal is the comfortable Hotel Grand Baikal, Park Hotel Sobolinka, Hostel Baikalski and the cottage town Rus.
The recreation center Naratei is located on the shores of Lake Baikal, 250 km from Irkutsk, in one of the warmest sandy bays of the Kurkutsky Bay of the Small Sea. Naratei is a huge modern complex consisting of winter cottages and summer timber houses. The recreation center is equipped with two conference rooms for 150 and 60 people.
Bayar - a camp site located in the Gulf of Kurkut of the Small Sea (Lake Baikal), 250 km from the city of Irkutsk. On its territory there is an outdoor stage, as well as two conference rooms with a total capacity of 250 and 40 people.
Useful Facts and Numbers
10 reasons to come to the Irkutsk region:
- In the Irkutsk region is a World Heritage Site, a UNESCO World Heritage Site - Lake Baikal is located.
- In Irkutsk you can see preserved and restored objects of wooden architecture of the 18-20 centuries.
- Orthodox and Catholic churches, a synagogue have been preserved in the region, a datsan and a shaman center are working.
- The region is the most beautiful section of the Trans-Siberian Railway "Golden Buckle" - the Circum-Baikal Railway.
- The region has unique natural mountain-taiga complexes of the East Sayan and more than 300 sources of mineral waters, 7 mud lakes.
- The unique island of Olkhon is a sacred place for eastern cultures.
- A unique museum of Lake Baikal with an aquarium.
- From February to March, Lake Baikal freezes completely, a unique transparent ice more than a meter thick allows you to travel, hold expeditions and ice marathons and competitions.
- In the region people resettled from the European part of Russia live - Poles, Germans, Belarusians, golendras.
- More than 100 nationalities live and maintain their traditions in the region, including the unique small ethnic group Tofalars (Tofs) living in Tofalaria (Nizhneudinsky district of the Irkutsk region).
Shopping and souvenirs:
- Siberian tea. One of the best souvenirs from the shores of Lake Baikal is tea with Siberian herbs and berries. Lingonberries and rosehips, thyme and clover, Ivan tea, fireweed, currants - with such a variety of ingredients, everyone will find tea to their liking. Also, Buryat sagan-dail tea, which gives energy and vitality, is very popular.
- Cedar roasting - sweets made of pine nuts with honey in chocolate icing, one of the main Siberian delicacies. It is not only a tasty, but also very useful souvenir from Irkutsk, produced by local confectionery factories.
- Plush toys, magnets, figures, pillows, mugs, key rings and many other items with the image of a seal or in the form of a seal (Nerpa).
- Special brooches made of wood or ceramics, repeating the patterns of shutters of ancient buildings of the city of Irkutsk.
- Ice cream. Irkutsk ice cream is known far beyond the city limits. At the local ice cream factory, ice cream is made according to old Soviet recipes.