Petrozavodsk seems to be a good base for visiting at least two WHS and one TWHS. There are one-day trips to TWHS Valaam Archipelago and even Solovetsky Islands (full trip takes 28 hours only, which is most probably the easiest way to visit these remote monasteries). And of course it is the best (the only?) starting point to visit one of Northern Russia’s highlights – Kizhi Pogost. There are several speed boats shuttling between Petrozavodsk and Kizhi, but during summer almost all of them are fully booked – if you are coming in a bigger group, booking in advance is a must. The whole trip takes around 7 hours (3h on boat and 4h on the island) and costs around RUB 3300 (including entry ticket – prices for July 2016).

Kizhi Island is famous of its remarkable wooden architecture, including world famous Transfiguration Church with 22 wooden domes. The church is now under renovation and can only be visited from outside, but the the museum’s authorities do what they can to compensate this inconvenience. Kizhi Island is one of the best managed tourist spots I have visited in Russia. Although the number of tourists visiting the island is quite high (including a few huge cruise ships on their way from St. Petersburg to Astrakhan), all tours are guided and you do not need to wait too long to see the main attractions. The whole island is a museum of wooden architecture – apart from churches, there are wooden bell towers and numerous houses. Inside churches you may listen to sacral choirs, while houses are full of craftsmen presenting traditional activities of rural Russia in XIX-th century. Tourists are discouraged from stepping off beaten paths – this is because of a quite high number of vipers living on the island.

I was very lucky with the weather, which allowed me to make some nice photographs of Kizhi – a place that is known of its picturesque views. Although Petrozavodsk is a bit far from well-known Russian tourist spots, for me going here is worthy for Kizhi itself, not counting other numerous attractions of Karelia.