Where to Stay in Vladivostok, Primorskiy Kray

What is Vladivostok known for?

Vladivostok is known as Russia's great port on the Sea of Japan. The city wraps around the Golden Horn Bay, where the Port of Vladivostok, the merchant docks, and the navy all share the same water. Old warships stand as museums, among them the Soviet submarine S-56 and the memorial ship Krasnyy Vympel.

The Vladivostok Fortress rings the heights above the harbour. Sea and service shaped it.

What are the main landmarks in Vladivostok?

Vladivostok crowds its landmarks around the Golden Horn Bay. The Vladivostok Fortress holds the heights, while the Soviet submarine S-56 and the memorial ship Krasnyy Vympel line the waterfront as museums. Nikolai's Triumphal Arch and the monument to Muravyov-Amursky mark the old centre.

Museums and faiths meet here. The Arseniev Museum of Far East History and the Primorye State Art Gallery sit near the Vladivostok Synagogue, the Most Holy Mother of God Catholic Church, and Saint Paul's Lutheran Church.

What is the history of Vladivostok?

Vladivostok was founded in 1860 as a port on the Golden Horn Bay. The deep bay drew the navy, and the Vladivostok Fortress soon ringed the heights to guard it. The monument to Muravyov-Amursky recalls the men of the city's founding era.

A mixed people settled the young city. The Former Oriental Institute rose to study the East, and the Vladivostok Synagogue, the Most Holy Mother of God Catholic Church, and Saint Paul's Lutheran Church served its many faiths. Trade and the open sea built the young city fast.

Later the city became the base of a fleet and a capital. It grew into the administrative centre of Primorsky Krai and, in time, the seat of the Far Eastern Federal District. Warships of that old fleet became museums.

The Soviet submarine S-56 and the memorial ship Krasnyy Vympel line the waterfront still. A Soviet-era monument stands on the central square, the Monument to the Fighters for Soviet Power in the Far East. The Port of Vladivostok kept the city turned to the sea.

Old fortress and working harbour still share the same bay.

Where is Vladivostok?

Vladivostok stands in the far south of Primorsky Krai, wrapped around the Golden Horn Bay on the Sea of Japan. Steep hills climb from the water, and the city spreads over the ridges above the bay. The Vladivostok Fortress crowns the heights.

The far south-east of the country lies close to the borders with China and North Korea. Beyond it the sea reaches away to the east.

What is the climate of Vladivostok?

Vladivostok has a temperate climate shaped by the sea. Winters are cold and dry, with hard winds off the mainland, while summers turn mild and humid off the sea. The Golden Horn Bay can freeze in the coldest months.

Spring and autumn stay short and changeable. The Sea of Japan tempers the worst of it.

How do you get to Vladivostok?

Vladivostok is reached by rail, road, and sea. Trains from the west run the length of the country and stop at Pervaya Rechka station and the main terminal by the bay. Ships and ferries call at the Port of Vladivostok on the Golden Horn Bay.

Most arrivals land near the water. From the centre the sights climb the slopes close by.