It’s hard to imagine the onset of spring without Maslenitsa: almost every city in our country sees off the winter with fun festivities, eating pancakes and burning a straw effigy. This year it will be held from February 20 to 26. Maslenitsa itself appeared in pagan times as a ritual designed to ensure a fruitful year, because with the arrival of spring, sowing work began. With the adoption of Christianity, Maslenitsa was tied to the church calendar and began to be celebrated in the last week before Lent: thus, people could have plenty of fun and eat goodies before limiting themselves to simple pleasures.
Maslenitsa is also a great reason to plan a short weekend trip. We have made a selection of 10 places where you can go on a short trip from Moscow and St. Petersburg.
Art Park “Nikola-Lenivets”
Every year Maslenitsa in “Nikola-Lenivets” is not just a folk festival, but a full-fledged performance on which artists and directors work. This year, instead of an effigy of Winter, they will burn the “fourth wall” (this concept in the art world is called the border between fiction and reality). The architectural studio “NOῨD shortmeter” is responsible for the project, and wooden construction waste is used for the construction of the art object.
Maslenitsa will be held on February 25, the ticket price is 4,000 rubles, and admission is free for children under 14 years old. The park is located 200 km from Moscow.
Where to stay nearby:
In a guest house in Nikola-Lenivets Park (score 7.9) – from 2 800 rubles per day*.
At the Lavanda country hotel – from 5,000 rubles per day*.
In the Nikolskie Rosy holiday home – from 8,000 rubles per day*.
Taldom
The small town near Moscow is known for the fact that on Maslenitsa they “resurrect” Russian traditions: they hold fist fights and demonstration shooting ranges where they demonstrate the work of siege weapons, cannons and catapults. Of course, all this is accompanied by performances by musicians, and ends with the burning of an effigy of Winter and round dances. The celebrations will take place on February 26 in the Pobeda Culture and Recreation Park. Also, everyone will be able to take part in a pancake-making competition.
Where to stay nearby:
In the apart-hotel “Kayut-kompaniya” in Kimry (rating 9.5) – from 3,800 rubles per day*.
In the eco-hotel “Lepota” in Tarusovo (rating 8.7) – from 5,800 rubles per night*.
In the country hotel “Country Resort” (rating 9.9) – from 11,200 rubles per night*.
Rostov the Great
As every year, the Rostov Kremlin Museum-Reserve widely celebrates Maslenitsa and welcomes guests of all ages. Get acquainted with ancient customs and ancient folk games, and also try pancakes and wash them down with tea from the samovar. On Sunday, February 26, the culmination of Maslenitsa festivities will take place, which will cover the Kremlin, the city garden and the Bogatyrskoe Compound park: performances by folklore groups, a theatrical performance with carols, a colorful bazaar with peddlers and, of course, a lot of pancakes are expected.
Where to stay in Rostov the Great:
At the Selivanov Hotel (rating 8.7) – from 1,900 rubles per night*.
In the “Pleshanov Estate” (rating 9.1) – from 2,000 rubles per day*.
At the Bravis Holiday Park recreation center (rating 9.0) – from 3,600 rubles per day*.
Pereslavl-Zalessky
The main festivities in honor of the holiday will be held at the Peter’s Boat Museum. Guests will be able to take part in the festive theatrical program “Merry Old Time”, which will tell about the traditions of seeing off winter in the time of Peter the Great. You will be taught to dance a minuet in crinolines, and you will be able to receive hot pancakes with apple jam from the hands of Empress Ekaterina Alekseevna.
The Berendey House theme park also invites you to Maslenitsa festivities: the program includes games, round dances, pancakes and the obligatory burning of effigy. The events will take place from February 20 to 24.
Where to stay in Pereslavl-Zalessky:
In the Nikolin Park guest house (rating 9.5) – from 1,700 rubles per night*.
At the Victoria Plaza Hotel (rating 9.9) – from 2,900 rubles per night*.
In the four-star hotel “Russian Seasons Congress Hotel Peresvet” (rating 10) – from 9,000 rubles per day*.
Yaroslavl
In the unofficial capital of the Golden Ring of Russia, the whole city is walking: from February 20 to 26, the “Main Maslenitsa of the Country” festival will be held here, in which 13 venues are participating. On Sovetskaya Street you can buy souvenirs from local artisans and watch their work, as well as take part in folk competitions such as tug-of-war and sack races. The zoo will show a show of Russian heroes, and the art courtyard “On Rozhdestvenskaya” will host a master class on painting wooden figurines of pancake bears, the symbol of Yaroslavl. An interesting program has been prepared in the interactive museum “The Residence of the Empress of the country’s main Maslenitsa”: here visitors will be entertained with games and costume shows, and will also be treated to Russian dishes from a wood-burning oven.
Where to stay in Yaroslavl:
In the hotel complex “Lubim” (score 10) – from 3,300 rubles per night*.
In the old Russian style hotel “Alyosha Popovich Dvor” (rating 9.9) – from 4,000 rubles per night*.
In the four-star hotel “Ring Premier” (rating 10) – from 5,900 rubles per night*.
Uglich
Maslenitsa festivities in this small town fit perfectly into its old Russian flavor. They usually take place in the Kremlin and on Assumption Square. This year, the Kremlin program from the Uglich Museum will last the whole week: there will be traditional Russian entertainment (comic fist fights, tug-of-war competitions, rolling the Maslenitsa wheel and hammering nails with one blow), and concerts of folk songs with round dances, and festive delicacies. Entrance ticket to the festival costs 400 rubles for children and 450 for adults. The Museum of Urban Life is responsible for the celebration on Assumption Square: an interactive music and entertainment program with the participation of Uglich artists is expected.
Where to stay in Uglich:
At the AZIMUT hotel (rating 8.1) – from 2,600 rubles per day*.
At the Volzhskaya Riviera Hotel (score 10) – from 3,400 rubles per night*.
In the eco-hotel “Novo-Okatovo” (rating 9.9) – from 12,000 rubles per night*.
Vladimir
Large-scale celebrations dedicated to farewell to winter are held every year in the ancient city on a large scale. This time you can see mummers and peddlers, ride down the hills on a sled and eat pancakes on Cathedral Square next to historical sights, as well as in Zagorodny and Dobroselsky parks, on Pushkinsky Boulevard, on Victory Square, in the Central Park of Culture and rest. They promise concerts, pancake fairs, funny yards and a fire show.
Where to stay in Vladimir:
At the Sketchhotel hostel (rating 9.5) – from 1,400 rubles per night*.
At the Vladimir Hotel (score 10) – from 4,500 rubles per night*.
At the Orion Hotel (score 10) – from 5,000 rubles per night*.
Suzdal
Every year, the center of the festive festivities becomes the Trade Square: dances and round dances are held here, and the most enduring guests can test their strength and climb a high pole behind a rooster. The city-museum offers aromatic tea, sbiten and mead for pancakes. Also this year, the Museum of Wooden Architecture invites you to celebrate Maslenitsa: there will be celebrations and tea parties, and spectacular photo zones will be equipped.
Where to stay in Suzdal:
In a “Vacation House with a Sauna” (score 10) – from 2,200 rubles per day*.
In the four-star hotel “Sokol” (rating 9.9) – from 4,100 rubles per day*.
At the Pushkarskaya Sloboda Hotel (rating 10) – from 6,000 rubles per night*.
Tambov
Here, the whole city is also celebrating winter: events will be held in city parks and squares. A four-meter effigy of Maslenitsa will be burned on the main square of Tambov. The festive program includes a parade of chastushechniks, a fair and a display of traditional Russian outfits.
If you want not a large-scale holiday, but a quiet home Maslenitsa in the atmosphere of a noble family of the late 19th century, look into the house of the merchant Aseev or Rachmaninov’s estate “Ivanovka”.
Where to stay in Tambov:
At the Azhur Hotel (rating 9.5) – from 3,000 rubles per night*.
In the four-star Gallery Hotel (rating 9.3) – from 4,600 rubles per night*.
In the park hotel “Plyos” (rating 9.4) – from 13,000 rubles per day*.
Veliky Novgorod
The most interesting and colorful Novgorod farewell to winter, as a rule, takes place in the architectural and ethnographic museum of wooden architecture “Vitoslavilitsy”. Its guests will get acquainted with Maslenitsa rituals, learn about the peculiarities of Maslenitsa celebrations in the Novgorod village, the meaning of each day of the Maslenitsa week and, of course, take part in traditional fun and games. Festive concerts will be held near the Novgorod Kremlin on Victory Square, and the burning of the effigy and round dances are planned on Sofia Embankment.
Where to stay in Veliky Novgorod:
In the guest house “Three Maples” (rating 9.6) – from 1,900 rubles per night*.
In the four-star hotel “Volkhov” (rating 9.5) – from 4,200 rubles per day*.
In the four-star hotel “Bianki” (rating 9.5) – from 5,800 rubles per day*.
*Prices are current at the time of publication.
