In autumn, manor parks are filled with romantic charm. Golden domes splash the low sun, Russian forests and landscapes make the heart beat faster, silence rings in the transparent air. We have collected two-day driving routes for those who want to organize a leisurely weekend.
Leningrad direction
Photo: Lyudmila Shabanova/Shutterstock.com
V Serednikovo Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov came for vacation. In this estate, the poet met his first love and wrote about a hundred poems. A wide stone staircase leads from the elegant white building to a romantic park with a blue lake, mysterious thickets and curved bridges. On a tour of the main house they will tell you about the life of the nobility and the work of the poet. Entrance to the estate – 100 rubles.
Site: serednikovo.su
Photo: Shutterstock.com
Pilgrim Porto Film City. The scenery for the film “Notes of the Forwarder of the Secret Chancery” imitates the streets of an English port city of the 18th century. Some of the objects are interactive: you can climb onto the deck of a large galleon, go inside some houses, swing on a swing in the garden, and see how the gallows work. A good angle – and there’s a corner of old Europe on your Instagram. It will take 1.5-2 hours to see all the scenery. Entrance fee: 200 rubles.
Site: piligrimporto.ru
How can I get to. At the 34th kilometer of the Leningradskoye Highway, turn towards Firsanovka. After the railway crossing, drive 4 kilometers to the Serednikovo estate. Pilgrim Porto is a short drive from the main house.
Photo: Genitchka/Shutterstock.com
Shakhmatovo Estate.Neat rocky paths lead to a modest, light-colored wooden house with a mezzanine. One of the most famous poets of the Silver Age, Alexander Blok, lived and worked here. In a small area among old apple and elm trees there are farm and residential buildings, a small lake, a meadow and a stable. Today, almost all objects have been restored after the fire, and the territory of Shakhmatovo and the neighboring village of Tarakanovo is included in the Museum-Reserve of D. I. Mendeleev and A. A. Blok, which can be viewed in a few hours. Entrance to the park costs 80 rubles, and you can enter the house only with a guided tour (from 600 rubles), having previously checked the schedule on the website.
Website: chessovavo.rf
Directions. Approximately 90 kilometers from Moscow along the Leningradskoye Highway, turn onto Tarakanovskoye Highway. Directly in the village follow the signs “Shakhmatovo Estate” (Gudino village).
Photo: Shutterstock.com
P. I. Tchaikovsky Museum-Reserve in the city of Klin*.One of the largest collections of musical exhibits in the world includes manuscripts of works, ancient instruments for working with sound and other exhibits located on the territory of the main estate of the Russian composer. It is interesting to listen to one of the first audio recordings on which the voices of Pyotr Ilyich and his friends were preserved. The house has preserved beautiful interiors in which intimate creative evenings were held. Today the museum holds concerts for the general public. Ticket price: 300 rubles.
Site: tchaikovsky.house
Directions. City Klin, st. Tchaikovsky, 48. The turn to the city of Klin is located at the 99th kilometer of Leningradskoye Highway.
* From October 21 to November 7, the museum is closed to visitors. The park is open.
Tula direction
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Bison nursery.“We are working to ensure that our bison grow healthy and reproduce, and in the wild the stern man Natural Selection takes care of them,” the guide half-jokingly, half-seriously says about the work of the Prioksko-Terrasny State Reserve, which includes the Central Bison Nursery, where restore the population of these animals. Bison and bison live in large enclosures in the forest. Visitors to the “Road to the Bison” excursion watch them from behind fences and from a tower. The animals live on a schedule, so from Monday to Friday there are only three excursions: at 11:00, 13:00 and 15:00. And on weekends, a new group sets out on the route every hour from 09:00 to 16:00. The Reserve has an eco-trail “Through the Foliage”, which consists of observation platforms and bridges located in the treetops. Entry cost is 300-400 rubles, depending on the chosen program.
Site: pt-zapovednik.ru
Directions. From Moscow to the town of Danki, 103 kilometers along the Simferopol highway. In Danki, turn left, cross the Sushka River over the bridge and then follow the signs to the reserve.
Photo: cad_wizard/Shutterstock.com
“Polenovo”.To find a place for his home, the artist Vasily Polenov made several trips along the Oka River, with which he was madly in love. The choice fell on a high hill, on which at the end of the 19th century a manor appeared, whose unusual architecture combined the styles of different eras. The exterior of the house and the layout of the park were created by the artist himself. In addition to the main building and outbuildings, the estate has a theater, a workshop and even an “admiralty”. An amazing house, unusual interiors, dense forest paths and dizzying river expanses will captivate you for many hours. Entrance to the State Memorial Historical, Artistic and Natural Museum-Reserve of Vasily Dmitrievich Polenov is free, but to visit the exhibitions you need to buy tickets (250 rubles).
Site: polenovo.ru
Directions. 86 kilometers from Moscow to the turn to Zaoksky (Tula region) along the Simferopol highway. Next 10 kilometers to Malakhovo, and then follow the signs to Polenovo.
Istra direction
Photo: vk.com/arhangelskoemuseum
Arkhangelskoye Estate.A picturesque estate near Krasnogorsk, which is chosen by thousands of newlyweds for wedding photo shoots. In this elegant ensemble of the late 18th century, you want to photograph every corner. Grand marble staircases descend to wide lawns, snow-white statues emerge from the depths of shady alleys, columns are wrapped in ivy, wicker arches open the way to the past. Famous poets, writers and royalty regularly came here. Arkhangelskoye is sometimes called “Versailles near Moscow”. There is a museum in the palace, although not all of the interiors have been restored. But in the far corners of the park it is so pleasant to rustle with the autumn leaves that gently cover the forest paths. Entrance to the park – 150 rubles.
Site: arhangelskoe.su
Directions. Along the Volokolamskoye or Novorizhskoye highways until you turn onto Ilyinskoye highway, then to the Arkhangelskoye museum-estate.
* From October 21 to November 7, the museum, exhibition and exhibition halls are closed. The park is open.
Photo: Lenino-Snegirevsky -museum.rf
Lenino-Snegirevsky Military History Museum. It stores equipment and personal items found at battle sites. Here the Soviet army in 1941 was able to repel a fierce attack by German tank forces, turn the tide and go on the offensive. A miraculously preserved German heavy tank “Tiger” is on display in the open area of the museum. The complex also includes a military memorial cemetery. Ticket price: 200 rubles.
Website: lenino-snegirevsky-museum.rf
Directions. From Moscow 42 kilometers to the turn to the village of Snegiri along the Volokolamsk highway.
* From October 21 to November 7, the museum is closed to the public.
Photo: Shutterstock.com
Resurrection New Jerusalem Monastery – the ambitious monastery of Patriarch Nikon, built in the 17th century and restored at the beginning of the 21st. The grandiose plan was to recreate a complex of holy places in Palestine near Moscow. The Istra River was then called Jordan, and other surrounding areas were renamed so that they would be reminiscent of the Gospel. The elegant Resurrection Cathedral practically replicates the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The temple and wall galleries can be explored in a couple of hours. Then walk along the autumn paths to the river, get some holy water, and look into the monastery. The history of these places is presented in one of the largest museums in Russia (“New Jerusalem”), which occupies a new extravagant building nearby. Admission is free.
Site: n-jerusalem.ru
Directions. From Moscow to the city of Istra 42 kilometers along the Volokolamsk highway. Continue along the main road and follow the signs for the monastery.
Preview photo: Shutterstock.com
