It is still unknown when the borders will open, and you no longer have the strength to sit in your city, it’s time to open a map of Russia, circle the places you haven’t visited yet, and start planning your weekend. And we advise you to put the first tick opposite Tula.
For many, this city can be associated with school excursions to Leo Tolstoy’s Yasnaya Polyana, the famous gingerbread with tea from a samovar and numerous mentions of the hero city in history textbooks. But Tula has changed and is rapidly transforming. In recent years, the city has become a modern center of attraction for new creative industries and innovative projects, but still cherishes the atmosphere of the ancient city and enhances its rich heritage.
We learned from the residents of Tula about their favorite locations and prepared a guide that will help you have a great summer weekend in the most interesting and unusual places.
How to get there
Photo source: Photo Tula. Ilya Garbuzov
The most convenient way to get from Moscow to Tula is by train: there are 15 flights a day. Ticket prices range from 570 to 1,600 rubles, and the journey will take from 2 to 3 hours. The road from St. Petersburg lasts 10-13 hours, tickets cost up to 2,400 rubles.
By regular buses, at intervals of up to 45 minutes, you can get to Tula from the capital in 3.5 hours at a price from 600 to 1,700 rubles.
The distance from Moscow to Tula by car is 183 km. The M2 route can be reached in less than 3 hours. The route is in particular demand in the summer among those wishing to relax on the Black Sea, so we advise you to take into account seasonal congestion and possible changes in the duration of the trip.
Where to stay
Photo source: ” Bolotov.Dacha»
There are more than 40 options for comfortable accommodation in Tula. In the summer, you can spend the night in a high-rated hotel for a price starting from 1,000 rubles, and a night in a 4-star hotel will cost up to 5,000.
- Art hotel and hostel “Gateway of the Sun” from 1,100 rubles per night
- Key Hotel from 3,000 rubles per night
- Hotel 11Hotel&Garden from 4,900 per night
An excellent alternative would be to stay at Bolotov.Dacha. With terraces, cozy cafes and the freshest air, this place is ideal not only for a country holiday, but also for productive remote work. Reserving a country room costs from 3,700 rubles, and a guest house – from 11,700 per night.
The dacha is located in the Tula region, 1.5 hours from Moscow. It is more convenient to get there by car (from the Moscow Ring Road 110 km along the M2 highway). You need to take the train to Tarusskaya station, the journey will take up to 2.5 hours. The dacha can be reached by local taxi in 20 minutes.
Contacts: bolotov.life
What to see
1. Kazanskaya embankment
Photo source: Bureau Wowhaus
Where to start getting acquainted with the city if not from its historical center. For several years, the Kazan embankment near the walls of the Tula Kremlin was closed to walks, but after recent reconstruction it has become one of the most popular places among tourists and residents of Tula. Now this is not only a place that offers panoramic views of the city’s central attractions. The new territory unites the museum quarter on Metallistov Street, a space for active recreation with shops, cafes, an amphitheater, sports grounds and a picturesque descent to the water.
On the new embankment along the oxbow of the Upa River, fairs and city events are now regularly held. And Krestovozdvizhenskaya Square with a musical fountain connects the city with the Kremlin.
You can walk around the territory of the Tula Kremlin from 10:00 to 18:00 from Monday to Thursday and on Sunday. On Friday and Saturday the museum complex is open from 10:00 to 20:00. The cost of excursions is from 200 rubles.
One of the convenient routes to get to Kazanskaya Embankment is by one of the buses on the street. Metallistov No.: 24, 11, 1, 117, 25, 114, 36, 44, 27A, 125, 36A, 170. Or by tram No.: 9, 12 on the street. Frunze.
2. Creative industrial cluster “Octave” and the Machine Tool Museum
The creative industrial cluster “Octava” was created on the basis of the operating plant of the same name in 2018 and has become one of the most favorite leisure places for citizens.
On the ground floor you will find a large multifunctional hall where lectures and performances are regularly held, a laboratory-workshop “Fablab”, and a cafe. For those who want to record their album, there is also an Oktava Lab recording studio with microphones from the legendary factory.
Photo source: Creative industrial cluster “Octava”
The Machine Tool Museum is located on the second floor of the Octave cluster. This is a unique project that, in the format of multimedia performances, tells about the development of industry in Russia and abroad.
We recommend visiting the multimedia excursions “Tula – Workshop of Russia” for teenagers and adults and the interactive project for children “Excursion of the Machine and Spindle”. Children, together with the mediators and digital heroes of the excursion – the neural network “Bullfinch” and Masha Robotova – will get acquainted with the inventions that changed the world.
Excursion cost:
“Excursion of the Machine and Spindle” – 250 rubles for adults, 150 rubles for children.
“Tula – Russia’s workshop” – 300 rubles for adults, 200 rubles for children.
The Museum regularly hosts exhibitions of contemporary art, there is a media library, a bookstore and a cafe.
Contacts: oktavaklaster.ru, machinetoolmuseum.ru
3. Tula Museum of Fine Arts
“Cassis” by Pyotr Konchalovsky from the collection of the Tula Museum of Fine Arts
Here you can get acquainted with the history of Tula – the museum has been collecting the history of artistic achievements of the region since the end of the 19th century. In addition to local history finds, educational programs and master classes for children and adults are held here.
The museum has a rich collection of Russian avant-garde of the 20th century: works by Kandinsky, Malevich and other great painters. This is a great opportunity to take a fresh look at the work of Russian artists.
The museum can be visited any day except Monday. On Tuesday, Wednesday and Sunday it is open from 10:00 to 18:00. Thursday, Friday, Saturday – until 20:00. An adult ticket costs 200 rubles, children under 16 years old are free.
The road from the Tula Kremlin to the Museum of Fine Arts is just a 30-minute walk along a colorful tram route with authentic scenery.
Contacts: museum-tula.ru
4. Museum-memorial complex to the heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo in the village of Monastyrshchino
Photo source: official website of the Museum-Reserve “Kulikovo Field”
A two-hour drive from Tula, at the confluence of the Don and Nepryadva, is a museum and memorial complex to the heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo. According to the chronicles, here on the eve of the famous battle in 1380 there was a camp of Dmitry Donskoy,
The memorial complex unites the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, erected in 1865-1884. at the burial site of Russian soldiers, the Alley of Memory and Unity and the place of memory of the heroic defenders of the Kulikovo Field during the Great Patriotic War.
The interactive exhibition of the museum will tell about the life and way of life of Rus’ before the Mongol invasion. The collection includes a collection of rare archaeological finds and cultural artifacts of Ancient Rus’ of the 4th–13th centuries, which precede the events of the Battle of Kulikovo.
Excursions are held daily at 11:30 and 13:00 on the territory of the memorial complex. Together with a guide, you can climb the bell tower of the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, from where you can enjoy a panoramic view of the village of Monastyrshchino. According to the tradition of Kulikovo Field, you can hear the bell ringing twice a day. In the morning (at 11:00) the ringing “calls” the army to battle, in the afternoon (at 14:00) – ringing in memory of fallen soldiers. To take a tour to the bell tower, a prior registration is required.
In addition, here you can take a walk along the pedestrian route to the famous confluence of the Don and Nepryadva rivers, and also ride on real Oryol trotters – the inhabitants of the Horse Yard.
The cost of an entrance ticket to the Historical Museum is 150 rubles.
The cost of the excursion to the bell tower is 50 rubles.
The museum-memorial complex in Monastyrshchino is part of the Kulikovo Field Museum-Reserve, which unites several attractions at once. We advise you to think through your visit program in advance, since the objects occupy a vast territory of the Kurkinsky and Kimovsky districts of the Tula region.
After a busy program and a long walk, you can order hot meals, drinks and fresh pastries in the buffet of the Museum and Memorial Complex.
The complex is open from 10:00 to 19:00, seven days a week. It’s more convenient to get there by car or by inter-district buses: “Kimovsk – Kurkino”, “Kimovsk – Dankov” from the Tula bus station.
Contacts: kulpole.ru
5. Belyavsky House
Photo source: official website of the Tula Historical and Architectural Museum
A very unusual museum is located in a building from the late 19th century. The house belonged to college adviser Ferdinand Belyavsky, who opened a pharmacy in it, which operated until 2011. Belyavsky’s Old Tula Pharmacy was one of the most popular in the city, thanks to the high quality of service and beautiful decoration. Since 2012, the former pharmacy has reopened its doors and has become a unique experimental and research museum.
The special atmosphere of the 19th century has been preserved here: antique furniture, apothecary utensils, scales, photographs of pre-revolutionary interiors, medical instruments and other vintage objects. The most popular among guests and tourists is the real savvy flea, which refers to the hero of the work by Nikolai Leskov. This is an exquisite work by Tula miniaturist Nikolai Aldunin, which can only be viewed with a microscope.
Today the museum hosts various master classes and excursions. On them you can learn how healing drinks and perfumes were prepared, make your own soap with medicinal herbs, assemble your own perfume composition and even a thaumatrope – a toy based on optical illusion.
For adults, the entrance ticket to the Belyavsky House costs 100 rubles. Schoolchildren, students and pensioners – 50 rubles. Group excursion for individual visitors – 100 rubles per person.
The museum is open from Wednesday to Saturday from 10:00–19:00, on Sunday from 11:00.
The “Old Tula Pharmacy” is part of the Tula Historical and Architectural Museum and is located at Lenin Ave., building 25. It will be convenient to get to the “Kaminsky Street” stop by public transport.
Contacts: tiam-tula.ru
6. Shopping and entertainment district “Likerka Loft“
Photo source: ” Lickerka Loft»
A creative space for business, work and the creation of new projects – “Likerka Loft” is located on the basis of a former distillery and today is one of the most fashionable places in Tula. In addition to cozy coworking spaces, the space includes barbershops, showrooms, coffee shops, bars, craft breweries and eateries. So here you can hold a work meeting, which will smoothly turn into an evening friendly feast.
In addition to the developed infrastructure, the space also attracts attention with its authentic architecture, which is ideal for a fashion or business photo shoot. During the reconstruction, the designers preserved the facades of the distillery, creating a harmonious architectural combination with the current loft style.
Liquerka Loft is located on Lenin Avenue, which is easily accessible from anywhere in the city on foot or by car. The space has ample parking.
By public transport – stop “Stadium”.
Contacts: likerka-loft.ru
Where to eat deliciously
Photo source: New urban space “Iskra”
There are many restaurants, bars and cozy cafes in Tula, both as part of clusters and new urban spaces (for example, the Iskra space), you can find interesting independent locations everywhere.
Across the city, including on Kazanskaya Embankment, there are several outlets of the Mr.Cup chain cafe with a full kitchen and good coffee. You can try Russian regional cuisine at the Mark and Lev restaurant, where they cook from products produced on farms not far from the establishment. For all lovers of beer and hearty hot dishes in the Central Park of Culture and Culture named after. P. Belousov housed the restaurant “Pyotr Petrovich” with its own brewery on the ground floor. And you can have a cup of tea with gingerbread according to all the traditions of Russian feasts in the first Tula tea house “Chaika”.
What else to see
- Museum-estate of Leo Tolstoy “Yasnaya Polyana”
- Museum-estate of the artist Vasily Polenov “Polenovo”
- New urban space “Iskra”
- Platonovsky Park
- Cultural Center “Typography”
- Kraft House
Preview photo source: PhotoTula. Alexey Gorokhov
