Perm is a city of over a million people, stretching along the banks of the Kama. For a long time, the city was little known and closed to non-residents, since a large number of factories worked for the defense industry in Perm. Some continue their activities to this day.
Approximately after perestroika, the city began to gradually become accessible to tourism.
Spending a weekend in Perm will be interesting for residents of Yekaterinburg, Ufa, Chelyabinsk and other nearby cities, the journey from which will not take much time.
The approximate travel budget for one person is from 4,000 rubles.*
- Round-trip train tickets from 1,530 rubles*;
Airplanes fly from Moscow to Perm every day. The cheapest ticket costs 2,199 rubles*, and the flight lasts 2 hours. - 1 night in a hostel – from 300 rubles* or in a 3* hotel – from 1,140 rubles*;
- The average bill in a cafe is 400 rubles;
- Walks around the city, travel on public transport, souvenirs – 800 rubles.
In 1995, the first documentary film festival “Flahertiana” took place in Perm (since 2006 it received international status). This year Flahertiana will be held from September 15 to 21. Participants will be directors from the Netherlands, Chile, Czech Republic, Sweden, Switzerland, Poland, Germany, South Korea, Finland, Great Britain.
Event website: flahertiana.ru
The name of the city began to appear frequently in the federal media in the late 2000s and early 1900s, when the Perm Cultural Revolution began – an attempt by regional authorities to turn Perm into the new cultural capital of Russia. It began with the exhibition of contemporary art “Russian Poor”, organized by gallerist Marat Gelman and senator Sergei Gordeev, and became a pilot project for the first non-capital (not Moscow or St. Petersburg) museum of contemporary art PERMM. Nowadays, exhibitions of both domestic and foreign artists are held here. Over the years, the museum exhibited works by Dmitry Prigov, Ilya and Emilia Kabakov, PARADIZARIUM by Sasha Frolova, photographs “Best of Russia”.
Address: Gagarin Boulevard, 24.
Cost: 150 rubles.
Photo: Edward Tikhonov
The family of the organizer of the “Russian Seasons” in Paris, Sergei Diaghilev, lived in Perm for a long time, which is why the international festival “Diaghilev Seasons” is held in this city. The program usually includes world premieres of opera and ballet performances. Queues for tickets to festival events form in the morning on the opening day of sales. The website of the Perm Opera and Ballet Theater, where you can buy tickets online, cannot withstand the onslaught of applicants. This year, at the closing of the Diaghilev Seasons, oligarch Roman Abramovich was seen among the spectators.
If you come to Perm not during the festival, then still try to get to the opera or ballet. Visit the performance where the theater’s artistic director Teodor Currentzis himself is at the conductor’s stand.
In 2017, the 146th theater season will open on August 31. The Opera and Ballet Theater will show Swan Lake. The conductor of the performance is Artem Abashev, the musical director of the production is Teodor Currentzis.
Website of the Perm Opera and Ballet Theater: permopera.ru.
Address: Petropavlovskaya, 25a.
Photo: Grigory Skvortsov
Permians are big fans of theatrical art, otherwise they would not have chosen the name “Teatralny” for the main fountain of the city. It is located on the square in front of the Perm Academic Theater (yes, that’s what it’s called).
The “theater” fountain is a light and music fountain. In the summer, he performs three shows on weekends and holidays (20:45, 21:41, 22:45) and one on weekdays (22:45). The program includes Tchaikovsky, David Garrett, Paul Mauriat, Vivaldi, Maksim Mrvica. You can find out about all changes to the program in the VKontakte group.
Address: Lenin street, 53.
Cost: free.
In Perm, as in many cities, sightseeing bus tours are held. But, if you are sure that even the most interesting story of the guide will put you to sleep, then take a ride in the Romantic Tram Cafe, a tram-cafe. In an hour and a half he will travel through the central streets of the city. During the trip you can get acquainted with the evening Perm and have a delicious dinner. It is necessary to reserve a table and order dinner in advance.
Romantic Tram Cafe website: rtcafe.ru.
Cost: 200 rubles, for flights with live music — 250 rubles + cost of dinner.
If the weather is good, take advantage of the free hiking trail. Choose: The Green Line will introduce you to the main historical, cultural and architectural sites of Perm, and the Red Line will take you to places associated with famous people who lived in the city and left a mark on its history. The first route covers 37 significant objects, the second introduces 20 love stories associated with Perm. Lines are painted on the asphalt, following which you can see the sights on your own, without a guide. Near each of them there is an information table with a description of the object.
Address: you can start the tour from the Opera and Ballet Theater, where both lines intersect.
Photo: Dmitry Bogatyrev
Another way to get to know Perm is to see it from the Kama. Flights on pleasure river buses will allow you to appreciate the length of the city along the river. The walk lasts 1.5 hours, during which there is dancing on the upper deck.
After returning to the pier, you can walk along the embankment. Reconstruction work is currently underway there, but some areas have already been renovated. There is also an art object “Happiness is just around the corner” installed here, against which the vast majority of Perm guests have photographs.
Address: Monastyrskaya street, 2, river station.
Cost: from 250 rubles (more expensive on weekends and evenings).
Now that you have already looked at Perm from the inside and from the side, you can look at the city from above. In the central Gorky Park of Culture and Leisure there is an attraction – a 50-meter Ferris wheel. The six-seater cabins are glazed, so you can take amazing pictures of the city.
The park itself hosts various holidays and festivals all year round: Maslenitsa, Twins Festival, Baby Stroller Parade, Ice Cream Festival, PumpkinDay, wet and snow battles (depending on the time of year).
Address: between Krasnov, Sibirskaya, Revolution streets and Komsomolsky Prospekt.
Cost: 190 rubles.
Under one roof of the creative space “Bartminsky’s Pharmacy” on the central street of the city, the best, according to Perm residents, coexist the best bookstore and the best bar. Entering this ancient building, you can spend a long time choosing an interesting book at Piotrovsky, then have lunch at Sister`s bar. Here you can also look into the Spin vinyl record store and the CherdaKk shop of designer items. This is where people buy moleskins, colored socks and funny stickers in Perm.
Address: Lenin street, 54.
A snack in Perm must definitely consist of a local dish – posikunchiki, small pies with meat filling. When you bite into them, broth flows out of them. There are many places where you can try posikunchiki, for example, the Ural Posikunchiki chain of eateries (open 24 hours a day). In the very center, not far from the Polytechnic University, there is “Homemade Posikunchiki” (Komsomolsky Prospekt, 32). This dish is also served in restaurants, for example, in “Stroganovskaya Votchina” (Lenina, 58) and “Okhotnichy” (Permskaya, 200). In the second, by the way, you can try bear meat, but this is a seasonal product and it is not always on the menu.
Summer 2017, of course, is not very hot in the Perm region, but if you are lucky enough to catch the sun, you can go to the beach to sunbathe. This year there are five beaches in the city:
- along the line of Kirovogradskaya street (between Astrakhanskaya street and Oboronshchikov street) in the Kirovsky district;
- on the right bank near the Communal Bridge in the Leninsky district;
- Motovilikha pond in Motovilikha district;
- area of the KamHPP stopping point in the Ordzhonikidze district;
- on the left bank of the Sylva River in the village of New Lyady.
All beaches have lifeguard posts, mobile toilet cabins, benches, and changing cabins.
* Prices for travel and accommodation are indicated at the time of writing. The cost indicated in the material and the final price may vary depending on the season and time for which tickets are purchased.
Text author: Ulyana Treskova
