Barnaul Airport named after German Stepanovich Titov is an international airport of federal destination. There is a bar, a restaurant,
a luxury hall, a room for mothers with children and there is a hotel on the territory of the airport. Domestic flights to Barnaul are from the following cities: Moscow, St. Petersburg, Krasnoyarsk, Anapa, Irkutsk, Sochi, Yekaterinburg, Tomsk, Omsk, Belokurikha, Novosibirsk, Surgut, Simferopol. And international flights are from Antalya.
High-speed suburban trains of high comfort "Kalina Krasnaya" and "Vostok" run on the route Barnaul - Biysk. The trains are made up of carriages that have a TV, free Wi-Fi and board games. The Kalina Krasnaya train was named after the famous work of the writer Vasily Shukshin; it is decorated with information materials about the biography and work of the writer.
"Vostok" is named in honor of the spacecraft on which German Titov, a native of the Altai and
the planet's second cosmonaut, made a circular flight around the Earth. The interior of the cars is decorated with portraits of famous cosmonauts, their quotes and reproductions of paintings by Nicholas Roerich.
Сhuyskiy trakt, or the federal highway R-256 is the main highway of Altai. A lot of tourists pass through the Сhuyskiy trakt annually. According to National Geographic, it is the fifth of the most beautiful roads in the world. At the zero kilometer of the legendary road, there is the Chuyskiy Tract Museum, which tells its story starting from the pack trail where the northern route of the Great Silk Road ran, to the modern route.
Srostki is a large village in the Altai Krai on the Chuyskiy trakt and the birthplace of the famous writer and film director Vasily Shukshin. There is a museum dedicated to him in the village, and a monument is installed in honor of the legendary
compatriot on Mount Piket with a perfect view on the Chuyskiy trakt and Katun. Every summer the Russian festival "Shukshin Days'' is held on Mount Piket in Srostki, which attracts famous artists and musicians. Here awards are given to artists, film screenings, concerts and other events are held. There is a large market in Srostki, where different types of honey, nuts, Altai souvenirs can be bought and the famous Srostinsky pies sampled. The market works all year round.
The museum of the writer and director Vasily Makarovich Shukshin appeared in Srostki in 1978. Now it includes three buildings: the former rural school where Shukshin studied, the house where the writer Vasily Makarovich spent his childhood, and the house that he presented to his mother. The museum-reserve contains thousands of exhibits that reveal the personality of the famous cultural figure and show his life path. Every year the museum is visited by about 40 thousand people from all over the world.
One of the leading federal resorts in the country, where 16 modern health resorts provide more than 200 procedures including water from radon springs treatment and decoctions from maral antlers. The air here is so dense like the Russians say “eat with a spoon”. It surpasses the Swiss Alps in terms of the content of negative aerons. Belokurikha also attracts tourists with its picturesque nature and mild mountain climate. The resort is hidden from wind and there are lots of sunny days. Talking about the sights, tourists especially like the cable car that leads to Mount Tserkovka and the largest certified hippodrome in Siberia. There are many restaurants in Belokurikha that serve dishes of different cuisines of the world from eco-products. In winter, ski trails with drag and chair lifts are open.
A new resort that is visited by thousands of tourists a year. For those who are keen on active recreation, there is a ski and biathlon stadium, where the Russian national biathlon team trains and a ski complex. For the kids there is a tubing track with a chairlift. It is worth visiting the historical and architectural complex "Andreevskaya Sloboda", which allows you to immerse into the atmosphere and everyday life in Siberia in the 19th century. The road to Belokurikha Gornaya deserves special attention - it is a picturesque serpentine road through a mountain pass with a height difference of 420 m. It has a length of 7.7 km, 62 turns, 12 serpentine sections and several viewing platforms.
The lakes, which are close to Altai village Guseletovo in the Romanovsky district are suitable for improving health due to curative mud. Sulfide-silt mud of the Karachinsky type appeared on the site of the ancient sea after several periods of glaciation. It contains iron impurities, trace elements and phosphorus-containing organic substances. Mud is used in the treatment of the spine, joints, muscles, diseases of the skin and intestinal tract, ENT diseases. The most popular of the Guseletovsky lakes are Mormyshanskoye and Gor’koye. This place is also famous for the relict Kasmalinsky pine forest.
Denisova Cave and Waterfalls on the Shinok river
Denisova Cave is located on the right bank of the Anuy River, between the villages of Soloneshnoye and Chyorny Anuy. In 1926, the artist Nicholas Roerich visited it during his trip to Altai. During the research more than 80 thousand artifacts were found, including the remains of hundreds of ancient animals, as well as humans called Denisovan man, which belong to a species representing a special branch in evolution. This unique place contains about 20 cultural layers, and the lowest layers are at least 200 thousand years old. The area of Denisova Cave is 270 square meters. Near the cave, there are other famous Paleolithic monuments: Okladnikov's cave and the ancient site of Karama. But the most famous one is the natural monument of waterfalls on the Shinok River, which is located in the Soloneshensky district. It has been known since the 19th century and includes three waterfalls: Bolshoi Shinok with a height of more than 70 m (the largest in Altai), Rasypnaya - 10 m and Skat - 25 m. This place is suitable for eco tourism, you can stay here in camping or in a special car park.
Gornaya Kolyvan (Kolyvan stone-cutting plant, Lake Beloye and Lake Kolyvanskoye, Mount Sinyukha)
Kolyvan is one of the oldest settlements in Altai. More than 200 years ago, by order of Empress Catherine II, the Kolyvan stone-cutting factory was founded here. Kolyvan stone-carving craftsmen pass on from generation to generation the skills of processing, grinding works of art from jasper, quartzite, porphyry, granite and other minerals. It was this plant where the famous "Queen of Vases'' was made and which is kept in the "Hermitage". A Plenty of diplomatic gifts for the governors of many countries, which are kept in museums and private collections around the world, were made here as well. There are guided tours to the Kolyvan factory. It is worth visiting the Museum of the History of Stone-Carving in Altai.
Gornaya Kolyvan is also interesting for its natural beauty. Here starts the ascent to Mount Sinyukha - a natural monument of regional significance (1210 m above sea level). Here, granite bowls are formed, whose water is considered to be holy, according to pilgrims. There is a natural source of clean water on the northern slope of the mountain. In 1997, the believers installed a cross on the top of the mountain. Lake Beloe is located at the foothill of Mount Sinyukha. The water there is very clean and clear, and it has an almost perfect round shape. Due to the clear water, this deep lake is perfect for both swimming and fishing. There is a rocky outlier island in its center.
Kolyvanskoe Lake has the shape of a camel from a bird's eye view. It is surrounded by picturesque cliffs that look like animals, castles and towers. Here you can see centuries-old stones and the relict water nut chilim, which has survived in large quantities and is a fragment of the flora of the ancient period and pre-ice age. Kolyvanskoe Lake is calm, with the purest running water. It is distinguished by a gradual increase in depth and is famous for its beaches and coarse sand. According to geologists, in ancient times there was the surf line of the ancient sea. You can stay here in a tent, camping or "green house".
Museum of Cosmonautics in Polkovnikovo
The museum was opened in honor of the second cosmonaut of the planet German Titov. This is a unique historical and cultural object that tells about the history of the astronautics development, about the contribution to space exploration by German Titov, the life and work of the cosmonaut's father, the famous Altai educator Stepan Titov. The museum includes the building of the school where German Titov studied, a new building with exhibition halls and storage facilities, and the house of the Titov family, where the future cosmonaut spent his childhood and youth. In the halls of the museum, the personal belongings of the cosmonaut, his school supplies, awards, models of space technology, food for astronauts, the Sokol-K space suit and others are exhibited. The L-29 training aircraft and the Soyuz-TMA-21 spacecraft descent vehicle are installed on the territory of the museum.
Annually at the end of November, swans flock in Altai and stop at the non-freezing lake Svetly. The sanctuary is located on the Pre-Altai plain among the meadow steppes and ancient terraces of the Katun. Sightseeing tours are held here, and every year the region organizes the Altai wintering holiday, dedicated to the arrival of swans and the opening of the winter tourist season.
Salt Lake Bolshoye Yarovoye,which area is 53 sq. kilometers, is famous for its bitter-salty mineralized water, healing brine and curative silt mud.It is located at an altitude of 80 meters above sea level and is the lowest point in the Altai Krai. Every summer thousands of beach lovers come to the tourist town of the same name Yarovoye, which is called Siberian Kazantip. There are cafés, bars, restaurants, discos, circus, dolphinarium, children's complexes, playgrounds for sports, attractions and the largest aqua park in Siberia "Lava" in Yarovoye. At weekends, Russian stars play concerts. In 2016, a record was set on the lake for massive lying in an asterisk shape on the water. 1,350 tourists simultaneously plunged into the water and lay down on the waves, legs and arms outstretched.
Kurya (M.T. Kalashnikov Memorial Museum, Church of the Icon of the Mother of God of the Omen)
Kurinsky District is the birthplace of Mikhail Timofeevich Kalashnikov, General Designer of Small Arms. The village of Kurya is located in a picturesque place. Tourists are attracted here by natural, cultural and historical sights. The must-visit point of Kurya is the Mikhail Timofeevich Kalashnikov Museum. It consists of several exhibition halls, which tell about a particular period of the constructor's life. Here is the entire rich arsenal of small arms created by Kalashnikov, and everyone is given the opportunity to assemble and disassemble the legendary AK-47. The museum funds are constantly replenished; some exhibits were once donated by the constructor himself. Opposite the museum there is the Church of the Omen, in which Mikhail Kalashnikov was baptized. It was built in 1905. During the Soviet era it was used as a granary. The church found a second life after restoration and consecration in 2019.
The state natural reserve "Tigireksky" is located in the southwestern part of the Altai Krai. Its area is 41,505 hectares, with a guarded zone of 26,257 hectares. The reserve was created to preserve the biological and landscape diversity of Northwestern Altai. On the territory of the reserve there are 38 rare and endangered species of animals, including several dozen species of animals, birds, fish and insects included in the national and regional Red Data Books. An ecological route runs through the territory of the reserve, and excursion tracks to natural monuments and unique objects are organized here.
The village Bochkari is located in the Tselinny district of Altai Krai. Locals call it the Siberian center of attraction. Bochkari has won the status of an "exemplary settlement" and local businessmen intend to develop its tourism potential. Houses and various institutions are being built here for residents. A year-round ice arena was built in Bochkary. There is a football field with artificial turf and a modern sports and recreation complex for team sports, where athletes from Altai Republic, Kemerovo, Novosibirsk, Chelyabinsk come to train. There is Bochkarevsky brewery, whose products have won many awards and are in demand far beyond the region.
A special economic zone "Biruzovaya Katun '' includes many touristic complexes, hotels and mini-hotels, scattered near a large artificial lake overlooking the mountains. More than 350 thousand people visit it annually. The untouched coastal area of the Katun and the promenades along the river give the feeling of comfortable outdoor recreation. At the same time, you can find everything you need without leaving the Biruzovaya Katun area: restaurants, cafés, shops, souvenir and shopping arcades, sports grounds and even an exhibition gallery.
Entertainment: rafting, excursions on bicycles, ATVs, beach rest and excursion programs to the Tavdinsky caves and to the monument to N.K. Roerich. Tourists health treatments based on antler baths and a relaxing "sleep on the hives". Every year the SEZ becomes a venue for major events, such as "Blossoming of a maral'', "Day of Russia on Biruzovaya Katun", rock festival BECAUSE OF THE BEATLES, "Altai wintering" and many others.
Slava Medovukha's bee farm is another touristic sight in Biruzovaya Katun. It is open for tourists. Here you may find guided tours, where they tell about beekeeping and its history, introduce you to the bees’ life and offer different types of honey for sampling. The apiary also provides health services using bees.
Lake Aya with clear spring water is the pearl of Altai. This is the most beloved and popular place in Altai. It has everything for an unforgettable family vacation. It is located among the majestic and beautiful green mountains. The lake, which is 20-25 thousand years old, is perfect for swimming. In summer in this area it is one of the few lakes that warm up to 20 degrees and higher. The diameter of the lake is 400 meters, the depth reaches 22 meters, and the length of the Aya shore is 1500 meters. There are many options for comfortable accommodation and a wonderful holiday on a well-equipped beach with catamarans, boats, SUP-boards rental. Cafés, restaurants, bars, karaoke are open. Terrenkur to the Devil's Finger rock, exciting excursions and jeep tours are also a must. In summer, on the territory of the park-hotel "Aya" the largest in Europe beach resort "Altai Riviera" hosts tens of thousands of guests from all over the country. There are four swimming pools of different depths and a modern amusement park with animation, foam parties and entertainment programs. Swimming, sunbathing and improving health on Aya is possible not only in summer.
In the park-hotel "Aya" SPA is open all year round. They provide an indoor pool with seawater and artificial sun, a sauna, a hammam, a barrel SPA, beauty treatments, massage and a fitness room.