Sergiev Posad is a city in the north of the Moscow region, located 52 km from the Moscow Ring Road along the Yaroslavl highway. Sergiev Posad is part of the Golden Ring, and today I will tell you about what to do in this city, what you can see there in one day and whether it’s worth going there at all. This city was formed from villages and settlements near the Trinity-Sergius Lavra by decree of Catherine II. And at one time it was an important center of the political and cultural life of the country.
Flag of the city and Sergiev Posad region
From Wikipedia
On the map I indicated the route with the main attractions in Sergiev Posad for 1 day, the city station, bus stop and several important tourist places.
Holy Trinity Lavra of Sergius
Holy Trinity Lavra of Sergius in Sergiev Posad
Moscow region
The Holy Trinity Monastery was founded near Moscow by St. Sergius of Radonezh in 1337. The monastery of the Life-Giving Trinity was attacked more than once - in the 13th century it was plundered by the Golden Horde Khan Edigei, in the 15th century the monastery withstood the siege of a 30,000-strong army of Polish invaders. In 1744, the Trinity Monastery was awarded the title of Lavra. For several centuries, pilgrims from all over the world have visited this place as one of the most revered Orthodox shrines.
The Trinity-Sergius Lavra houses a rare collection of handwritten and early printed books. Since the beginning of the 19th century, the Moscow Theological Academy, one of the largest religious educational institutions in Russia, has been located on the territory of the Lavra, in the former royal palaces. Among the most valuable shrines of the monastery are the relics of St. Sergius of Radonezh, Maxim the Greek and Anthony of Radonezh, the Tikhvin and Chernigov icons of the Mother of God.
How to get to Sergiev Posad?
1. By personal car. Maps will tell you that the easiest way to get to Sergiev Posad is along the Yaroslavskoye Highway, but almost all weekends there is a permanent road block in the area of the city of Pushkino due to road repairs and narrowings. It's easy to lose several hours of precious time in this traffic jam. Therefore, you can drive around along the Dmitrovskoye or Shchelkovskoye highway, the toll Leningradka, and then through the concrete road.
The best solution would be to simply consult a navigator before leaving. Distance. It’s a decent drive from my house to Sergiev Posad - 98 km, but if you live in the north of Moscow, then the road to the city can only take about 1-2 hours.
I indicated convenient and, most importantly, free parking on the map . From here you can easily walk to the main attraction of the city - the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, in 10-15 minutes. Parking right next to the Lavra is prohibited, although cars are parked there too.
2. By train from Yaroslavsky station. Travel time is 1 hour 40 minutes. The fare is 176 rubles.
3. By bus from the bus station to VDNH. Travel time is 1 hour 15 minutes. The fare starts from 350 rubles (check with the carrier).
Sergiev Posad State Historical and Art Museum-Reserve
Sergiev Posad Museum-Reserve - Main…
Sergiev Posad district
Academician Dmitry Likhachev called this museum “The Hermitage of Russian culture of the 14th–20th centuries.” The Sergiev Posad Museum-Reserve is one of the largest museums in the Moscow region; it houses the ancient collection of fine and applied art of the Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius. The exhibition centers on works by masters of the Moscow art school of the 14th–17th centuries.
The museum contains one of the largest collections of Russian folk art in Russia - painting and wood carving, metal working, printed cloth, peasant costume. The local history collection of the reserve introduces the history of Sergiev Posad, the architectural appearance of the city and its famous residents.
Where else to take a walk in Sergiev Posad
Red Army Avenue
After lunch, we suggest taking a walk along the main street of the city - Red Army Avenue
to the right of the Lavra. This is the longest and widest street, carefully preserving ancient historical buildings of previous centuries. In the 18th century, the current avenue was just part of the road route from Moscow to the city of Pereslavl-Zalessky, and it was then called Bolshedorozhnaya Street.
Red Army Avenue
The walk will give you aesthetic pleasure with the well-groomed view of the cozy town of Sergiev Posad (Zagorsk), plus - in numerous shops you can buy memorable souvenirs
(more details - What to bring from Sergiev Posad), as well as explore the original modern museums of the city and see the interesting historical and architectural monuments that you will find on this street.
Pyatnitskaya and Vvedenskaya churches
Almost immediately behind the Lavra, or rather behind its south-eastern corner, there are two churches that you can’t help but pay attention to. These are the oldest churches: Vvedenskaya Church
and
the Church of Paraskeva Pyatnitsa
(127 Red Army Ave.), forming a harmonious composition.
In the old days, a trade route passed here, and there was a market square on which there was a wooden Church of the Entry into the Temple of the Blessed Virgin Mary with the chapel of Paraskeva Pyatnitsa, built at the beginning of the 15th century. In the middle of the 16th century. - with donations from the boyar governor I.I.
Khabarov and parishioners, instead of one wooden one, two stone churches were built.
Vvedenskaya and Pyatnitskaya churches
Vvedenskaya
– a cross-domed church with one gilded dome and without a belfry.
She is strict and majestic, and represents the vertical of the composition. And the Church of Paraskeva Pyatnitsa
is a three-part temple, similar to a ship, in unity with which there is
a bell tower
, decorated with numerous decorative elements. This church is light, elegant and cozy and represents a horizontal composition. During the Soviet years, both churches had storage facilities, but after restoration they acquired their previous appearance.
Chapel of the Pyatnitsky Well
Next to the ensemble of two churches is the Pyatnitsky Well Chapel
.
This is a small structure of three tiers, inside of which there is a spring. This source was discovered by St. Sergius
, and it was from here that he carried water for his monks to Mount Makovets.
Chapel of the Pyatnitsky Well
Continuing along the pedestrian path, you will reach the Memorial of Glory with the Eternal Flame
.
Toy Museum
Further, along the path and the openwork bridge of the newlyweds across the Kopninka River, you will rise to the unique “Art and Pedagogical Museum of Toys”
(Red Army Ave., 123), which we highly recommend paying attention to.
This museum, which grew out of the private collection of art historian N.D. Bartram
, is located in an old red brick building, a former commercial school.
Toy Museum
The museum contains a huge number of exhibits dating back to the 11th century. Such specimens as the first Russian nesting doll, made in the image of a Japanese toy - a bald old man, or funny things that the children of Nicholas II played with, will not leave you indifferent and will allow you to spend time in a very entertaining and interesting way.
Exhibits of the Toy Museum in Sergiev Posad
And for art lovers, the museum has a special corner called “Children’s Portrait”
, which presents little-known paintings by masters of painting from the 17th to 20th centuries.
Kelarsky Pond
If you have time and energy left, turn right to the famous Kelarsky pond
and take a walk around it. This artificial reservoir was built by monks in the 16th century. In subsequent times, the pond was expanded and improved. It's a good place to relax - in the summer you can go boating, or just admire the surroundings and take photos.
Kelarsky Pond
Walking around the Kelarsky pond, you can walk to the Elias Church
(Kuzminova, 1/5).
This is an architectural structure in the Baroque style of the second half of the 18th century
. Dark red walls, white trim and relief patterns - everything is strict and elegant. An interesting fact is that this was the only functioning church in the city during Soviet times.
Elias Church
And the story
its construction is very interesting. Previously, there was the village of Panino, where in the 17th century a wooden Kazan Church with a chapel of the Prophet Elijah was built. In the 18th century, due to dilapidation, the chapel was dismantled and a new church was erected - Ilinskaya, which soon burned down in a fire. Then the stone Ilinskaya Church was erected, which was in great harmony with the wooden Kazan Church. But in the 30s, the Kazan Church was destroyed.
In addition to the Ilinskaya Church, near the Kelarsky Pond you can see the Monument to Peter and Fevronia of Murom
.
Monument to Peter and Fevronia of Murom
Further, continuing along Red Army Avenue, you can look into the Museum of Folk Crafts
(Krasnaya Armii Ave., 105), located in a former merchant's house, where you can see wooden sculptures of saints and buy some original toy souvenir.
And a little further south along the avenue there is the blue and white Church of the Ascension of the Lord
(Red Army Ave. 88a), erected in the second half of the 18th century in the
Baroque
.
The church was conceived as a two-story building, but due to a lack of funds, it was built in a somewhat mundane form, which is compensated by a high, elegant three-tier bell tower and stucco decorations on the facades. Before it, there was a wooden parish church for parishioners of the Rybnaya and Icon settlements (17th century). In the 18th and 19th centuries, the main square of the city, Voznesenskaya, was located in front of the temple.
Church of the Ascension
And now there’s just a little bit left to do – walk to Kooperativnaya
, and then along it to Vokzalnaya Square, on which there is a monument to the famous sponsor of the local railway line,
Savva Mamontov
. He sits opposite the station building, meeting and seeing off all the guests of Sergiev Posad.
Monument to philanthropist Savva Mamontov
Chernigov men's monastery of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra
Chernigov men's monastery of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra in Sergius...
Moscow region
In the 40s of the 19th century, three kilometers from the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, the Monk Anthony founded the Gethsemane Chernigov monastery - a separate monastery for hermit monks. The secluded picturesque place became a haven for more than 400 monks. Anthony commanded that the monastery be kept in simplicity and austerity - even the church utensils were made of wood. Saint Philaret of Moscow wrote: “Simplicity... is the hope of the monastery. May the Lord preserve this." After the revolution, the monastery was closed, and monastic life here resumed only in the 90s of the 20th century.
The Chernigov monastery is named after the miraculous Chernigov Icon of the Mother of God, brought to the monastery at the end of the 19th century, and the Gethsemane monastery is named after the Garden of Jerusalem, where the Mother of God is buried. To this day, the monastery has preserved cave temples, monastic cells, a holy spring and ancient monastery buildings.
Infrastructure: shopping centers, shops and restaurants
Before moving to Sergiev Posad for permanent residence, many are interested not only in salary. The town’s opportunities are also relevant for migrants.
The city has almost all the Moscow chain stores, shopping centers and local retail outlets, most of which are concentrated near the Moscow Highway and Red Army Ave. There are many shopping centers near the Novouglich highway and train stations.
Shopping center Sergiev Posad:
- Shopping center "Capitol" - 56.34136, 38.12405;
- Shopping center “Happy Family” – 56.30646, 38.13290;
- Shopping center "Park" - 56.30037, 38.17461;
- Shopping center "Manifesto" - 56.32417, 38.14406;
- Shopping center "Voznesensky" - 56.30351, 38.13427;
- Shopping center "Rainbow Styles" - 56.33121, 38.14217;
- Shopping center “Udacha” – 56.34319, 38.12794.
Children's products can be bought at the Children's World on Ptitsegradskaya Street. Products in the stores “Dixie”, “Taste of Villas”, “Perekrestok”.
Network shops:
- “Krusta” - 56.33304, 38.15548;
- "Fix Price" - 56.31520, 38.13467;
- “Taste of Villas” – 56.31463, 38.13502;
- “Faithful” – 56.32434, 38.13570;
- "Dixie" - 56.31691, 38.13725.
There are also many restaurants and cafes there. After all, many tourists come to the city wanting to see local attractions.
The best cafes and restaurants in Sergiev Posad:
- restaurant-museum "Guest Hut" - 56.31414. 38.13176;
- restaurant "Red Chambers" - 56.31300, 38.13450;
- restaurant “Varenichnaya” – 56.31404, 38.13588;
- cafe "Landau" - 56.31395, 38.13691;
- cafe-restaurant “Russian Yard” – 56.31186, 38.13347;
- Georgian restaurant “Pirosmani” – 56.31319. 38.13519;
- cafe "Coffee Shop" - 56.31585, 38.13588.
Local residents recommend going to the Lagmannaya cafe; the food is very tasty; you can have dinner or lunch in the restaurant or take your favorite dish with you. Prices are moderate, the average bill is 1,000 rubles.
State Historical, Artistic and Literary Museum-Reserve "Abramtsevo"
Historical, artistic and literary museum-reserve…
Sergiev Posad district
On the banks of the Vori River, not far from Sergiev Posad, the Abramtsevo Museum-Reserve is located. In the middle of the 18th century, a manor appeared here, which became a source of inspiration for famous writers and artists. In 1843, the writer Sergei Aksakov acquired the estate; writers Nikolai Gogol and Ivan Turgenev, actor Mikhail Shchepkin, and historian Mikhail Pogodin liked to stay with him. In 1870, the house was bought by philanthropist Savva Mamontov - then the Abramtsevo art circle was formed here, which included artists Konstantin Korovin, Ilya Repin, Valentin Serov, Vasily Polenov, Viktor Vasnetsov and others.
After the revolution, a museum was opened in the estate, but the traditions of the Mamontov circle did not stop - in the 20th century, artists Pyotr Konchalovsky, Igor Grabar, Ilya Mashkov, sculptors Boris Korolev and Vera Mukhina worked in Abramtsevo. Today, the collection of the Abramtsevo Museum contains more than 25 thousand exhibits - photo archives and personal belongings of the former owners of the estate, graphics, paintings, sculptures and works of folk art.
What to try? Delicacies of Sergiev Posad
In the souvenir shops of Sergiev Posad you will find many standard souvenirs - magnets, plates, textiles. But what if all this doesn’t bother you much?
This city has some of the best monastery kvass and bread . They are so tasty that you can come to this town just for a couple of liters of kvass and a slice of rye bread.
From time to time I design weddings and often communicate with newlyweds. So, I had clients who ordered a loaf from this monastery, although the wedding was celebrated about 100 km from the city.
I marked the tent with monastery pastries on the map, and you will find babushkas with kvass yourself - they stand there on all the roads and parking lots in the city center.
