General Information

Kostroma is the administrative center of Kostroma region of Russia. It is located at the confluence of Kostrma and Volga Rivers.

Kostroma is quite big provincial town situated 230 kilometers north-east of Vladimir, 76 km east of Yaroslavl and 340 kilometers north-east of Moscow. There are 288,000 people living in the town.

Distance from Moscow: 340 km.

Time: Moscow time

City telephone code: +7 0942.

Climate

The climate of the region is temperate continental. The average temperature in January is -12C, the average temperature in July is +18C. The landscape of Kostroma region consists of forests or hilly countryside.

History

Kostroma was founded in 1152 by Prince Yuri Dolgoruky, the founder of Moscow, to secure north-eastern borders of the Rostov-Suzdal Principality. Many times the town was completely destroyed. In the beginning of the XIII century there was a huge fire, in 1238 the Tartars invaded the town, in 1318 Moscow Princes plundered Kostroma, in 1375 the town was invaded by river pirates.

However, by the end of the XVII century Kostroma became the third biggest town in Russia following Moscow and Yaroslavl and an important cultural and commercial center.

Home to Godunovs and Romanovs — two Russian most noble families, ancient Kostroma was closely tied to the fierce high-level power rivalries, before Romanovs established their 300-year dynasty in the XVII century.

Under the Polish-Lithuanian intervention in the beginning of the XVIII century, Kostroma played an important role in the formation of people's volunteer corps.

Kostroma is as old as Moscow. In September 2002 the town celebrated it’s 850 anniversary. It is often called a jewel among the famous Golden Ring cities.

Places To See

Kostroma is famous with its wonderful architectural monuments, Ipatyevsky Convent (XVI-XVII century), the Church of the Manifestation of Christ, the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin, the Church of the Transfiguration, the Church of Resurrection on Debra River (1652) and others.

Ipatyevsky Convent is located in a beautiful place, where the Kostroma River flows into Volga. Address: 1, Prosveshcheniya str. Phone: +7 0942 572 589. Open daily 9.00-17.00. Nowadays this monastery is the residence of the Archbishop of Kostroma. The main church in the monastery is Epiphany Cathedral (Bogoyavlensky cathedral) built in 1559-1565, which is the first building made of stone in Kostroma. The St. Trinity Cathedral of Convent is beautifully ornamented and decorated monumental structure. Next to the monastery there's a museum of wooden architecture with an interesting collection of icons and the best Russian museum of nature with fine collection of butterflies.

One of the first stone buildings on the Kostroma territory was also the Church of the Resurrection-on-the-Debra, erected in 1651 on funds given by the merchant Kyrill Isakov.

The Kostroma Museum of History and Architecture houses collections of embroidery for decoration of church vestments and a large collection of silverwork such as censers, chalices and other church plate.

The Museum of Arts is located not far from the town centre of Kostroma. The collection comprises fine pieces of painting of the XVIII- XIX centuries.

There's a Literature Museum housing samples of ancient Russian books, both hand-written and printed, and an exhibition dedicated to writers from Kostroma region. The museum is opened daily from 10 to 17. Address: 1, Lenina str. Phone: +7 0942 516 027.

At the big square between the arcades, there's a Monument to Ivan Susanin – a peasant from Kostroma, who became a Russian hero. During the winter of 1612-1613 Ivan Susanin guided a detachment of Polish invaders into an impassable swamp. When the Polish soldiers realized that Susanin did it on purpose, they killed him. But after they didn't manage to get out of the swamp and died themselves. The monument was built in 1967.

Not far from there is a 35 meters high fire tower built in 1823-1827. There is an observation deck on top and the history museum of fire department inside.

The City Today

Kostroma stretches along Volga and Kostroma Rivers. It is divided into two parts by Volga River. In the central district of Kostroma there are classic style buildings and structures built from 1770 to 1830. One of the central streets of Kostroma is Sovetskaya street.

The city centre is concentrated around the Trading Arcades, which is the main shopping place. In five minutes walk there is the embankment of Volga River. The nicest thing to do in Kostroma is to walk along quiet central streets with trading arcades and wooden houses. A good place to walk is also the embankment. Like in any town, outskirts in Kostroma are monotonous and grey.

The main post and telegraph office is located on the corner of Polipaeva and Sovetskaya streets, right after the bridge over the Volga river.

Currency exchange offices can be found in the Trading Arcades at the Susaninskaya Square. There's a bank with currency exchange at Ostrovskogo str., 37. Phone: +7 0942 311 352, 311 625, opened 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. except Saturdays and Sundays.

Economy and Transportation

Kostroma was the first town that started to make cloths and linens for Russian fleet. And today, the main industries of the town are machinery, forestry, and textile.

There is a railway station and many motor roads in the town. There are daily trains to and from Moscow, Saint Petersburg and Yaroslavl. Address: Sovetskaya str., 33. Phone: +7 0942 542 264.

Hotels

Berezka Hotel. Address: 159, Mira Prospect. Phone: +7 0942 556 722.

Intourist-Kostroma Hotel. Address: 40, Magistralnaya str. Phone: +7 0942 533 661.

Kostroma Hotel. Address: 120, Sovetskaya str..Phone: +7 0942 541 081.

Mush Hotel Guesthouse. Address: 29, Sovetskaya str. Phone: +7 0942 312 400, phone/fax: +7 0942 311 045. Email: bacha@mush.ru

Volga Hotel. Address: 1, Yunosheskaya str. Phone: +7 0942 546 163.

Evgeniya Stroganova