General Information

Situated about 40 km from Novosibirisk city in Siberia is Akademgorodok, the academic township. It was founded in the1950s as a township of scientists working for the Siberian branch of the Soviet Academy of sciences. To get to Akademgorodok, one should take a suburban train from Novosibirsk city main railway station called Vokzal Novosibirsk Glavny. Trains go several times a day. The trip takes about an hour and will cost about USD 1.

The City Today

Built as an academic center, it is now a neat and charming city with 23 academic institutes. The academic institutes had been highly prestigious in the Soviet times as their work was highly appreciated and required by the state. Those who lived and worked in this elite community in the Soviet times enjoyed perks unavailable to the other Soviet citizens.

Presently only some of the institutes have big contracts, while the others are dying. The institutes include: Institute of Hydrodynamics, Institute of Nuclear Physics and others.

As the central government funding has largely dried up, the residents’ standards of living have decreased. Many academicians have now left for overseas and better living. However some research here continues.
Akademgorodok with its green trees and quiet streets is still a very pleasant place to stroll.
Akademgorodok is located close to the Ob Sea that was an artificially created lake. The Ob Sea was created by the damning of the Ob River. There are many beaches crowded in summer, with many restaurants and discotheques.
In winter Akademgorodok is a place for cross-country ski trials.

Museums

There are some interesting museums in the institutes. One of the most interesting is the Museum in the Geology Institute. In the museum, one can see the expositions of the minerals of Siberia, including diamonds from the northern part of Siberia and incredibly rare purple Charoit from the Yakutia republic. The museum is located at Koptyuga str. Phone: +7 3832 332837. The museum is open daily 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Hotels

Akademgorodok does not have many hotels, as it is located close to Novosibirisk which has plenty. The good hotel in Akademgorodok is Zolotaya Dolina Hotel. Address: Ilyicha str, 10. Phone: +7 3832 356609. Fax: +7 3832 35440.

Evgeniya Stroganova