Tourist Classics

Begin your acquaintance with Minsk at Praspiekt Niezaležnasci (former Francysk Skarina Avenue, former Lenina Avenue, former Stalina Avenue), a 15-kilometer thoroughfare that cuts the city in half. Most of the classic Minsk attractions are located either on the Avenue itself or close to it. In fact, the Avenue itself is also a landmark and a unique sample of the Stalin Empire style. The artist and writer Artur Klinau has come up with the term “Sun City” to describe this part of Minsk as the main artery of the Big Communist Dream. The route of Bus No. 100, also one of Minsk’s icons, by the way, goes along the Avenue. Note the corner house number 31 (on the banks of Svislach near Plošcha Pieramohi) – this is where the legendary murderer of John Kennedy, Lee Harvey Oswald, lived in the early 60’s.

Plošča Niezaležnasci. You can start your tour at the Lenin monument, of which, for some reason, you are not allowed to take pictures. The monument faces the main building of the Belarusian State University with its back to the Government House, on the steps of which all the key events of December 19, 2010 took place. Government House was built back in the 1930s by Iosif Langbard, whose style still defines the appearance of present-day Minsk. His works also include the Officers Club, the Academy of Sciences, the Opera and Ballet Theatre, and the Pobeda Cinema. In a good Belarus tradition the Red Church of Saints Simon and Helena, built in 1910, is just a step away from the Lenin monument. Behind the church hides a small building that houses the Museum of the Belarusian Cinema History (4, vulica Sviardlova).

The National Library of Belarus (116, praspiekt Niezaležnasci). This is the rhombicuboctahedron that has become one of the most controversial symbols of present-day Minsk. It was built quickly in the early 2000s; the entire country pitched in, sometimes on a willy-nilly basis. It has a view point and Book Museum tours as tourist attractions.

Vierchni Horad (Upper Town). This is Minsk historic center where you can try to feel the spirit of the early 19th century city. This is where the Holy Spirit Cathedral is located. It is the most important Russian Orthodox church in the city built in 1633-1642. The Minsk Town Hall is on Plošcha Svabody. It was built in 1600 in honor of Minsk receiving the Magdeburg Rights and was restored in 2003 according to the old drafts and drawings. In summer, some streets of the Upper Town become pedestrian, in winter a Christmas fair appears here, in the evening on weekends you can catch a music performance.

Across the street from the Town Hall, squeezed in between Stalin-era houses is the Catholic Cathedral of Saint Virgin Mary built in 1700-1710 in the Vilna sacred baroque style. It is also known as the “Church of the Jesuits.”

If you go down from Plošcha Pieramohi to vulica Niamiha, you will see another Minsk landmark – the Cathedral of Saint Apostles Peter and Paul (4, Rakaŭskaja vulica) built in 1612. Note that the building of the cathedral is actually facing the street sideways – you can well imagine the scale of re-building that went on in this area of Minsk in the 1970s. If you are interested in religious buildings and their legends, we've got a special article about the temples of Minsk.

Trinity Hill (Traeckaje Pradmescie) is the official tourist “piece of Old Minsk.” In 15th – 19th centuries it was craftsmen and merchants who came to live here; nowadays, Trinity Hill houses offices, residential areas, restaurants, artist studios, as well as the Literary Museum of Maksim Bahdanovich. Next to this district is the Isle of Tears Monument – a memorial dedicated to the soldiers who died in Afghanistan. The view of Trinity Hill is glaringly spoiled by an “elite high-rise” built right behind it and popularly known as “Chizh House” (after the businessman who was behind its construction). You can view it as a monument of sorts to the epoch lacking common sense.

Opera and Ballet Theatre (1, plošcha Paryžskaj Kamuny). This is a memorial of the Soviet-era constructivism. Initially, the building was supposed to have four floors, however, in the course of construction the money abruptly ran out. Nevertheless, the building is still majestically impressive thanks to the ideal symmetry of the park, the statues on the pediment, and the abundance of marble and crystal inside. With tickets starting at € 2 it would be a shame to miss it. Although you should take care of the tickets in advance – they are gone pretty quickly for all classical productions. In the park by the Opera Theatre there is a statue of the poet Maksim Bahdanovič, which is moved from one spot to another with every reconstruction. Right now the poor guy has to look at the back of the Chizh House. Learn more about the history and legends of the theater in our podcast.

There is a large green belt around the Opera Theatre. Starting at the mysterious skvier Marata Kazieja (with a-must selfie next to the hero’s statue) across the Yanka Kupala Park you can get to Gorky Park (Plošcha Pieramohi subway station). This is the central recreational area of Minsk with children’s rides, a couple of simple cafés and the training center of the Hockey Club Yunost-Minsk (where even in the summer you can roll around in the snow that comes when they clean the ice in the rink). We advise that you take a ride or two on the Ferris Wheel; just make sure you pick the closed cabins – they are better for viewing the city.

Łošyca Riverside Park. This is the most inspired and romantic park in Minsk, the main recreation area for those who live in the Łošyca community. The central part of the park has been well repaired; it now features straight trails, cozy pavilions, and the Lyubanskiy estate. If you go further into the park, you can find apple orchards and the remains of a mill where, according to legend, a young pani hung herself for love. There are rumors that somewhere nearby is the site of drowning of the parts of the Stalin statue, which used to stand on Kastrychnickaja Square in the very heart of the capital in the early 1960’s.

National Art Museum (20, vulica Lenina). This is the most prominent collection of art in Belarus. There is a large collection of classical Russian paintings, old Belarus icons, and Sarmatian portraits of the Radziwily family. The Socialist Realism collection here warrants a special mention. There is an exhibit of the Belarus classical artist Mai Dantsig, the author of the milestone painting “My Minsk”.