Formerly known as Stalingrad, Volgograd extends alongside the Volga River and has over 1 million residents. Modern Volgograd is an important manufacturing centre, with industries that include shipbuilding, oil refining and steel and aluminium production. Founded in: 1589 (named Stalingrad until 1961) Population: 1,100,000 Distance to Moscow: 941 km Volgograd and the surrounding area saw some of the heaviest battles during World War II. The Battle of Stalingrad was a turning point in the war. The 85-metre “Motherland calling” statue is Volgograd’s landmark and can be seen from any point of the city. Volgograd is a centre for ecotourism in Russia. The city is close to the unique Volga-Akhtubin floodplains, the last pristine stretch of the Volga river valleys. Lakes make up 30 per cent of the park’s territory and count over 200 species of birds. Volgograd is a true sporting city. Its athletes have won 20 gold medals at summer Olympic Games. Yelena Isynbayeva, a multiple world pole-vaulting champion and ambassador for Russia’s bid to host the 2018 FIFA World Cup™, began her sporting career in Volgograd.

Top sights in Volgograd

The memorial commemorating Heroes of the Battle of Stalingrad was opened on the Mamaev Kurgan in Volgograd (Stalingrad) in 1967. The ascent to the top of the mound starts from the Tribulation Square and heads to the bottom of the main monument The Motherland Calls. Along the serpentine, in the hill, the remains of 34 505 warriors are buried - defenders of Stalingrad, there are also 35 granite headstones of the Heroes of the Soviet Union - the participants of the Battle of Stalingrad. The statue by sculptor Vuchetich and engineer Nikitin was made of 5500 tonnes of concrete and 2400 tons of metal. The height of the monument - 86 meters, the height of the sculpture is 53 meters. The thickness of the walls of the sculpture is less than 30 cm. The sword in the hand of the Motherland weighs 14 tons and has a length of 33 meters. It is said that a car can fit in the palm of the statue. In 2008, the Motherland statue in Mamayev Kurgan is known as one of the Seven wonders of Russia.
Mamayev Kurgan and The Motherland Calls

The memorial commemorating Heroes of the Battle of Stalingrad was opened on the Mamaev Kurgan in Volgograd (Stalingrad) in 1967. The ascent to the top of the mound starts from the Tribulation Square…