Where to stay in Yekaterinburg

Yekaterinburg, alternatively romanized as Ekaterinburg and formerly known as Sverdlovsk (1924–1991), is a city and the administrative centre of Sverdlovsk Oblast and the Ural Federal District, Russia. The city is located on the Iset River between the Volga-Ural region and Siberia, with a population of roughly 1.5 million residents, up to 2.2 million residents in the urban agglomeration.

The city was founded in 1723 by the order of Peter the Great as a metallurgical factory. It was named after the wife of Peter the Great, Yekaterina. In 1918, the last tsar's family was imprisoned, and later executed, in a house in Yekaterinburg, which was demolished in 1997. The Church on the Blood was built on the former site of the house in 2003. During World War II, the city grew rapidly as industries and people were relocated east to escape the war.

You can pay hourly rates at the resting rooms (Komnaty Otdykha) at the main train station. To get there, walk to the eastern end of the station to the last and small set of glass doors. First door on the right should lead you to a set of stairs which will take you there.

Getting around

You can either buy a street map from one of the many newsstands and shops in the train stations, print out a street map of Yekaterinburg, or pick up a free detailed street map from the Ekaterinburg Tourist Information Service at 8 Marta St. #21, office #2, in the city centre. Yekaterinburg has 1 underground metro line, connecting the city centre (the stop is near the Circus) to Uralmash, a large industrial and residential area, with a stop near the main railway station.

Wikivoyage contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; excerpted.