Minsk

The oldest Orthodox church in Minsk that survived until our days. It was built in 1620-1630 and remains a striking example of Belarusian tradition in Orthodox sacral architecture. The church is richly decorated with frescoes and icons.

The church was built in 1847 in the Classical and Russian Revival styles. Roman Catholics were invited to pray in the church after the last Catholic church in Minsk was closed by the Soviet authorities in 1937. The church was taken from believers in 1949 and used as a state film archive. It was returned to the Church in 1990.

Built as a Jesuit church at the beginning of the 18th century, this beautiful Baroque church was closed or used as a sports training facility during different periods of the Soviet Union time. In the 1990s, the church was returned to the believers and became the archcathedral; the seat of the head of the Roman Catholic Church in Belarus. The building is a fine example of Baroque, an architectural style common to medieval Belarus. The church is squeezed between two modern buildings almost hiding it from passers-by, a witness to the prosecution which churches experienced in the Soviet Union.

An elegant Neogothic church constructed in 1861-74. During the Soviet Union time, it was used as book storage for the National Library; later, it was refurbished to house a classical music hall. In independent Belarus, the Catholic community campaigned for the return of the church and shared the building with the state music company for many years.

The best-known church in the city, commonly known as the Red Church (or Čyrvony kasciol), was built between 1908 and 1910 in Romanesque Revival style. Its photographs and silhouette drawings are often used on Minsk souvenirs as the city's most recognizable symbol. The church has a rich history and, nowadays, is home to a large and active community. It is richly decorated inside and contains many artifacts and religious objects to explore.

The oldest Minsk brewery, and the largest in Belarus, can be visited with a tour which also includes beer tasting. This compact brewery located not far from the Minsk centre has preserved some of its original buildings from the 19th century. English tours are run if eight or more people get together, so inviting others to join makes it more likely to happen. Contact the brewery museum by email or online form in advance specifying the desired day and time, and the English language of the tour (it's Russian by default). Most likely, the tour will take place at 14:00.

Tourists can visit the plant manufacturing the Belarus tractors, the most popular tractor in the world by the number of machines sold, every workday except national holidays. Tours normally take place at 11:00 and 13:00 in Russian; translation into English can be requested. The standard tour includes visiting two workshops, including the final assembly line. There are plenty of photo opportunities for visitors. Payment is in cash or by card in the museum in the far right corner of the Works buildings in front of the Traktarny Zavod metro station.

Lee arrived in the Soviet Union in December 1959 willing to denounce his US citizenship and was sent to Minsk. He changed his name to Alek and married a native woman, Marina Prusakova, with whom he had a child. The young family left for the United States in June 1962.

This impressive building, on the main street of Minsk has a façade that belies what's found within.

Huge, glass and concrete rhombicuboctahedron houses a collection of over 8 million items. On 22 floors it features conference halls, 20 reading rooms and a Book Museum, on the roof there is an observation deck with good views of the city and surrounding area.

This is an artificial reservoir. There's a free public beach, and pedal-boat and catamaran rental.

This is where the city of Minsk (formerly Mensk) was initially built about 1100 years ago.

4 km west.

A reconstructed line of defences on what once was the state border of the USSR.

70-m-high mound from 1969 commemorating Soviet soldiers who died during World War II.

A place where a village, savagely massacred in 1943 by Nazi forces, once stood.

Huge trucks and super heavy-duty hauliers are produced in Žodzina, a town in Minsk region. The manufacturing site is open for visits to see the world’s largest trucks listed in the Guinness Book of Records. Visitors can climb up to the larges track ever produced and see one of the assembly workshops. Tours are in Russian; translation into English can be requested in advance: call or email. Riding the track is available for an additional charge. The tours end in a souvenir shop.

Mir is a medieval castle about 85 km from Minsk. Formerly owned by the Radziwill family, one of the great families of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. During the Second World War it was used by the Nazis as a Ghetto. Inside the castle is a museum showing artefacts from the castle's past, including exhibits from the Jewish community who lived in nearby Mir village until they were murdered in the Holocaust.

This is a 750-mm (2 ft 5½ in) narrow gauge railway loop passing through the Chelyuskinites Park. The railway line counts 3 stations (listed from north to south): Zaslonovo, Pionerskaya (or Pionerskaja) and Sosnovy Bor (or Sosnovyj Bor); and a pair of rail loops after the end stops.

A popular destination for a relaxed day in central Minsk. It is compact and mostly accessible, it has several outdoor and indoor cafes. An amusement park in Park Čaliuskincaǔ is next door.

An urban forest park. The park's area is . The park contains an amusement park. Other attractions include a Children's Railway, operated exclusively by teenagers, and a cinema Raduga (Russian: Радуга). There is a Minsk Metro station "Park Čaliuskincaǔ" next to the park. The park is adjacent to the Botanical Garden.

A public park established in 1800 under the name Governor's Garden. During the Soviet times it was renamed "парк культуры і адпачынку імя Максіма Горкага" (Park of culture and recreation after A.M.Gorky) after the famous Russian/Soviet writer Maksim Gorky. Parks with this name have been established in many cities of the Soviet Union. A part of the park's territory is occupied by an amusement park with a 56-metre-high Ferris wheel. It also has an educational observatory with a planetarium. The Ice Palace (indoors skating rink) is also located in Gorky Park. President Lukashenko, known for his hobby of ice hockey, frequents this place, at which times the access to this part of the park is closed for general public.

The most sought-after Minsk theatre. It has an excellent reputation for quality of the experience and variety of performances, incl. for children. For regular performances, tickets are readily available online and from various ticket vendors across the city. For the most exclusive shows, e.g. Christmas gala concerts, tickets - if sold out - are occasionally made available from the theatre box office at short notice, a day before or so.

The oldest and, arguably, the best Belarusian drama theatre. All performances - classical and modern Belarusian and foreign plays - and are in Belarusian; some are dubbed into English and Russian. Occasional music concerts take place here too. The theatre has two stages. Tickets can be purchased online from major ticket-selling companies and in-person - from several box offices, see the Box Office page on the theatre website. A pleasant cafe at the rear of its building is particularly good on warm sunny days. The cafe inside the theatre is open before performances and during intervals; interval refreshments can be ordered in advance.

A small theatre well-regarded for its high-quality performances. Most of the plays are in Russian. Inexpensive tickets and unpretentious facilities. The threatre shares the building with once the most prestigious Minsk cinema, Moskva; it is a listed building from the time of the Soviet Union.