What to do in Kazan in summer

Kazan has repeatedly become the center of major sporting events: in 2019, the European Triathlon Championship was held here, and this summer, the capital of Tatarstan welcomes the sports festival and international triathlon competitions IRONSTAR KAZAN TIMERMAN CUP. On June 17-18, competitions for amateurs and the Russian Middle Distance Triathlon Championship for professional athletes will be held. The sports festival is organized in the very heart of the metropolis: the cycling track is laid right under the walls of the Kazan Kremlin, the running stage ends on the Kremlin embankment. And in order to see local sights not on the run, it is worth staying in Kazan after the competition and plunging headlong into the busy life of this ancient city.

Celebrate Sabantuy

In June, the famous “plow holiday” – Sabantuy – is celebrated in Kazan cheerfully and on a grand scale. Celebrations, timed to coincide with the end of spring sowing, last 3 weeks, and the climax comes after June 20th. The program includes concerts, races at the hippodrome, competitions in traditional kuresh wrestling, competitions for the title of the best batyr, running with yokes and other comic tests. Festive festivities take place throughout the city, and you can join the Tatar culture at any festival site.

See the city from the high bell tower

The 74-meter bell tower of the Epiphany Cathedral rises above the Kazan Arbat – this is how Bauman's pedestrian street is called here – in which the famous native of Kazan, Fyodor Chaliapin, was baptized in the 19th century. For only 100 RUB you can climb to the observation deck, located on the bell tower, from where the entire city center is perfectly visible: old mansions and tenement houses, a white-stone Kremlin with minarets of the Kul-Sharif mosque and the domes of the Annunciation Cathedral, the painted Peter and Paul Cathedral, Kazan University, the Theater. G. Kamala and the embankment of Lake Kaban.

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  Vakhitovsky district of Kazan

Meet the sunset at the Kremlin wall

Near the high walls of the Kazan Kremlin stretches the Kremlin embankment of Kazanka, where both guests of the city and local residents like to relax. There are cafes and restaurants, attractions, rental of bicycles, scooters and rollers, bookcrossing. On a summer evening, you can see the most beautiful Kazan sunset from the embankment, and at nightfall, bright lights of night illumination light up over the promenade. /fs.tonkosti.ru/sized/f550x700/av/iv/aviva03oc2ogs00k40g80kkw0.jpg” media=”(max-width: 549px)”>

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Walk around Kazan at night with a lamplighter

Dressed in cloaks, tourists go for a night walk accompanied by the old lamplighter Farolero — this is how an immersive tour of the center of Kazan begins. The theatrical journey passes through the territory of the Kazan Kremlin, May 1 Square and the ancient streets of the city, and along the way, guests will find many surprises and a little magic. With children, you can visit another unusual excursion – “The Tale of the Kazan Cat”: the legendary character acts as a guide around the Kremlin.

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Take a swim in the water park

There are several beaches within the city on the Volga and Kazanka, but the water there does not always meet sanitary standards, so the Kazan water parks Riviera and Baryonyx are considered the safest place for water entertainment. Both have indoor slides, while Riviera has an open-air swimming pool, outdoor attractions and a 65-meter Ferris wheel that offers impressive views of the metropolis in summer. Baryonyx is part of a large entertainment center with an aquarium, a quest room, 3D attractions and a dinosaur show.

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  IRONSTAR triathlon competitions in Kazan-2021

Return to the Soviet past

There are many interesting museums in Kazan – literary, artistic and historical, and artifacts from the relatively recent past are collected in the Museum of Socialist Life and the Museum of Happy Childhood. The first one is located in a former communal apartment, among its exhibits there are things from the 70-90s. 20th century: vinyl records, Christmas decorations, clothes, board games and slot machines. In the Museum of Happy Childhood, every Soviet child will feel at home: Soviet school uniforms and textbooks, plastic baby dolls and cars, children's faux fur coats and pioneer ties are stored here.

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  Natural History Museum of Tatarstan

Go on a river trip

You can admire the main city sights from the water while walking along Kazanka on a river bus, and it is more convenient and pleasant to get to the most interesting places outside of Kazan not by land, but along the Volga. In 40 minutes, a fast Meteor will take you to the shores of the fabulous island-city of Sviyazhsk with its ancient temples and modern museums, in 2.5 hours – to Bolgar, the capital of medieval Volga Bulgaria. If there is no time for a one-day excursion, you can choose a two-hour boat trip through the picturesque outskirts of Kazan. ru/sized/f550x700/by/u9/byu983corxcgkwowwk0kk4okg.jpg” media=”(max-width: 549px)”>

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What else to read on the topic

• Another Kazan: an unusual route through the ancient capital
• Where to go in Kazan
• The most unusual hostels in Kazan

Try chak-chak and echpochmak

Leaving Kazan without trying Tatar cuisine was would be a big mistake. The list of the most popular includes honey chak-chak, airy sweetness talkysh kaleve and hearty echpochmak – a triangular pie with meat, potatoes and onions. Delicious echpochmaks are sold in the modest cafeteria “House of Tea” on Bauman Street, and across the road, in the restaurant “House of Tatar Cuisine”, you can have lunch and order national sweets for dessert. A whole museum is dedicated to chak-chak in the capital of Tatarstan: here they talk about the life and life of the Kazan Tatars, conduct master classes in making chak-chak and treat them to tea with a traditional delicacy.