Association "The most beautiful villages of Russia" unites rural settlements with an outstanding historical, cultural and natural heritage, in order to promoting the preservation and better use of this heritage, the development of rural tourism, the involvement villagers in the processes of self-development and increasing the attractiveness of rural areas. The Association can be joined by "living" (not museumified) villages, villages, settlements, stanitsas, auls and other rural settlements with a population of no more than 2,000 people who have preserved, at least in part, the rural way of life and have an expressed desire to develop in accordance with goals and objectives of the Association, observing its criteria (link).
Mission
Inspire people to love rural Russia!
Target
Preservation and effective use of the rural cultural, historical and natural heritage, the human potential of the village.
Tasks
- Creation of positive examples of rural development based on a more comprehensive use of the available recreational potential of the village.
- Creation of prerequisites for the development of rural settlements by increasing their visibility, increasing tourist traffic and, thus, contributing to their sustainable development.
- Stimulating local initiatives and promoting the creation of new attractive jobs in rural areas, including for youth and women.
Command
The founder and president of the Association is professor of the RSAU-Moscow Agricultural Academy named after V.I. K.A. Timiryazeva, Doctor of Economics Merzlov Alexander Valerievich. The leadership of the Association of the Most Beautiful Villages of France and the French Embassy in Russia provide active assistance and support to the project. In addition, a team of experts and practitioners in rural development has formed, see.
Join the Association
Members of the Association of the Most Beautiful Villages in Russia receive many opportunities for development.
Federation of the Most Beautiful Villages of the World (Earth)
The Federation of the Most Beautiful Villages of the Earth was founded in 2003 and brings together national associations that have existed for more than 5 years. Younger associations, including the Russian one, are associate members.
Natural landscape, historical value, stunning appearance and no more than two thousand inhabitants - this is the selection framework for the Association "The Most Beautiful Villages of Russia". So far, this association includes 3 villages, and the list of candidates includes more than a dozen domestic villages.
Vyatskoe
In 2015, Vyatskoye in the Nekrasovsky district of the Yaroslavl region was recognized as the most beautiful village in Russia. In the village, you can look into one of 10 museums, take pictures of old mansions and admire the cobwebs of rivers and endless valleys of all shades of green in the vicinity.A restaurant, a cinema and concert hall and three hotels have been opened in Vyatskoye, which are visited by tens of thousands of tourists every year. In addition to the generally recognized Krasnaya Gorka and Maslenitsa, they celebrate their own celebrations like the Russian Broom Festival or the Birthday of Peter Telushkin. The story about the trip to Vyatskoye can be read here.
Oshevensky churchyard
Oshevensky Pogost, Kargopol District, Arkhangelsk Region, is the youngest member of the Most Beautiful Villages of Russia association. It was included in the prestigious list earlier this summer.
It is worth coming here for the historic quarter of traditional northern buildings, the center of which is the wooden complex of the Church of the Epiphany and the bell tower of 1787. On the outskirts of the village, the Alexander-Oshevensky Monastery, founded in the 15th century, has also survived and functions.
Kinerma
Kinerma, located on the territory of the Pryazhinsky national region of Karelia, was named the most beautiful village in Russia in 2016. It consists of 17 houses, 10 of which are considered architectural monuments. All buildings are arranged in a circle, and in the center there is an old cemetery and a restored 250-year-old chapel.
The village has a well, a smoke sauna, a barn with a souvenir shop, a traditional peasant house and a mini-hotel have been restored. You can spend the night in the upper room with antique utensils for 1000 rubles a day.
Desyatnikovo
Desyatnikovo, located near the Selenga River in Buryatia, will be included in the "Most Beautiful Villages of Russia" in the fall of 2016. Out of a dozen original villages in the region, it is distinguished by amazing landscapes - the village is located next to the Barsky ridge, overgrown with a century-old forest, as well as an unusual "appearance". Desyatnikovo is known for its brightly painted houses, which amaze with an unexpected combination of colors.
Photo: Kuznetsov / wikimedia Tarbagatai
In Buryatia, 52 km from Ulan-Ude on the Kuytunka River, there is another candidate for the Association “The Most Beautiful Villages of Russia”. In May 2001, UNESCO declared the village a "masterpiece of the oral and intangible heritage of mankind" and included in the first list of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Tarbagatai was founded at the beginning of the 18th century, where Old Believers moved from the territory of modern Belarus a little later. In the village you can still see Old Believer houses painted in bright colors with painted shutters and fancy fences.
Cosmozero
The village of Kosmozero, located at the long and narrow, like a river, lake of the same name, is a candidate for the title of the most beautiful village in Russia, and at the same time the most picturesque village in the Medvezhyegorsk region of Karelia.
The village has been known since the 16th century - the historical landscape with hayfields, as well as old complexes of huts and courtyards-sheds, are still preserved here. The main pearl of the Cosmozero is the ensemble of parish churches. True, today you can see only the restored tent-roofed Assumption Church of 1720.
Staraya Ladoga
One of the candidates of the Association is located on the banks of the Volkhov River in Leningrad region... Staraya Ladoga is also considered one of the oldest villages in the country: its history goes back over 1200 years.
True, call Old Ladoga the village is not entirely ethical: once it was one of largest cities Novgorod Rus and the starting point of the great waterway "from the Varangians to the Greeks."
Izborsk
Another candidate for the best villages Russia is located on the shore of Lake Gorodishchenskoye, 30 km from Pskov. Local guidebooks call Izborsk "the keeper of the secrets of history, a source of inspiration for artists and writers." Nicholas Roerich did paint here, Andrei Tarkovsky filmed Andrei Rublev, and the Pskov artist Pavel Melnikov dedicated more than 200 paintings to Izborsk.
It is worth coming here to see the famous Truvorovo settlement with a memorial cross, to see the stone fortress on Zheravya Gora and to photograph the ensemble of the Malsky monastery located not far from the village.
Yasnaya Polyana
Yasnaya Polyana, located 15 km from Tula, is perhaps the most famous candidate for the Most Beautiful Village in Russia Association. It is here that the estate of Leo Tolstoy is located, where fans of the writer come from all over the world.
Here you need to go to the writer's house, as well as pay attention to the local lush park. It is worth looking at the remains of the greenhouse, in which apricots and pineapples were grown at that time, look at the stables and the coachman's, walk along the birch bridge and see the Middle Pond, where Lev Nikolayevich arranged a bathhouse every summer.
Shinaz
The list of the most beautiful villages in Russia may be added to the village of Shinaz in southern Dagestan. It is located at an altitude of 1750 meters above sea level, 13 km from the regional center of Rutul.
“A tall minaret juts out over the flat roofs of sakles molded one above the other. In places, pyramidal poplars adorn the aul, cherry trees grow in the gardens, and there, in the south, behind the aul, you can see the snowy mountains stretching beyond the Samur valley and sparkling in the sun with silver ", - this is how the Russian scientist Nikolai Kuznetsov Shinaz described in 1911. And it seems that now, after a century, nothing has changed here.
For a long time, the Russian village was unreasonably forgotten. During this period, many rural settlements were completely abandoned or disappeared from the face of the earth. Since 2014, an association has appeared, the object of consideration of which is the most beautiful villages in Russia. The competition is open to settlements that meet certain criteria. Is being considered natural landscape, historical value, appearance and population size, which should not exceed 2 thousand people. There are at least 10 villages in Russia that can compete for the status of the most beautiful and culturally interesting.
One of the most beautiful villages in Russia is located in the Murmansk region. has almost six hundred years of history and is an adornment of the Kola Peninsula. In the center of the village is the Assumption Church, which was built at the end of the 17th century without the use of nails. This building is historical and cultural heritage, which is recognized as a monument of wooden architecture. In addition to its historical value, the village is famous for its tourist activities. Atlantic salmon migrate along the Varzuga River, for which you can get permission and have a good rest in the bosom of nature. The village has long been chosen by the British for tourism.
Locality in Kaluga region can rightfully be called one of the most beautiful villages in Russia. It was once a dying place with few inhabitants. Thanks to the architect Vasily Shchetinin, the village of Nikolo-Lenivets turned into a creative gallery, in which every wall and fence is made by hand from natural material. This idea was taken up by followers of compatriots and foreign architects. Currently, the village annually hosts a festival called "Arch-Stoyanie". Picturesque houses harmoniously fit into the original Russian landscape.
The Kamchatka Territory has a harsh climate, but this does not affect the life of a beautiful and happy Russian village. is located in a fertile place where they beat from the ground thermal springs... They are used for heating houses, as well as for the purposes of recovery in a local sanatorium. The village is separated from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky 600 kilometers. The absence of civilization in the usual sense makes it possible for folk art to develop. Songs and dances can be seen and heard on national and rural holidays. The local Rotary Club solves the pressing issues of the settlement and has connections with the same organization in Alaska.
In the Vladimir region, 10 kilometers from the city is located Bogolyubovo village, leading its history from the 12th century. By the number of Christian shrines and their architecture, the settlement can be called one of the most beautiful villages in Russia. The foundation for the settlement was laid by the Kiev prince Andrey Bogolyubsky, who made this picturesque corner his fiefdom. The remains of the foundation have survived to this day. old castle... Church of the Intercession blessed virgin built on a hill and during the flood period it is surrounded by water. In this village, a boat is not a luxury, but a means of transportation in the springtime.
This pearl of Russian architecture is located in the Tver region and can be deservedly recognized as the most beautiful village in Russia. The atmosphere of this settlement brings people back to the pre-Mongol period, when the domes of churches sparkled here and there, and the green meadows were pristine fresh. The Christmas Church, which was built in the 15th century and is still active, is especially beautiful. Once the Tver principality claimed the primacy in the dispute with the Moscow one, and then it turned into the periphery of the great state. Its originality is preserved not only in the annals, but also in village Gorodnya.
In the Altai Territory, the settlement is lost, where the famous writer and actor of our time Vasily Shukshin was born. can be confidently called the most beautiful village in Russia, since it is here that you can see real open spaces covered with meadow grasses and grain crops. The village is considered to be the homeland of the Polovtsy, with whom the Russian princes and their squads fought so bravely. The Shukshin Museum is located in Srostki. Literary readings and even a film festival are held in honor of the famous compatriot. The Katun River looks very picturesque, and the houses located on its bank are harmonious.
Moscow and the Moscow region are famous for a higher standard of living than regions more distant from the center. Zhukovka has become the most glamorous settlement in the entire country. Its streets have been turned into neighborhoods with fashionable boutiques, and its houses are teeming with expensive and beautiful things. A professional architect Grigoryan worked on the appearance of the village, who created comfortable conditions not only for the local population, but also for fashion brands. Zhukovka has become so popular relatively recently, but what is not the most beautiful village in Russia, especially since it is in favor with many wealthy and respected people.
Locality Big Kunaley is located in Buryatia on the banks of the Kunaleika river. The village appeared at the beginning of the 18th century and since then it has continued to exist and live its own life. Its population is just over a thousand people. Amazing in Bolshoi Kunalei are the houses, which are all painted red with blue windows and green fences. The appearance of the settlement resembles a funny children's fairy tale. Bolshoi Kunaley can claim to be the most beautiful and unusual village in Russia. And local residents are happy to support the unusual image of their native village.
There are a lot of bright and distinctive settlements in Buryatia and the village of Desyatnikovo belongs to this category. All the houses look very exotic because they are painted in bright colors. The surrounding nature is also inimitable: endless expanses, green hills and high blue skies are perfectly combined with the work of human hands. In the category of the most beautiful villages in Russia, Desyatnikovo village can take its rightful place. Residents preserve not only the appearance of their picturesque place, but folk traditions and crafts.
In 2019 village Vyatskoe was officially recognized as the most beautiful village in Russia. Locality managed to pass in the competition according to all criteria and win this worthy title. Vyatskoye is located in the Nekrasovsky district of the Yaroslavl region. On its territory you can see 10 museums of various orientations and architectural historical monuments. Locals constantly take part in various competitions and become their winners. Vyatskoye is not only a historical and cultural complex, but also a developing tourist destination in the region.
Natural landscape, historical value, stunning appearance and no more than two thousand inhabitants - these are the selection frameworks for the Association "The Most Beautiful Villages of Russia". So far, this association includes 3 villages, and the list of candidates includes more than a dozen domestic villages.
Vyatskoe
In 2015, Vyatskoye in the Nekrasovsky district of the Yaroslavl region was recognized as the most beautiful village in Russia. In the village, you can look into one of 10 museums, take pictures of old mansions and admire the cobwebs of rivers and endless valleys of all shades of green in the vicinity.
A restaurant, a cinema and concert hall and three hotels have been opened in Vyatskoye, which are visited by tens of thousands of tourists every year. In addition to the generally recognized Krasnaya Gorka and Maslenitsa, they celebrate their own celebrations like the Russian Broom Festival or the Birthday of Peter Telushkin. The story about the trip to Vyatskoye can be read here.
Oshevensky churchyard
Oshevensky Pogost, Kargopol District, Arkhangelsk Region, is the youngest member of the Most Beautiful Villages of Russia association. It was included in the prestigious list earlier this summer. 
It is worth coming here for the historic quarter of traditional northern buildings, the center of which is the wooden complex of the Church of the Epiphany and the bell tower of 1787. On the outskirts of the village, the Alexander-Oshevensky Monastery, founded in the 15th century, has also survived and functions.
Kinerma
Kinerma, located on the territory of the Pryazhinsky national region of Karelia, was named the most beautiful village in Russia in 2016. It consists of 17 houses, 10 of which are considered architectural monuments. All buildings are arranged in a circle, and in the center there is an old cemetery and a restored 250-year-old chapel. 
The village has a well, a smoke sauna, a barn with a souvenir shop, a traditional peasant house and a mini-hotel have been restored. You can spend the night in the upper room with antique utensils for 1000 rubles a day.
Desyatnikovo
Desyatnikovo, located near the Selenga River in Buryatia, will be included in the "Most Beautiful Villages of Russia" in the fall of 2016. Out of a dozen original villages in the region, it is distinguished by amazing landscapes - the village is located next to the Barsky ridge, overgrown with a century-old forest, as well as an unusual "appearance". Desyatnikovo is known for its brightly painted houses, which amaze with an unexpected combination of colors. 
Photo: Kuznetsov / wikimedia
Tarbagatai
In Buryatia, 52 km from Ulan-Ude on the Kuytunka River, there is another candidate for the Association “The Most Beautiful Villages of Russia”. In May 2001, UNESCO declared the village a "masterpiece of the oral and intangible heritage of mankind" and included in the first list of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). 
Tarbagatai was founded at the beginning of the 18th century, where Old Believers moved from the territory of modern Belarus a little later. In the village you can still see Old Believer houses painted in bright colors with painted shutters and fancy fences.
Cosmozero
The village of Kosmozero, located at the long and narrow, like a river, lake of the same name, is a candidate for the title of the most beautiful village in Russia, and at the same time the most picturesque village in the Medvezhyegorsk region of Karelia.
I'm tired of something from the city. And he decided to live in the village. Moreover, the profession allows: a guide of ecological tours. I chose the village at once. Preobrazhenovka is called, and is located in the Dobrovsky district of the Lipetsk region. It is surrounded by a large forest. Which is what I need for my tours. And in general, I always wanted to live in the forest. I even wrote an essay about this: http://www.proza.ru/2015/11/20/1277. Well, I thought about comfort ... And in Preobrazhenovka: asphalt on all streets, sidewalks, flower beds everywhere, a swimming pool, a field with artificial grass for football and tennis, shops, a landscaped beach on a pond, Wi-Fi ... Not worse than the city ! And you don't need to go anywhere, everything is accessible on foot. And - a little more than a hundred inhabitants in total in the village! Small, cozy. Just heaven! By the way, for 5 years in a row (!) In the federal competition Preobrazhenovka was recognized as the most comfortable rural settlement in Russia. I'm building a house on its forest edge. And I invite you to live in our village! Here is my photo essay about her. (Photo - by the author, and some are taken from the site of the village http: //preobrazhenovka.rf).
Preobrazhenovskaya school. Also among the best in the country: both in terms of equipment and quality of education. There are only 5-6 pupils per class. Quality from this is possible! :)
Preobrazhenovka administration building. October, the leaves flew from the birches, and we have flowers!
And this is a summer composition. There are many of them on the streets of Preobrazhenovka.
Local pool. I managed to find a good background for it. :)
Football field on the background of the school.
One of the views of the village center. On the right is the building of the cultural and sports complex, with a hotel for tourists.
Beach near the local pond.
Church under construction.
View of the shops of Preobrazhenovka.
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