The 2018 FIFA World Cup held in Russia has a total of 11 cities available in the western half of the country to host the 64 matches. The host cities vary significantly and range from the Russian capital of Moscow to the beautiful Saint Petersburg and the glorious beaches of Samara. Other host cities include Ekaterinburg, Saransk, Volgograd, Sochi, Rostov-on-Don, Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan and Kaliningrad.
Let’s take a look at a few of the top cities fans will visit while watching this epic event:
Moscow
Moscow is Russia’s largest city with a population of over 16 million people. This city has an attractive combination of modern and old styled architecture. The most visited tourist attraction is Red Square, but there are plenty of other things to see throughout this sprawling city. While many will think of Moscow as a cold and icy destination, the actual climate is relatively warm, but not overly, which is great for watching a match or sightseeing.
Sochi
Sochi is a well-known resort city located on the Black Sea. This city has a previous history with successfully hosting sporting events, such as the 2014 Winter Olympics. As at top vacation destination, this city has plenty to offer tourists, such as restaurants, museums, nightlife, and wildlife expeditions. Also, the local area is great for the adventurous with excellent hiking opportunities that include scenery like waterfalls.
Samara
Samara is a quite unique Russian city with its long beach that stretches the length of the city and one of the region’s biggest attractions. This is a great place to visit in the warm summer months. However, for the visitors that don’t wish to spend time on the beach, there are plenty of other attractions including the Aviation Institute and many buildings that display past Soviet architecture.
Saint Petersburg
A visit to Saint Petersburg makes it possible to explore Russia’s second largest city, which has given inspiration to many artists, writers and poets over the years. It is the location of some of the country’s finest historical treasures, which includes several famous cathedrals, the Winter Palace complex and the Hermitage Museum. Saint Petersburg is a very cosmopolitan city that is lined with baroque buildings and rivers and canals that thread throughout the region and are easily crossed using one of the many quaint bridges.
Overall, there are plenty of attractions to see in the many host cities throughout Russia to make the all-round World Cup experience that much more enjoyable.
