Tula is a city of perfect balance. Here modernity easily gets along with history, traditional rolls with haute cuisine, classic art galleries with digital art. I will tell you how to spend a weekend in the gingerbread city as interesting and intense as possible.
Content
- How to get there
- Where to stay
- Day 1: Tula Kremlin, Pharmacy Museum and the monument “The Taming of the Flea”
- Day 2: visit Leo Tolstoy in Yasnaya Polyana
- Where to eat
- What to bring
How to get there
Tula does not have an airport, but the city is located just 180 kilometers from Moscow, which is convenient for those who like to travel by train or by car.
By train
Trains run regularly, a one-way ticket will cost about 1,500 rubles from Moscow and about 2,900 rubles from St. Petersburg. Tula Moskovsky train Station is conveniently located three kilometers from the city center, there are no problems with public transport.
Tula Moskovsky Train Station is conveniently located three kilometers from the city center. Photo: Free Wind 2014/Shutterstock.com
By car
By car, the road from Moscow along the M-2 highway will take about three hours, and from St. Petersburg — about 10 hours. And buses run from the capital almost every hour, the trip costs from 850 rubles, depending on the day of the week and the time of departure.
The cost of a bus or tram ride inside the city depends on the payment method. If you pay in cash, you will be charged 30 rubles, with a bank card — 26, with a “Troika” — 24.
Where to stay
The main attractions of Tula are concentrated on Sovetskaya and the surrounding streets. If you want to be in the thick of things, then I advise you to choose the Soviet one, and if you like to live near the center, but in a quieter environment, then any location within Frunze and Pervomaiskaya streets is quite suitable.
Here are some housing options in Tula available on the Island:
Day 1: Tula Kremlin, Pharmacy Museum and the “Taming of the Flea” monument
I would devote the first day to walking around the city and first of all looked at Metallistov Street in the center of Tula. It is a street with museums, a gallery, shops and cafes. If you are planning a weekend trip, you will find a fair here, which is already traditional for Tulyaks, where local people sell jewelry and other handmade crafts.
Museums
In the “Old Tula pharmacy” you can find out how medicines were made and sold at the beginning of the XX century. Photo: VPales/Shutterstock.com
The second recommendation is the “Tea Party Museum”. This is a workshop where you can get acquainted with the Tula tea tradition, bake and decorate gingerbread with your own hands and, of course, taste tea. Admission is free.
In the “Old Tula Pharmacy” you can learn how medicines were made and sold at the beginning of the XX century, see ancient vessels for storing ingredients, consider tools for making medicines and even participate in a master class on creating perfumes. The ticket will cost 400 rubles.
“Tea Drinking Museum” is a workshop where you can get acquainted with the Tula tea tradition Photo: Urri/Shutterstock.com
Tula Kremlin
It can’t be that simple to come to Tula and not visit the Kremlin. It is the oldest building in the city, preserved since the XVI century. The museum is open from 10:00 to 18:00 from Sunday to Friday, and on Friday and Saturday it closes at 20:00. The fortress walls can only be climbed as part of tourist groups at 12:00 and 16:00. A ticket costs 300 rubles per adult.
Iskra Urban space
A fashionable place in the city within the walls of the former Diocesan College. It is pleasant to walk here, watching the installations and modern design, which is thought out to the smallest detail. And there is also an original monument to Lefty and flea: the insect is made in steampunk style, and the legendary master is significantly inferior to him in size and has a flat, almost 2D, figure. Popular cafes and restaurants in Tula are concentrated in Iskra, do not forget to choose one of these establishments and have a snack.
A fashionable place in the city within the walls of the former Diocesan College. Photo: katuka/Shutterstock.com
Tula in 1 day
The guide told you in more detail how to spend a day in Tula as much as possible.
Day 2: visiting Leo Tolstoy in Yasnaya Polyana
The second day can be completely devoted to a country trip to Yasnaya Polyana. Leo Nikolaevich Tolstoy lived there since childhood and when he became the rightful owner of the estate, he began to do good deeds. He opened a school for peasant children, of which there were literally few in those days. Interestingly, corporal punishment was not practiced in this educational institution, which was rare for the middle of the XIX century.
By the way, Yasnaya Polyana was warmly recommended in the selection of writers’ estates in Russia — look into the article to get inspired for a weekend trip.
Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy lived there since childhood and when he became the rightful owner of the estate, he began to do good deeds. Photo: Maksim Zaytsev/Shutterstock.com
How to get there and how much does the ticket cost
Buses run regularly from Tula to Shchekino. The trip will take about half an hour, and the ticket costs about 70 rubles. The schedule and prices for different flights can be found here. A leisurely walk from the bus station to the Clearing takes about 10 minutes.
The manor andThe territory is open to the public from 10:00 to 17:00 daily, except Mondays. You can visit them as part of a group or alone.
A full ticket on a weekday will cost 450 rubles, and on weekends — from 600 rubles per person.
The manor and the territory are open to the public from 10:00 to 17:00 daily, except Mondays. Photo: Maykova Galina/Shutterstock.com
What to watch in Yasnaya Polyana
The territory is huge, it is unlikely to get around it completely in one day, so I advise you to stop at a couple of iconic places. Of course, you need to go to the Leo Tolstoy house museum itself, where the atmosphere of the last years of the writer’s life has been preserved, and look into the Kuzminsky wing, where there was a peasant school. The Volkonsky house is also interesting — an ancient building on the lands of Yasnaya Polyana.
Take a leisurely stroll along the birch alley leading to the building where the writer lived. On the right side of it there are four ponds, one of them has a swimming pool. I also advise you to visit the grave of Lev Nikolaevich, it is located in the Old Order forest, on the edge of a ravine.
There is a lot of entertainment for children in Yasnaya Polyana: workshops on making dolls, lessons that recreate the atmosphere of a peasant school, and mass festivities are held on traditional holidays.
You need to go to the Leo Tolstoy house museum itself, where the atmosphere of the last years of the writer’s life has been preserved. Photo: Merlot Levert/Shutterstock.com
What else to visit
The best solution would be to combine a trip to Yasnaya Polyana with a visit to the Shchekino railway station. It has been preserved in its historical form, including the Yasenevo bus stop (as it was called until 1903), a ticket office and one of the old wagons where you can see how people traveled at the beginning of the XX century.
And also on the second floor of the museum, watch the newsreel of how Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy left the Shchekino station. It will be an interesting experience of immersion in the culture of the Tula region at the beginning of the XX century.
The best solution would be to combine a trip to Yasnaya Polyana with a visit to the Shchekino railway station. Photo: Zoya H./Yandex.Maps
Oh! Tula region
If you have more than two days in Tula and the region, then feel free to follow the link and read where to live, what to see and how to have a great time here. There are a lot of options: from the Kulikovo Battle Museum to the annual open-air rock festival.
Where to eat in Tula
“Food and Peace”
Come for lunch at the Food and the World, a restaurant where tradition and modernity are mixed. This is noticeable both in the interior and in the menu. It offers dishes of Russian and European cuisine. Everything is equally delicious and attractive. The average dinner receipt for an adult will be approximately 2,000 rubles without alcohol. If you come to dinner on a day off, there is a great chance to get to an evening of jazz music.
“Culinary workshop”
A place where you can not only taste dishes of Russian and European cuisine, but also participate in a culinary master class. Photo: “Culinary workshop”
“Coffee Cult”
Do you just want to take a coffee and a sandwich with you? Then go to the “Coffee Cult”! This is a chain of coffee shops that has earned the love of Tulyaks, and for a reason: they brew wonderful coffee here and produce a seasonal menu with interesting combinations. They also have very tasty pastries and snacks. As a coffee drinker with experience, I recommend it.
Saldens Porterhouse
The restaurant’s menu includes both classic striploin steaks, rib eye and filet mignon, as well as a huge selection of salads, appetizers and desserts. As well as an extensive drinks list. In summer, the outdoor terrace will be a pleasant addition to a delicious dinner. The average check for an adult without drinks is 3,000 rubles.
“Local”
Another interesting cafe with a very cozy and curious interior is “Local”. The institution is famous for its branded tinctures according to original recipes. The average check per adult will be about 1200 rubles.
The institution is famous for its branded tinctures according to original recipes. Photo: “Local”
What to bring from Tula
Sometimes it seems as if souvenirs are repeated from city to city, they lack individuality. But Tula is definitely not the case! But I advise you not to go to tourist places for traditional local goodies.
Tula gingerbread, famous throughout the country, is better to take in small local workshops, for example, in the Merchant Shekhvatov bakery store. Here they are not made in industrial quantities, they strictly monitor compliance with the recipe and can even hold a master class for you. Its cost will be 850 rubles per person.
The wonderful Samovar museum store is an unusual space. Here, in addition to shopping, there is an opportunity to plunge into history and buy in one place almost all the most famous and beautiful Tula souvenirs: a clay toy, lace, Suvorov sweets and, of course, a samovar.
Tula gingerbread, famous throughout the country, is better to take in small local workshops. Photo: Evgeniia Sokolova/Shutterstock.com
Finally, I will share a little advice. I send postcards to myself and my family from every city I visit. I choose thematic ones, with views or recognizable symbols. One of the most pleasant feelings is when a week or two passes after a short trip, emotions subside, and then a postcard arrives – a wonderful final note on any trip!
Cover photo: Sergey Dzyuba/Shutterstock.com
