Self-drive route “Between Two Capitals”

Rus Novgorodskaya offers several self-drive routes across the Novgorod Region, developed locally rather than compiled from third-party sources: maps, stops and Guest Card access are all in one place. The catalogue contains 22 ready-made routes plus 23 free audio guides with 200+ stops. Ready-made driving routes Three self-drive routes were developed with a fuel-station network: two start in Veliky Novgorod and one in Staraya Russa. There are also themed routes, including the 123-km military-history route “Roads of War. Valday Frontier” and the 150-km “From Borovichi to Lyubytino”, about three hours on the road. Another option is “Veliky Novgorod — Lake Valday — A. V. Suvorov Estate”, with the Church of the Holy Trinity, the monument to aviators of the North-Western Front and the Velimir Khlebnikov Museum. Maps and descriptions are available on novgorod.travel. Veliky Novgorod — Kresttsy — Valday A classic route southeast: 140 km to Valday via the M-11 with an exit to the M-10, around two hours of driving. Kresttsy lies roughly halfway and makes a natural stop; the annual Nikitskaya Fair is held there in late September. In Valday, the main sights are the Iversky Monastery on the island, the bell museums and the national park, where some trails require advance arrangements. The catalogue lists 28 places to stay in Valday; eight offer a Guest Card discount, applied automatically in the booking form. One day in Veliky Novgorod by car Driving makes it possible to fit the city highlights into one long day: the Novgorod Kremlin and the Faceted Chamber (700 RUB, one hour), St. Sophia Belfry (50 RUB, half an hour), the main museum building (500 RUB, two hours), then Yuryevo — Vitoslavlitsy (700 RUB, three hours) and St. George’s Monastery. Without a car, this usually takes two days. A two-day Guest Card for 1,300 RUB covers all paid sights in this itinerary. Parking near the Kremlin is limited, especially at weekends, so it is often easier to leave the car at the hotel. A walking day without a car For central Veliky Novgorod, a car is usually unnecessary. The Kremlin is a 20-minute walk from the railway station; Yaroslav’s Court is another ten minutes across the bridge; the Church of the Transfiguration on Ilyina Street, with Theophanes the Greek’s frescoes of 1378, is five minutes farther. A walking day can include the Kremlin, Faceted Chamber, belfry, main museum building, bridge, Yaroslav’s Court, the Church of the Transfiguration and lunch on the Trade Side. Allow six to seven hours. The portal’s audio guides for this route are free and do not require a card. Three days around the region Most regional routes radiate from Veliky Novgorod. A three-day plan by car: day one — the city; day two — Staraya Russa (96 km, about one and a half hours), with the Dostoevsky museums and the Ilmen Glint on the way; day three — Valday (140 km), with the lake and monastery. An eastern alternative is Chudovo (75 km via the M-11), Okulovka and Borovichi (177 km via Kresttsy), including the Msta rapids. Accommodation is listed for each direction. The three-day Guest Card costs 1,600 RUB and gives access to 34 paid attractions around the region; buying individual tickets would cost 8,300 RUB. What to know before driving Opening hours, prices and addresses are taken directly from the attractions rather than from aggregators, which can lag behind seasonal changes. The regional tourist office maintains the listings. Each stop indicates whether the Guest Card provides admission or a discount; the card covers 55+ museums across the region, but not every venue. See novgorod.travel for the list. Pages also show the month and year of the data: distances stay the same, while opening hours and prices change. When a car is not needed Within Veliky Novgorod, almost all first-day sights are within walking distance of the Kremlin, and a city bus reaches Yuryevo in about half an hour. A car becomes important for trips outside the city: the Iversky Monastery on the island, the Ilmen Glint and national-park trails are not conveniently reached by scheduled public transport. Direct links between district centres are scarce. Bus routes from Veliky Novgorod are described on separate catalogue pages.