10 interesting places in Tomsk: if you have come to the city for the first time

For first-time visitors, Tomsk is an exciting destination because of its unique architecture, rich cultural heritage, and historical significance. Tomsk, which is tucked away in the center of Siberia, offers visitors a wealth of things to see and do thanks to its unique blend of modern charm and tradition.

With its breathtaking wooden structures, serene parks, and intriguing museums, Tomsk offers something for everyone. There are lots of interesting places to visit, whether you’re interested in the history of the city or are just searching for beautiful places to unwind.

Here are ten must-visit locations that will offer you a sense of the uniqueness and beauty of Tomsk if you’re a visitor and not sure where to begin.

Tomsk History Museum

Bakunina, 3, tomsk-story.ru; (3822) 65-72-55 Operating hours: Monday closed, 10 to 19. Fee: 60 rubles; observation deck: 50 rubles; children under 7 free; veterans, students, and people with disabilities free.

The Tomsk History Museum is quite young, it was opened in 1997 in the building of the former Voskresenskaya private police department, built in the mid-19th century. The location for it was not chosen by chance – on the highest point of the city. The fire tower offers a wonderful view of the entire center of Tomsk:
The museum has more than four thousand exhibits. The permanent exhibition will tell about the first decades of the city, its development and the life of citizens in the 19th century, and you can also visit an almost real communal apartment!
Here is also preserved a fragment of a wooden prison, from which the history of the city began in 1604.
And those who wish can also… shoot from a real cannon! (Price of pleasure – 1250 rubles.)

Memorial Museum “Investigative Prison of the NKVD”

Lenin Avenue 44; nkvd.tomsk.ru; (382-2) 90-19-47 Working hours: 10 to 18; Sunday and Monday are off. Price: 100 rubles; pensioners, students, and schoolchildren receive discounts.

This museum is located in the basement of the former infamous Tomsk NKVD prison. From 1923 to 1944, thousands of people passed through this basement… The permanent exhibition of the museum includes a prison corridor, cells and an investigator"s office. All the details have been restored with precision – there are even real criminal cases on the table. Here you can see the personal belongings of prisoners, their working tools and crafts. Many documents are shocking to the depths of the soul:
The museum has an electronic database of almost 200 thousand people repressed during the years of Soviet power in the Tomsk region.
Next to the museum is the Memory Square with a high arch and obelisks erected in memory of the peoples whose sons and daughters died in these parts.

You’re in for a treat if this is your first time visiting Tomsk. This ancient Siberian city has a variety of historical sites, distinctive wooden buildings, and lush green areas. There is something to enjoy for every traveler, from the serene University Grove to the oddball "Frog Museum" and the scenic Tom River embankment. These ten locations will provide you with an excellent overview of what Tomsk has to offer, regardless of your interests—history, the outdoors, or simply taking in the atmosphere.

Lagerny Sad

District Kirovsky, ost "Lagerny Sad"

This is one of the oldest parks in Tomsk, it is about two hundred years old! Its name is associated with the fact that in the 18th century there was a summer camp of the Tomsk 39th Infantry Regiment. Now here, at the highest point, is the Glory Monument to Tomsk soldiers who died during the Great Patriotic War: Victory Alley, Eternal Flame and the figure of the Mother handing over weapons to her son.
Citizens love to walk here, in the Lagerny Sad spacious and green. It is located on the high bank of the Tom River, which offers wonderful views:
On the forest alleys of the Lagerny Garden you can meet almost tame squirrels and even treat them with nuts. And on the lower terrace of the Camp Park, an “Extreme Park” has recently been equipped – a special area for extreme cycling, rollerblading and skateboarding.
Tomsk is also famous for its numerous interesting monuments. And we will begin our acquaintance with them with the most famous – an unusual monument to Anton Chekhov.

Chekhov Monument

Lenin Square, 10 (the r. Tom’s embankment)

This monument is located opposite the Slavyansky Bazaar restaurant, at the beginning of a long embankment, not very well-maintained, but allowing you to admire the beautiful scenery. The monument by sculptor Leonid Usov was erected here in 2004, for the 400th anniversary of Tomsk.
The Chekhov monument is essentially a caricature or, in the words of the architects themselves, an “ironic sculptural composition”. Writer looks gloomily at the gloomy city. For some reason the writer is barefoot, the bottom button of his coat is unbuttoned, his collar is up, he has an umbrella behind his back. The inscription on the monument reads: "Anton Pavlovich in g. Tomsk through the eyes of a drunk man lying in a ditch and never having read "Kashtanka"". This is how Tomsk residents responded to the writer"s very unpleasant assessment of Tomsk in his diary. It is understandable: they say that on the way to Sakhalin, Chekhov, crossing the Tom River, lost a galosh, almost drowned and caught a bad cold..

Monument to happiness

19/1, Shevchenko, ost. "Shevchenko street"

Another famous monument in Tomsk is called the "Monument to Happiness". Well, happiness for the author (one of the employees of the Tomlesstroy company) is embodied by a well-fed and contented wolf from the Soviet cartoon "Once Upon a Time There Was a Dog". This bronze wolf on a granite pedestal settled in Tomsk in 2005 and over the past years has become a favorite of city residents, big and small – after all, although he is a predator, he is not at all scary.
If you press on his stomach, the wolf will tell you one of his "signature" phrases from the cartoon, for example – "God help you", "I"ll sing right now".
Of course, happiness is different for everyone. But maybe many of us really lack the ability to enjoy a good event with full dedication.

Monument to the ruble

Bakunin, 3; Museum of Tomsk History

A wooden ruble weighing 250 kg and more than two meters wide is a contender for a place in the Guinness Book of Records! This is an exact copy of a real Russian ruble, enlarged 100 times, only this ruble is made of Siberian pine and covered with a special water-repellent solution.
The monument was erected in 2008 on Novosobornaya Square, but a few years later, after an attack by hooligans, it was first placed in a special plastic box, and then completely transported to the territory of the Tomsk History Museum. Now it is located in a fragment of the Tomsk prison, in a protected area, where everyone can not only see it, but also touch it museum visitors.

Among the numerous other outstanding monuments in Tomsk, two that come to mind are the peculiar sculpture of a pregnant woman with a visible baby inside (Moskovsky tract, 2) and another "infant" monument called cabbage (Lenin, 65), where it is known that children are occasionally discovered. In Tomsk, there are monuments honoring a football fan, an on-duty police officer, beer, and even slippers!

Novo-Sobornaya Square

Lenin Avenue, Sovetsky District

This large and beautiful square in the center of Tomsk received its name at the end of the 19th century, after the consecration of the Trinity Cathedral that was built. However, in the last century it had a different name – Revolution, and the cathedral was destroyed by the Bolsheviks..
Today, Novo-Sobornaya Square is a beautiful park with cobblestone paths, flower beds and a large light and music fountain, Victory Alley with memorial steles.
There are as many as three universities near the square, so 15 years ago a monument to Tomsk students appeared here. By the way, there is another unusual monument here – a moustache!
Recently Novo-Sobornaya Square was reconstructed and now pleases the citizens and guests of Tomsk with new paths, curbs and lanterns, as well as many young trees and bushes.

Naturally, Tomsk is also well-known for its historical buildings, particularly its wooden homes from a century or two ago. Many of them are genuine pearls, and there are a lot of them! The "House with a Tent," which is the merchant Golovanov’s mansion, is one of the most well-known.

"House with a Tent"

Krasnoarmeyskaya 71 (also known as Herzen Street)

The most well-known blue mansion in Tomsk and beyond was constructed in 1904 for the Golovanov family, a merchant family, under the direction of architect S. Khomich. The turret with its high spire and tented dome gave the wooden lace-decorated house its name. Nothing about this delicate and airy composition is unappealing!

It’s interesting to note how little the House with a Tent’s interior design has changed over time. It functioned as a children’s sanatorium, an evacuation shelter, and a medical school in various years. The nineties saw a complete reconstruction of it. This mansion is now a federally significant architectural monument.

Mansion of the architect Khomich

19-year-old Belinsky (ost. "House of Scientists")

And here is a house, or rather a palace, created by the same architect S. Khomich, in the same 1904, but for his family. Gothic turrets and spires, fine wood carving – as if from a fairy tale! There is even a legend that it was these turrets and spires of the magically elegant green house that inspired the author of "The Wizard of the Emerald City".
True, the house turned out to be too big, and part of it was rented out. The architect"s family lived in it for only 10 years. Then it was occupied by a variety of organizations: a railway technical school and a dormitory of TSU, a baby house and a children"s hospital… Now it houses the Licensing Chamber of the Tomsk Region.

Among the other architectural marvels of Tomsk made of wood are the "House with Firebirds" (Lenin Avenue, 15v)—this graceful "tower" is still a residence, incidentally—and the "House with Dragons" (Krasnoarmeyskaya, 68). Of course, Tomsk has a ton more exquisite, one-of-a-kind wooden homes! All you have to do is stroll around its main thoroughfares.

For first-time visitors, Tomsk provides a range of unforgettable experiences. The city is rich in history and culture. Everyone can find something to enjoy, from its quaint wooden architecture to the lively ambiance of its parks and museums.

Tomsk offers a plethora of experiences to make your visit unforgettable, including exploring historic sites, discovering locally created art, or just taking a leisurely stroll through picturesque areas. Every location connects you to the past and present of the city by telling a story.

Tomsk is unquestionably worth visiting if you’re searching for a place that blends tradition, culture, and a friendly, welcoming atmosphere. No matter how long you visit, you’ll always remember the city’s charm.

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