Tolyatti Sights and Landmarks Guide, Russia

Present-day Tolyatti is quite new – it was re-built in the second half of the 20th century following the flooding of the old city (which was then known as Stravropol or Stravropol-na-Volge) site in the 1950s during the construction of the Volga Hydroelectric Power Plant. This resulted in the destruction of many of the city’s cultural and historical treasures. As such, you will have to keep in mind the fact that although construction of some Tolyatti sights is underway, at the present moment the city cannot be compared to cities like Kazan, Saratov, Samara or Volgograd.

Tolyatti Sights – AvtoVAZ Plant and Avtozavodsky

You can start your tour of Tolyatti sights by visiting the factory of the AvtoVAZ Company (popularly known as the Lada Plant) because the city owes all its fame and name to this factory. Set up in the year 1966 (in the Soviet-era), the AvtoVAZ factory is one of the biggest automobile manufacturing plants in the world and produces one million cars every year.

After touring the factory, you can move on to the New Town or Avtozavodsky, the district set up to house the AvtoVAZ workers and their families. There is not much to see though – only a few parks and gardens like the Victory Park and the usual residential complexes – but what makes it remarkable is its meticulous planning and its greenery.

Pay visits to the other two city-districts – Tsentralny and Komsomolsky. Komsomolsky (that was built to meet the housing needs of the Volga Hydroelectric Plant workers) gives nice views of the Volga River. Make it a point to visit the Kuybyshev Dam and Reservoir. Tsentralny is the seat of the city-government and one of its not-to-be-missed attractions is the City Duma building.

Tolyatti Sights – Churches and Cathedrals

Tolyatti has quite a few churches rendered remarkable by their golden domes. The Tolyatti Cathedral (locally known as Preobrazhensky Sobor), for instance, is one of the largest Russian Orthodox Cathedrals in the world. Finished in the year 2003, the golden-domed church is an architectural wonder. The wooden Temple of Assumption (dedicated to Mother Mary) is yet another must-see attraction of Tolyatti. Other quite interesting Tolyatti-churches include names like Church of Christmas, Church of Saint Trinity, etc.

Tolyatti Sights – Monuments and Other Attractions

There are some beautiful and important monuments in the city. The Vasily Tatischev Monument near the Volga River is a tribute to the famous Russian ethnographer and political leader who had laid foundation of the old city of Stavropol-na-Volge. Besides, there is the Karl Marx Monument and the AvtoVAZ Lada Monument with the famous Lada symbol.

Tolyatti’s sporting culture has given it assets like the Volgar Sports Palace and the Olimp Sports Palace.

Being one of Russia’s ‘motor-cities’ Tolyatti is infamous for its traffic jams and when you go visiting the Tolyatti sights, you should plan ahead and allow for flexibility in your schedule.