City

Yoshkar-Ola is the capital of Mari El Republic, a multinational city welcoming international students. It is a big industrial, cultural and scientific center of the republic, one of the centers of culture of Finno-Ugric Peoples. Yoshkar-Ola means red city in Mari language.

Yoshkar-Ola is situated in the central part of Russia, about 771 km east from Moscow. It is easy to get to the city from Moscow by one-night train or one-hour flight. It takes about 3 hours to get to Yoshkar-Ola from international Airport Kazan by car or by bus.

There are many interesting architectural sights, and many unusual buildings and monuments. Several different cultures mixed here, and the city remains unique, completely unlike other Russian cities.

Sports facilities

There is a developed sports infrastructure in Yoshkar-Ola: several swimming pools, two ice palaces, an indoor tennis court, fitness centers, stadiums and a universal indoor athletics arena.

Cafes and restaurants

Yoshkar-Ola has many cafes with different cuisine and prices. The city welcomes students, even in the busiest places of the city you can eat tasty and inexpensively.

Theaters

Yoshkar-Ola can be called the cultural capital. There are five theaters in the city. The new buildings of the Opera and Ballet Theater and Puppet Theater are among the most technically equipped theaters in the Volga region. The Opera and Ballet Theater has a large symphonic organ.

Museums

The city has a lot of different museums, the largest one is the National Art Gallery of Yoshkar-Ola – it is a kind of replica of the Venetian Doge's Palace. The permanent exhibition from the collections of the Museum of Fine Arts presents here the best examples of national painting, graphics and sculpture.

Yoshkar-Ola is one of the most greened cities in Russia. It is surrounded by forests from all the sides and also has lots of urban forest parks, squares, boulevards and other green areas as well.

Malaya Kokshaga River flows through the center of Yoshkar-Ola. The embankment of the Malaya Kokshaga River is one of the most picturesque places affected by global reconstruction. It is full of European architecture and monuments and has amazing views.