🇷🇺Murmansk: a city beyond the Arctic Circle that is worth seeing at least once

💫Today, we invite you to discover a completely different side of Russia — rugged, northern and strikingly beautiful.

🌌The Murmansk Region lies almost entirely beyond the Arctic Circle. Here, the Barents Sea meets the tundra, the Northern Lights illuminate the winter sky, and travellers can explore the shores of Teriberka, hike through the Khibiny Mountains, discover the traditions of the Sami and Pomor peoples, and even step aboard the legendary nuclear-powered icebreaker Lenin.

Murmansk itself is considered the world’s largest city located north of the Arctic Circle.

But Murmansk is fascinating not only for its nature. It is a relatively young city with a remarkably rich history.

It was founded in 1916, during the First World War, under the name Romanov-on-Murman. The construction of a new port and railway was directly linked to the need to maintain Russia’s maritime connection with its European allies after traditional routes through the Baltic and Black Seas became difficult to use. In 1917, the city received its present name — Murmansk.

Murmansk also played a major role during the Second World War. The famous Arctic convoys sailed to Murmansk and Arkhangelsk from the United Kingdom, Iceland and North America, delivering equipment, weapons and other essential supplies to the Soviet Union. These northern sea routes became part of the shared European history of the war.

🇧🇪Why might this be especially interesting for people in Belgium?

Because Murmansk offers a chance to discover Russia through a chapter of 20th-century history that is also familiar to Europeans — maritime routes, international cooperation, wartime history, Arctic exploration and the life of a major northern port.

For Russian-speaking residents of Belgium, it is also an opportunity to rediscover their country beyond Moscow and St Petersburg — through the landscapes, people, traditions and historical memory of the Russian North.

❤️Today, the Murmansk Region combines history with a true Arctic adventure: Teriberka and the Barents Sea, the Khibiny Mountains, the Northern Lights, whales, nature reserves, old Pomor villages and the culture of the indigenous Sami people.

😉Perhaps, for some, Murmansk will become the starting point for discovering a completely different Russia — the Russia of the Arctic.