9 Fun Things to do in Murmansk In Winter

When people talk about visiting Russia, they mostly talk about places like Moscow and St. Petersburg. To tell you the truth, I did not know what to expect from the country. One thing that I did know was that I wanted to see snow.

I know… Crazy right? But I had never seen snow before. So when we were planning, I suggested heading all the way up to the Arctic because what better place to see snow than there. The place that we picked was a city called Murmansk.

At first Shawn was a bit hesitant but when he saw the number of cool things to do in Murmansk he readily agreed. I know I talk about this in retrospect but the experiences that I had in Murmansk left a lasting impression on me, so much so that I keep wanting to head back there every day.

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Murmansk

Let’s start by talking a bit about the city of Murmansk, shall we? I thought that Murmansk would be really tiny, and I was surprised. Despite the fact that the population of the city is on a slow decline, the city itself sprawls over a large area. We visited the city in the dead of winter and we still found plenty of things to do in Murmansk, but I digress.

One thing that you will quickly realize is that not many people speak English so finding yourself a guide can be tough. Things however are changing with a number of tours heading this way but moving around as a backpacker can get a bit tricky. Luckily you will find that people are always happy to help.

Getting To Murmansk

Before we start talking about all the things to do in Murmansk in winter, let’s first delve into how you can get to the city in the first place. There are two main ways in which you can access the city. At least two easy ways. One is via rail. The second is to take a flight. We chose the latter since it was so much faster and easier. There are flights out of Moscow that aren’t too expensive especially if you book in advance.

Where To Stay In Murmansk

We found ourselves a cozy little studio apartment for the five days that we spent in Murmansk and used it as a base for all our activities. Since not a lot of people head to this part of the world, accommodation isn’t as popular as you would want it to be. Park Inn by Radisson however seems like a popular choice and it is located quite centrally.

Getting Around In Murmansk

I have to say that parking in one place for too long can get rather troublesome!

As a backpacker we found getting around rather difficult. Sure, there were trams and buses which you could hop on to, but you had to know which one to catch and where you wanted to get off. Rather difficult when you spoke just a few words of Russian and when the signs can take a while to decipher.

Another rather worrying part was that many of the sights required a long drive out of the city. I guess we could have rented a car but since we come from a more tropical part of the world, driving in snow was a bit beyond our skill set.

Shawn likes to say that he knows the theory but was reluctant to practice. Plus, we did see a number of cars just spinning on the icy roads during a snowstorm. Scary!

Instead we booked a tour guide for our trips which did become expensive since you land up spending for someone who can talk English (which is rare to come by), a driver and the car! All said and done, we did have fun so no complaining here.

Things To Do In Murmansk In Winter

Let’s take a nosedive into all the things to do in Murmansk in Winter. I say winter because, Murmansk isn’t always covered in snow. In fact, they do have a brief summer here and the temperatures can even reach double digits which is rather cool.

Winters on the other hand bring polar nights where the sun doesn’t really rise. We missed the polar nights since we were in Murmansk in February, but we did get a good taste of the Arctic winter, which was rather cool, or should I say cold.

So let’s start talking about all the amazing things to do in Murmansk in winter shall we?

Things To Do In Murmansk City

Let’s start with all the things that you can do in Murmansk city itself. Most of these do not require a car to drive you around though I have to warn you that when the snow comes down, it can be rather hard to walk about the city. Having a mode of transport certainly makes the whole process easier.

1. Visit The Lenin Ice Breaker

One of the intriguing things to do in Murmansk is the Lenin Icebreaker museum.

The Lenin Ice Breaker is one of the iconic tourist spots in the city. While the ship is currently a museum that is docked at the Murmansk port, it was also the first nuclear powered icebreaker in the Soviet region. The museum is open only at certain timings.

Shawn and I tried to visit it on our first day but were told that it was closed. Our limited Russian and a looming snowstorm meant that we eventually did give the museum a pass, but we did get to see the ship from the outside which was rather cool.

2. Alyosha Monument

We managed to freeze our fingers while clicking this pic of the Alyosha monument.

Visiting the Alyosha monument is one of the popular things to do in Murmansk. I did my research before heading here and apparently, the people who defended the Soviet Arctic were called Alyosha. This was during the time of the Great Patriotic War or as we know it World War II. The monument was built in honor of the soldiers, sailors and airmen who fought to defend it.

The Alyosha monument is located on a hill that overlooks the bay. Shawn and I decided to trek up the hill to see it. Now since the pavement was iced from the previous night’s storm, this did seem like a really uphill task (pun intended).

It did not help that Shawn was coming down with fever. We stopped on the way for snacks at a shop and I found myself munching on a curious pack of salt fish! Talk about experiences!

Once we reached the top, the view was mesmerizing but there was something that we had not anticipated. The cold wind that was blowing in from the sea frosted our eyebrows and eyelashes rather quickly. Cold was an understatement! To say that we made our way back quickly was an understatement!

3. The Churches

A glimpse of the famous cathedral.

Murmansk has a number of gorgeous churches. We found ourselves exploring a couple of the quite by chance. Unlike the rather colourful churches that you see in Moscow and St. Petersburg. These churches were built of wood and looked rather unassuming on the outside. The inside on the other hand was always spectacular.

Shawn and I managed to stop by and listen to a service that was being conducted in one of them. It made me realize that no matter which part of the world you head to, there is a thread of similarity that binds us. It was an experience that I had had in Hoi An during Christmas too.

I would definitely recommend visiting the St. Nicholas Cathedral if you have to settle on just one place. As I mentioned before, it may not look like much and this is largely because of the history associated with the cathedral.

You see, Murmansk did not have any churches for a long while after the first one was closed in 1924. It was only after the second world war, that a wooden house on the outskirts of the city was converted into a church and was then dedicated to St. Nicholas. That is the St. Nicholas Cathedral today.

In many ways, the cathedral has retained its old house charm, but the insides are all gold and glitter so don’t let the wooden exterior fool you! That is why it ranks as one of my favorite items on our list of things to do in Murmansk.

Things To Do In Murmansk Which Are A Drive Away

As I mentioned before, having some sort of transportation in Murmansk does become essential. This is especially true for the following activities. A big bonus is that the heating in the transport makes it so much more comfortable in winter.

4. Catch A Glimpse Of The Northern Lights

The Aurora Borealis is rather romantic and spending Valentine’s day under it was perfect!

One of the main reasons why we decided to visit Murmansk (snow aside!), was to see the Northern lights. Since the city is located just a couple of kilometers away from Norway, all you have to do is drive outside the city on the right day at the right time and you may just get lucky.

In fact, today a lot of people are heading here just for the experience which makes the Aurora Borealis one of the top things to do in Murmansk in winter. Oh… Did I mention that the northern lights are seasonal?

Yup! The polar days make them impossible to spot in the summer months. You need to have perfect darkness without any light pollution if you want to catch them.

That means that you head out in the dead of night into the cold cold vastness of the Arctic. Make sure you layer up because the cold winds and the cold from the ground just seem to seep into you. People end to carry hot tea in flasks to keep them going.

5. Visit A Sami Village

One of the interesting experiences that we had in the Sami village was interacting with reindeer.

Another really fun thing to do in Murmansk is to visit one of the Sami villages that is nearby. We found ourselves heading out to one to see how the local indigenous communities live. It is an interesting experience but one that was accentuated by having a translator because a lot of the information would not have been available to us otherwise.

It was a half day activity with us sitting in a tent that was made of reindeer skin. Intriguingly enough, it also had a fire at the center. Speaking of reindeers, we also had a chance to interact with a couple of reindeer which totally made my day.

Did you know that reindeers will only drink water if it is not contaminated? I’m not sure if that is entirely true but that was what the Sami people believe. They say that is one of the worries that they have about the local reindeer population.

We also had a chance to eat locally made pies and moss tea. Yes! You heard me right! Moss tea! The tea was made by brewing certain moss that was handpicked by the Sami people. It was delicious!

6. Ride A Snow Mobile

Riding a snowmobile is a rather exhilarating experience.

One of the advantages of staying in a place that can have you knee deep in untouched snow is all the snow activities. We had a chance to head out on to the same snow with a snow mobile. It was a fun experience riding out in the wilderness.

In fact, I would say more than fun. It was exhilarating! There are a number of places where you can rent a snow mobile from. We however had our chance when we visited the ski park.

7. Ice Fishing

Ice fishing was a rather cool or shall I say cold experience.

Another fun thing to do in Murmansk is ice fishing. The ski park that we visited had a lake next to it. Since it was in the dead of winter, the lake had frozen over. For a person who had never experienced harsh winters like this, the thought of walking on a frozen lake was exhilarating.

Imagine my surprise when I learned that I was walking on the lake without even knowing it! The top layer of water had turned to ice and snow had accumulated over it making it look like the terrain all around it. Pretty cool huh?

When it came to cold things to do in Murmansk, this one was right up there with seeing the northern lights. Despite having on our layers and boots, the cold does sink in after a period of standing in a single spot for a long time.

The wind does not help either. Oh and did I mention that while the Russians make drilling the hole into the lake look easy, it is no simple task!

8. Go Snowboarding Or Skiing

While Murmansk doesn’t really have any high slopes in the area since the land is relatively flat for those who want to ski, it still does have two ski parks that people head to. We were told that skiing in these parks is especially nice since for most part of the winter the snow is fresh and soft, which makes the experience so much nicer.

In retrospect, we should have tried to start skiing here rather than at Sochi. The slopes were definitely less intimidating, and it did look like a lot of fun!

9. Play With Huskies Or Ride A Dog Sleigh

Mingling with the huskies.

Shawn has always loved Huskies. Me…??? I love dogs and who would say no to rubbing the belly of a gigantic furry beast. Definitely not me. While we were on our way to the Sami village, our guide stopped off at a huskie farm so that we could have just that experience. We even got a chance to try out the dog sleigh.

I have to admit that I was a bit nervous about doing it because I would be taxing the dogs but the place that we went to was super nice and the dogs had a ball along with us. Unfortunately, since it was a pit-stop along the way, I do not know the name of the place. We each got a 100 meter ride around with them and then we may or may not have rolled in the snow and had dog drool all over us!

Things To Pack When Heading To Murmansk

One thing that you need to keep in mind when heading out to explore all the things to do in Murmansk is that the temperatures drop rather quickly. It is the arctic that we are talking about after all. That means that it is essential that you keep warm. Layer up as much as you can. Think about investing in a good jacket. I had a down jacket from Columbia that I used, and it kept me toasty. A layer of thermal clothing goes a long way if you intend to stay outdoors for long. Make sure you get proper shoes too. If you don’t you will find walking around rather difficult.

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