The second largest city in Russia, St. Petersburg is the country’s cultural heart. View splendid architectural gems like the Winter Palace and the Kazan Cathedral, and give yourself plenty of time to browse the world-renowned art collection of the Hermitage. Sprawling across the Neva River delta, St. Petersburg offers enough art, nightlife, fine dining and cultural destinations for many repeat visits.

The political, scientific, historical, architectural and business center of Russia, Moscow displays the country's contrasts at their most extreme. The ancient and modern are juxtaposed side by side in this city of 10 million. Catch a metro from one of the ornate stations to see Red Square, the Kremlin, the nine domes of St. Basil's Cathedral, Lenin's Mausoleum, the KGB Museum and other symbols of Moscow's great and terrible past, then lighten up and shop Boulevard Ring or people watch in Pushkin Square.

Yekaterinburg is the thinking tourist's city, jam-packed with libraries, theaters and museums, plus seemingly out of place monuments that pay homage to entities like Michael Jackson and a keyboard. The beautiful Yekaterinburg Circus building is an intricate lace dome that arches over seating for 2600 spectators.

On the banks of the Volga River, Kazan sits austerely, its cityscape a visual confection of architecture that somehow manages to be both playful and severe. No matter your spiritual inclination, you simply must visit the Temple of All Religions, a Technicolor cultural center built by artist Ildar Khanov. Though still a work in progress, the "temple" is a feast for the eyes—and the spirit.

The biggest resort town on what's called the "Russian Riviera," Sochi is preparing to step onto the world stage as the host of the 2014 Winter Olympics. Somewhat ironically, Sochi is really quite temperate for most of the year, with its Black Sea waters warm and swimmable well into October. The Arboretum and Riviera Park are among the city’s most popular destinations. Serving as a beautiful backdrop for Sochi are the Caucasus Mountains, home to the nearby snow skiing resort of Krasnaya Polyana.

There are hundreds of historical monuments and features in Nizhny Novgorod, each more beautiful and unique than the last. A red brick kremlin, stone cathedrals, a futuristic planetarium, medieval monasteries, a hyperboloid tower... Nizhny Novgorod seems to be a mashup of cultures, eras and technologies that all miraculously work in harmony to create an endearing urban landscape.

A stop on the famous Trans-Siberian Railway, Novosibirsk is perched on the banks of the Ob River, which features fountains that seem to float on its surface. You can learn about the city’s founding at the West Siberian Railway History Museum. Novosibirsk is renowned for its thriving arts scene, and the State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre is fondly known as the “Siberian Coliseum.” The Novosibirsk Zoo is beloved for its collection of animals and its preservation work with endangered species.

Founded in the mid-17th century as a winter quarters for traders and tax collectors, Irkutsk came to prominence in the 1800s. Participants in the Decembrist revolt against Tsar Nicholas I were exiled to Siberia in droves, turning Irkutsk into their cultural center. Today, it’s one of Siberia’s biggest and most important cities, with over half a million people, many universities, many historic churches and museums, and beautiful Lake Baikal, just about an hour away by train.

Samara is a transportation and industrial hub, as well as home to one of Russia's top engineering institutions, Samara State Aerospace University, which has helped to pioneer Russia's innovative space program. Visitors can sample some of Samara's most important products: vodka, chocolate and beer. Tour a Russian brewery before taking in a show at one of Samara's many theaters and concert halls, or beef up your knowledge of Russian history with a trip to Stalin's Bunker or the Lenin House Museum. Don't miss the sunset on the beaches along the banks of the Volga.

A little extra chunk of Russia stuck between Lithuania and Poland on the Baltic Sea, Kaliningrad was known as Königsberg from its founding by the Teutonic Knights in the 13th century until after World War II. It was renamed, repopulated with Russians and became part of the Soviet Union. Today, as it has been for centuries, it’s known for amber products, with most of the world’s harvestable amber still lying off its coast. The 14th century Königsberg Cathedral is a main city attraction.