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Russia
Urals District
Sverdlovsk Oblast
Yekaterinburg
Things to do in Yekaterinburg
Ganina Yama Monastery
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Ganina Yama Monastery

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See all things to do
Ganina Yama Monastery
4.5
787 reviews
#7 of 609 things to do in Yekaterinburg
Points of Interest & Landmarks
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06:00 - 21:00
Monday
06:00 - 21:00
Tuesday
06:00 - 21:00
Wednesday
06:00 - 21:00
Thursday
06:00 - 21:00
Friday
06:00 - 21:00
Saturday
06:00 - 21:00
Sunday
06:00 - 21:00
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
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4.5
787 reviews
Excellent
575
Very good
128
Average
61
Poor
11
Terrible
12
Maryam N
St. Petersburg, Russia19 contributions
story of sadness
Mar 2020
this is one of the reason I travelled to this area. whole the family of Nikolai the 2 were berried in this place on 1918
Written 5 August 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
saronic
Zurich, Switzerland26,240 contributions
one of Russia's youngest monasteries
Aug 2019
The 'official' site to which the bodies of the imperial famly had been brought to, after their murder in the night of July 16th, 1918, is Ganina Yama (Ganya's pit) at the then already abandoned iron mine of the Four Brothers. For this reason the Russian Orthodox Church gave the orders in the year 2000 for the construction of a monastery dedicated to the Holy Imperial Martyrs (Passion Bearers).

Quite a bit of controversy though surrounds the final remains of Czar Nicholas II and his family. One week after the execution of the last Romanovs the White Army had retaken Yekaterinburg (and kept it for 1 year) and order was given to investigate the killing of the last czar. It was then that Ganina Yama was declared as the place, where the bodies had been deposed, either thrown into the pit or destroyed.

Clandestine excavations in 1979, thus still in Soviet times, at a place called Porosyonkov Ravine, a few kilometers away from here, brought to light remains that by DNA analysis were said to be from the imperial family. This was though not accepted by the Russian Church.

To get to Ganina Yama it is best to take a taxi. I had it combined with the Europe-Asia border marker, a 20min drive from here. The holy site is located in the northwest of Yekaterinburg near the village of Koptyaki by lake Iset.

There are seven wooden churches here, one for each member of the family. Under the main church, dedicated to Czar Nicholas II, is a museum, just as at the Church on Blood, the site of the murder, in Yekaterinburg. Around the Ganina Yama pit is a covered walkway with enlraged photos of the members of the imperial family.

Women have to wear skirts and scarves, but these are - in purple color - available at the entrance gate. By the parking is a small café in a tent and an information board, also in English, with a depiction of the place, showing all the about 20 different buildings here. All the other information boards further inside though are only in Russian. At the site are also an icon shop and public toilets. Since Ganina Yama is in the middle of a forest, there can be quite a few mosquitoes in summer.
Written 30 May 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
olegl28
139 contributions
Sacrifice place
May 2019 • Couples
This is very significant monastery in Russian history. This k I land accept remains last Russian King, his wife and children. It is very important place for Russian people.
Written 7 December 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Yvonne A
4 contributions
A striking Russian Orthodox Church
Jun 2019
Built to honour the Romanoff family, the murdered Tsar and Tsarina of Russia and their family. It is widely believed that the military ordered and carried out this murder without the knowledge of the Bolshevik Government who had not wanted the crime of regicicde to be laid at their door. The purpose of the murder was to discredit the revolutionary government and thus make it easier to facilitate a military takeover of government. The family have since been created 'Saints' by the Russian Orthodox Church.
Written 5 September 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jon Nuxoll
Eugene, OR37 contributions
Romanov site
Jul 2019
Monastery built in the 1990s over the place where Romanovs’ bodies were dumped after their murder. Remains are now in St. Petersburg. Peaceful grounds, monastery and memorial at their first gravesite.
Written 27 August 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Alex J
Melbourne, Australia2,209 contributions
One for the history buffs!
Sep 2018
This huge complex is dedicated to the memory of the Romanovs. The entire family was shot in a house in Ekaterinburg, and their bodies were brought here for disposal. All family members are considered saints by the Russian Orthodox Church. There are many churches, including one for each family member, and a museum. If you don't speak Russian, you definitely need a guide to show you around. In fact, I would recommend a guide even if you DID speak fluent Russian! As we were on a group tour we had an excellent local guide, who explained everything to us. There are several buildings, and it would take about three hours to see everything properly. This place is an absolute must for history buffs! Also for photo buffs! The whole place is very very photogenic. If you are not particularly religious, the heavy emphasis on religion might put you off, but I would still urge you to take the trouble to see this complex. Very easy to negotiate in a wheel chair or stroller, wide paths between buildings. One small tip for women: if you are wearing pants (as many in our group were!), you will need to borrow a sort of sarong-like garment, which you wrap around. A bit undignified, so I would suggest that ladies wear long skirts while visiting this place!! Another suggestion: history buffs ought to read up about this place before coming here.
Written 11 August 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
StevoPurcell
Brisbane, Australia29 contributions
Fascinating and beautiful
Jun 2019 • Solo
A must see for history buffs and for those who want to respect the memory of the Romanovs. This place is a little tricky to get to independently (I got an Uber/Yandex there and hitch-hiked back) but is well worth the effort. There is a canteen there that sells delicious food too.

Some people complain this place is tacky or some sort of spiritual theme-park. I certainly did not get this impression.
Written 30 June 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Linda G
Newcastle, Australia19 contributions
Story of Nicholas II
Jun 2019 • Couples
Our guide was Maryana - she speaks excellent English. Our driver took us out to Ganina Yama where we spent time at the holy sites. We weren’t rushed and Maryana gave us lots of details as we walked around the grounds. Back to Yekaterinburg and the Church of the Blood and the nearby Romanov Museum.
Tour is well worth doing- we got such an insight into the history of these places thanks to our knowledgeable guide.
Written 19 June 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Andre A
Sao Paulo, SP80 contributions
Interesting place for a cultural visit
Jun 2019
As one part of the history claims, here is where the bodies of the Romanov were buried. So it is a good historical place. You can easily get here using an app like uber. To go out you may hitchhike as there is a big road just within a walking distance. No signal. And free of charges. The bad part is that they are still building some cathedrals so you are not able to see everything
Written 6 June 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Randall K
Canberra, Australia1,252 contributions
Amazing experience!
Mar 2019 • Friends
1 of the main reason for visiting Yekaterinburg was to visit this site and for a bit of a Pilgrimage of the Romanov history. It certainly is a beautiful setting for this collection of Monasteries, but such a horrible way for a Royal family to be assassinated and their bodies just disposed of. It does seem like a bit of a theme park because of how new all of the buildings are. It was lightly snowing the day we visited, and they still had barricades around the site of the old mineshaft where the dismembered bodies were thrown down. Take your time to slowly wander through this site and remember the significance of why this place exists. Visit the museum in the basement of 1 of the buildings. Do your research before visiting here and you will certainly feel the significance of this site.
Written 4 April 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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GANINA YAMA MONASTERY: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

Frequently Asked Questions about Ganina Yama Monastery
Ganina Yama Monastery is open:
  • Sun - Sat 06:00 - 21:00
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