Hotels near Samara Cosmos Arena Football Stadium

You can take advantage of multiple motor ship tours to cruise to other cities on the river (such as Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan, Volgograd, Tolyatti) – or you can catch the coach if you prefer.

The 4km river embankment is the main recreational centre venue for both tourists and locals and caters for everyone, from revellers and sportsmen to families. For commanding views of the river head up to the signposted observation point.

Football aficionados may want to visit the municipal museum to learn about the city’s history of football and the famous national football club Krylya Sovetov.

As the football stadium name ‘Cosmos’ pays homage to, Samara is a renowned centre of the Russian aerospace industry and home to several renowned engineering institutions. Enthusiasts will enjoy the Samara in Space Museum; exhibits include the Yantar-4K1 and Resurs F-1 spaceship landing sections, model rocket engines and a life-size monument of the famed Soyuz carrier rocket.

The Galileo Park of Wonders is a free interactive science exhibition area comprising various science workshops and a Maze of Illusions.

Architectural highlights include the Kirillo-Mefodiyevsky Cathedral, Intercession Cathedral, The Temple of Samara Saints Cathedral and Church of the Holy Martyrs Faith.

There are plenty of statues to see (Chapaev, Grigoriy Zasekin and Fyodor Sukhov) and various monuments of interest: The Rook (Ladya), the Sculptural Composition of Barge Haulers on the Volga and a monument to the invention of the heating battery!

Kubychev Square and the Leningradskaya pedestrianised area host various street cafes for al fresco dining and people watching.

If gardens are more your thing, consider visiting Strukovskiy Garden, Square Aleksandra Pushkina or the Botanical Garden of Samara State University.

The Yu. Gagarin Park of Culture and Leisure is also a nice location for a stroll by the lake and also offers bicycle hire. For outdoor adventurous types, the Zhiguli Mountains are close by, as is the Chaika Ski Lodge (cross-country skiing as well as mountain skiin and snowboarding in winter).

The Mediterranean climate of this region lends itself to hosting large open-air music events such as rock festivals during the summer.

Other cultural highlights include Stalin’s Bunker, built in 1942, the Modernist Style Museum, the Volga Region Museum of Railway Machinery and the Museum of Photography (Samara was the centre of Russian photographic art throughout the 1940s, 50s and 60s).

Several theatres are dotted throughout the city, including the Samara Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre, The Samara Academic Gorkiy Drama Theater and City Theater.

Your visit to Samara for the World Cup 2018 will be unforgettable!

The Cosmos Arena, located 15km north of Samura city in Russia was called the Samara Arena during the 2018 World Cup, and comfortably seat ~45000 people. Work began in 2014 and completion was towards the end of 2017. With its beautifully designed multi-panelled domed roof over 60m high, the stadium have an ‘English stadium’ feel to it with straight stands running along the edge of the pitch, plus the more European design of rows of continuous seating spread over two tiers.

After the FIFA World Cup, the ground became the home of local football club FC Krylia Sovetov Samara (“Wings of the Soviets”). The area around the stadium is currently a mix of residential housing, forests, retail outlets and light industry.

Accommodation options range from hotels with very basic facilities and staff with limited English to affordable hotels with excellent customer service and a large range of on-site facilities such as a fitness centre, swimming pool and multiple restaurants. You may want to select a hotel that has a bar for your post-match celebrations or commiserations!

Club — FC Krylia Sovetov

Nickname — Feathers, Green-White-Blues

Stadium Capacity — 44,800 seats

Opened — 2017

Location — Located about 15km or 9.3mi north of the city centre. You can get to the ground by bus or taxi.

Address — Samara, Samara Oblast, Russia 443072

Club Colours — White, Green and Blue

Air Connections — nearest airport is Kurumoch International Airport (KUF) just over 50km or 31mi away, providing both domestic and international flights from among Germany and Finland.

— official club website

— Tourist Information