World Cup 2018: What else to see in Russia's host cities for England’s matches

Sightseer’s guide to the cities where Gareth Southgate's team will play

As England’s footballers fly to Russia to prepare for their World Cup campaign, The Independent charts the journey that could end at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow on 15 July*

(*assuming England top Group G and win subsequent matches).

Volgograd

England v Tunisia, 18 June

Mamaev Kurgan, known as Hill 102, changed hands many times during the biggest confrontation in the Second World War: the Battle of Stalingrad, in which the Soviet Union fought Germany to a standstill in 1942-43, with the loss of thousands of Red Army and German lives. The hill, which is now the site of a memorial complex, stands above the brand-new stadium – which, according to Fifa, “embodies aspects of a Victory Day firework display”.

After the tournament, the ground will become home to FC Rotor, formally known as Tractor Stalingrad.

Nizhny Novgorod

England v Panama, 24 June

“Kremlin” is not a term exclusive to Moscow. It means citadel, and any decent sized Russian city has a walled core at its heart.

Nizhny Novgorod’s is one of the finest: 13 towers punctuate the mighty walls which wrap around many buildings, including the Archangel Cathedral.

Kaliningrad

England v Belgium, 28 June

As Konigsberg (“King’s mountain”), the city was the capital of Prussia, and later flattened in the Second World War. During the Potsdam Conference, Stalin procured the city as the westernmost outpost of the USSR. Even though it was hundreds of miles from Russia, the area became part of the world’s biggest country – and was rebranded as Kaliningrad, with the German-speaking population forcibly removed.

The main sight is the grand cathedral, re-built with the help of German donations. Look out for the statue of Immanuel Kant, the philosopher who believed perpetual peace could be secured through universal democracy and international cooperation.

Rostov-on-Don

Round of 16, 2 July

The climate in this southern city is more agreeable than many Russian locations; Rostov-on-Don shares a latitude with Nantes in France. To go back to the USSR, prime Soviet-era art is on display at the underpass where Bolshaya Sadovaya Street and Voroshilovskiy Avenue meet. Otherwise, the main attraction is the stadium, which “imitates the meanderings of the Don River” and holds 45,000 – though the construction was delayed by the discovery of Second World War unexploded bombs.

Kazan

Quarter Final, 6 July

The main attraction is the Kremlin, a Unesco World Heritage Site. The capital of the Republic of Tatarstan is the most Asian of all the venues: the lively market is known, unappetisingly, as the “intestine of Kazan”. And the “cathedral mosque” of Kazan is a confusion of Russian and Arabic.

St Petersburg

Semi Final, 10 July

The former Russian capital is the greatest urban creation of all time, coaxed into existence by Peter the Great – now entombed in the Peter and Paul Cathedral, alongside the murdered family of the last tsar. And the Hermitage is arguably the finest art gallery in the world, both in terms of its location, in a string of former palaces, and its contents: Rembrandt, Van Gogh, Picasso…

Given where England are based for the tournament, it is also the only “home game” at Russia 2018.

Moscow

Final, 15 July

At the centre of Russia’s power hub is Red Square, with the walls of the Kremlin protecting palaces, towers and no fewer than five cathedrals. Lenin’s Mausoleum is still open for business; the preserved body of the hero of the 1917 October Revolution, and first leader of the USSR, Vladimir Ilyich Lenin, is on display most mornings from 10am-1pm. He doesn’t look well. And for another dimension on Soviet times, Bunker 42, a former top secret nuclear bunker 200ft below street level, is now a tourist attraction.