In this article, discover five essential locations selected from our Urbex Russia Map, which features over 500 abandoned places across Russia, carefully documented for unique and immersive explorations.

Urbex Russia in Vladivostok offers the most geographically dramatic urban exploration in the country. "Lord of the East" — founded in 1860 as Russia's Pacific military outpost — was a closed city for most of the Soviet era, its coastline bristling with fortifications against Japan, its deep harbours sheltering the Pacific Fleet. The islands, bays, and peninsulas around the city contain some of the most extraordinary military ruins in Russia: Imperial-era forts built at the cost of 98 billion gold rubles, Soviet coastal batteries still mounted with battleship guns, and derelict naval infrastructure open to the Pacific wind.

Why Vladivostok Is One of the Best Urbex Destinations in Russia

Vladivostok's unique position — where Imperial Russia, the Soviet Pacific Fleet, and the open Pacific converge — produced a military landscape unlike any other Russian city. Over 1,300 fortifications were built in and around the city between 1878 and 1918. The Soviet era added coastal batteries, submarine bases, and radar installations across dozens of islands. The post-1991 collapse left most of this infrastructure abandoned — accessible since the city's opening to the public in the 1990s.

📍 All locations below are referenced on our Urbex Russia Map — GPS coordinates, access notes, condition ratings, and explorer reports included.

1. Vladivostok Fortress – The Impregnable Pacific Citadel (Known Location)

The largest abandoned military complex in Russia's Far East. The Vladivostok Fortress was built between 1878 and 1918 across the hills, cliffs, and islands around the city — 16 major forts, 50 shore batteries, hundreds of strongpoints, and six kilometres of tunnels connecting them. 98 billion gold rubles were spent between 1910 and 1914 alone. The fortress was so powerful that Japan never attacked Vladivostok during the Russo-Japanese War despite capturing Port Arthur. Most of its forts and tunnels are now abandoned — unlocked galleries, crumbling casemates, and gun emplacements overlooking the Pacific that no enemy ever fired upon.

👉 Story: Construction began 1878, peaked 1910–1918 at a cost of 98 billion gold rubles. The fortress was so formidable Japan never attacked. Most forts were decommissioned after WWII and the Cold War, accessible to the public since the 1990s when Vladivostok was finally opened to foreigners.

🔗 More on Vladivostok Fortress: Wikipedia – Vladivostok Fortress

2. Fort № 9 "Prince Rurik" – Russky Island's Abandoned Crown (Known Location)

The most atmospheric abandoned fort in the Vladivostok region. Fort № 9, known as "Prince Rurik," stands 166 metres above sea level on Russky Island with panoramic views over Vladivostok and the Peter the Great Gulf. Built in the 1910s from reinforced concrete, its defensive structures have sat almost entirely unused for nearly 100 years — a remarkable state of preservation that has astonished every visitor since it opened to the public. Underground galleries extend beneath the fortifications, connecting gun emplacements that were mounted and then never fired.

👉 Story: Built 1910s as part of the Vladivostok Fortress system on Russky Island. A small section was used by the Ministry of Defence until the mid-1990s. Completely abandoned since then. The concrete structures have never been attacked, never been seriously damaged — almost perfectly preserved after a century of Pacific weather.

🔗 More on Russky Island: Russia Beyond – Russian Island Fortresses

3. The Abandoned Soviet Coastal Battery – Popov Island (Exclusive on our Map)

Gun emplacements mounted with naval artillery still pointing toward the Pacific, ammunition stores cut into the cliff face, and observation posts overlooking a coastline the Japanese fleet never reached — Soviet military hardware frozen in a defensive posture for over half a century.

👉 Story: Soviet coastal batteries were installed across the islands around Vladivostok from the 1930s onward to defend the Pacific Fleet's base against Japanese attack. When the Cold War ended and Japan ceased to be the primary threat, the batteries were decommissioned and abandoned — their guns still in place.

📍 Exact location available on our Urbex Russia Map.

4. The Abandoned Pacific Fleet Submarine Base – Vladivostok Coast (Exclusive on our Map)

A decommissioned Soviet submarine base on the Vladivostok coast — dry docks still bearing the hull markings of submarines that no longer exist, control rooms with original navigation equipment, and a pier where the Pacific Fleet's most powerful vessels once tied up.

👉 Story: Vladivostok was home to one of the world's largest submarine fleets during the Cold War. As Russia's Pacific Fleet was drastically reduced after 1991, bases that once serviced dozens of nuclear submarines were decommissioned — their infrastructure left intact on a coastline where classified access had kept them invisible for decades.

📍 Exact location available on our Urbex Russia Map.

5. The Abandoned Art Nouveau Building – Old Vladivostok (Exclusive on our Map)

A decaying early 20th-century commercial building in old Vladivostok — ornate facade crumbling above a busy street, interiors frozen in the transition between the Russian Empire and the Soviet era, its merchant owners long since vanished.

👉 Story: Vladivostok's commercial golden age in the late 19th and early 20th centuries produced a remarkable collection of Art Nouveau and eclectic merchant architecture. After 1917, many of these buildings were nationalised and repurposed. Several now stand empty — their owners' monograms still visible on the facades, their interiors stripped by a century of Soviet use.

📍 Exact location available on our Urbex Russia Map.

Urbex Russia – Safety & Legal Reminder

Urban exploration in Russia carries specific risks. Former military sites around Vladivostok may contain unexploded ordnance — particularly on islands where ammunition was stored during WWII and the Cold War. Always:

• Research each site for unexploded ordnance warnings before visiting
• Explore with at least one other person
• Wear protective gear — mask, gloves, and sturdy boots
• Never touch or move any unidentified military objects
• Never force access to active or former military installations
• Respect the spaces and leave no trace

The urbex code applies everywhere: "Take nothing but photographs, leave nothing but footprints."

❓ FAQ – Urbex Vladivostok

What is the most famous abandoned place in Vladivostok?
The Vladivostok Fortress complex is the most internationally recognised — over 130 forts and batteries spanning 400 km² of coastline, built between 1878 and 1918. Fort № 7 "Tsesarevich Aleksey" is the most accessible and best equipped for visitors.

How do I get to Russky Island from central Vladivostok?
Russky Island is connected to the mainland by the Russky Bridge, one of the world's longest cable-stayed bridges. Take bus routes connecting the city centre to the island. Fort № 9 is accessible by car or on foot — allow a full day for the island.

What makes Vladivostok unique for urbex compared to other Russian cities?
Vladivostok is the only Russian city where Imperial fortress ruins, Soviet Pacific Fleet installations, and derelict Cold War coastal batteries coexist on Pacific Ocean islands accessible in under an hour from the city centre. The combination of dramatic coastal scenery and military history creates a photographic quality impossible to replicate elsewhere.

🎯 Conclusion

Vladivostok offers the most dramatically scenic urbex Russia experience — a city perched on the Pacific where Imperial fortresses overlook bays the Japanese fleet never dared enter, and where Cold War submarine bases rust on islands that were secret for half a century. Every abandoned place here faces the same horizon: the open Pacific, and the military ambitions that shaped this extraordinary city.

Thanks to our Urbex Russia Map, you get access to over 500 unique locations for a safe and immersive exploration experience — with GPS coordinates, access ratings, photos, and explorer reports for every spot.

🗺️ Explore the full Urbex Russia Map →