Vladivostok is the only city in Russia where urban exploration means descending into Imperial fortress tunnels that face the open Pacific — a closed Soviet city sealed from the outside world for decades, now accessible for the first time. Here you will find five of the best abandoned places in Vladivostok, selected from our Urbex Russia Map, which documents over 500+ GPS locations across Russia

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 opened 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)

Unlocked galleries disappearing into the hillside, casemates open to the Pacific wind, and gun emplacements overlooking bays the Japanese fleet never dared enter. Most of the fortress's 16 forts and hundreds of tunnels are now completely abandoned — concrete corridors that extend deep underground with no lighting, their walls still bearing the marks of the engineers who built them over a century ago.

👉 Story: Built 1878–1918 at a cost of 98 billion gold rubles. So formidable that Japan never attacked Vladivostok during the Russo-Japanese War. Permanently abandoned in 1923 under treaty terms with Japan, partially reactivated in the 1930s, decommissioned after the Cold War.

🔗 More on Vladivostok Fortress: Wikipedia – Vladivostok Fortress

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

166 metres above sea level, panoramic views over the Peter the Great Gulf, underground galleries connecting gun emplacements that were mounted and never fired — Fort № 9 is the most atmospherically preserved abandoned military site in the Far East. Its concrete structures show almost no decay after a century of Pacific weather.

👉 Story: Built 1910s on Russky Island. Rumoured to have been used by the NKVD as an underground execution site in the 1930s. Used as a weapons storage facility until 1996. Completely abandoned since then — one of the last forts of its type ever built in the world.

🔗 Also read: Top 5 Abandoned Places in Russia →

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

Gun emplacements 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: Installed from the 1930s to defend the Pacific Fleet against Japanese attack. Decommissioned when the Cold War ended and Japan ceased to be the primary threat — 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)

Dry docks still bearing 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 — now silent on a classified coastline finally open to the public.

👉 Story: Vladivostok housed one of the world's largest submarine fleets during the Cold War. After 1991, bases were decommissioned overnight — their infrastructure left intact on a coastline invisible to the outside world for decades.

📍 Exact location available on our Urbex Russia Map.

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

Ornate facade crumbling above a busy street, owners' monograms still visible on the brickwork, interiors stripped by a century of Soviet use — a merchant building from Vladivostok's commercial golden age, now empty and forgotten in the old city.

👉 Story: Built during Vladivostok's late 19th-century commercial boom. Nationalised after 1917, repurposed as Soviet offices, then abandoned. One of the few surviving examples of pre-revolutionary merchant architecture in the city.

📍 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. Always:

• Research each site for ordnance warnings before visiting
• Explore with at least one other person
• Wear protective gear — mask, gloves, and sturdy boots
• Never touch unidentified military objects
• Never force access to 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 — over 130 forts and batteries spanning 400 km² of coastline, built between 1878 and 1918. Fort № 7 "Tsesarevich Aleksey" is the most accessible for visitors.

How do I get to Russky Island from central Vladivostok?
Russky Island is connected to the mainland by the Russky Bridge. Take a bus from the city centre. Fort № 9 requires a car or a long walk — allow a full day for the island.

What makes Vladivostok unique for urbex compared to other Russian cities?
It is the only Russian city where Imperial fortress ruins, Soviet Pacific Fleet installations, and Cold War coastal batteries coexist on Pacific Ocean islands accessible in under an hour from the city centre.

🎯 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 →