Where to walk in Derbent – a selection of locations

We have visited all, or almost all, the sights of Derbent, and we tell you about it in detail and honestly. You will find out what is definitely worth seeing in Derbent, opening hours and the price of visiting attractions, how to get to them yourself and where they are on the map. Be sure to read everything, because there is no other such detailed and honest guidebook anymore 😉. Well, if you still have any questions or just want to talk about holidays in Dagestan, join 💬 to our useful chat about holidays in Dagestan.

In recent years, Derbent has turned from just an ancient Russian city into a real tourist center. There are a lot of well-maintained areas for walking and recreation, renovation of parks and squares has been carried out, a long promenade has been arranged. We took a walk around Derbent and made a selection of places that are definitely worth visiting during a visit to this amazing city:

Old town of Magala

The old town or Magala district is a historical part of the ancient city of Derbent, and it was from here that the history of the oldest city in Russia began. A walk along the old narrow and winding streets past low old residential buildings and ancient architectural monuments will undoubtedly become one of the most memorable moments of a holiday in Derbent.

Today it is one of the most visited places in the city with well-preserved architectural monuments and unique historical sites. Learn more about the Old Town of Derbent and how to visit it here.

Derbent Tourist Mile

This is a walking tourist route through Derbent, passing through the entire city center along the fortress wall from the historical district of Magala to the Nizami Ganjavi Park with the famous light and music fountain. In other words, this is a new pedestrian zone in Derbent, very beautiful and beautifully equipped after the renovation of tourist places in the city. The length of the tourist mile is a little more than a kilometer, although if you also include an equipped footpath along the old district of Magala, it turns out as much as 2 kilometers. On the route there are places for recreation, shops, modern installations in the traditional Caucasian style, as well as genre sculptures reflecting the way of life, traditions and history of the peoples of Dagestan. There are information boards with a map and a description of the route and objects on it, so the walk will also be informative. You will see part of the masonry of the fortress wall, its foundation and the ancient city water supply system, which is considered one of the oldest in the world. Learn more about the tourist mile of Derbent here.

Derbent Embankment and Seaside Park

The Derbent embankment and the Seaside Park are the main place for walking along the coast during a holiday in Derbent, one might even say, the epicenter of tourist beach life. Moreover, this is the only full-fledged promenade in Dagestan, and there is no such even in Makhachkala. It is well equipped, it was renovated in 2022, the space for walking was increased, and now the pedestrian path to Heydar Aliyev Street in the center has been extended. As on any other seaside promenade, fast food is sold here, there are simple children's attractions, a fountain works, there are pavilions with souvenirs and leisure goods. Read more about Debent Embankment here.

Park named after. Nizami Ganjavi

The park was significantly transformed in 2022 and, of course, has become one of the most popular places in Derbent, attracting not only locals, but also tourists. And thanks to the opening of the largest Light and Music Fountain in Russia in 2022, it is also a "business card" of the city along with the Naryn-Kala fortress. More and more visitors of the city come to see it. The park area is equipped with playgrounds for children and sports, there is a tower with an observation deck, plantings in the form of living labyrinths, recreation areas, walking paths, playgrounds. Learn more about the Park. Nizami Ganjavi is here.

"Happy People" Street

This is a new wonderful walking area in Derbent and one of the most crowded places for tourists and locals in the city center, especially in the evenings. This pedestrian street appeared in Derbent after a large-scale reconstruction of the tourist center of the city in recent years, after which it simply flourished, and the street of "happy people" is located in its very epicenter. It is not very long, about 350 meters, but completely pedestrian. In the evenings it is very beautifully illuminated, several genre sculptures are installed here, restaurants and cafes are open, street fast food is sold, excursion distributors put up racks with booklets, and sometimes street artists appear and artists exhibit their works. There is also an "Indoor market" or "Passage" shopping center – this is such a small shopping center with local goods for tourists and souvenirs. Learn more about the street of Happy people here.

Street painting or Street art

While walking around the city, you can pay attention to the large paintings on the walls of residential buildings. The art is called street art or Street painting, and is becoming more and more popular in Derbent, and such images are called murals. Every year the festival "Wall" is held here, which attracts many artists. After the event, the city is transformed, the dull facades of houses are decorated with new colorful paintings, which will be admired for a long time not only by residents of the city, but also by guests. All the drawings are made in local traditions, whether it's a girl with a jug or a cup on the table. Learn more about street painting or Street art in Derbent here.

Goldfish

"Goldfish" is an unfinished restaurant, which has already become a landmark. We will not recommend going here on purpose: it is too far from the center and city transport does not go here. But if you are resting in the area of the spit of Derbent or you have absolutely nothing to do, you can come here. The restaurant is almost completed, the outwardly unusual building in the shape of a fish looks already finished. There is a place for a walk around, which is now even called the Goldfish Park, although there is no park as such here yet. Here you can go fishing from the rocks, and nearby there is an equipped "Beach on the spit or at the Fish". There's nothing else to do here. Read more about the Goldfish here.