Arzamas

A city in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast with a walkable centre dense with historic churches, Arzamas sits on the Tyosha River roughly a hundred kilometres south of Nizhny Novgorod. Designated as Russia's only federal-level historic settlement in the region, it has been listed since 2023 among historic places of particular significance to Russian history and culture. Founded around 1572 as a military and administrative outpost, the city later became a major transit point on the route from Moscow to the country's southeast, developing a trading and craft quarter that made it known for leather goods exported across Europe.

• Population109,479
• Nearest water1.3 km