Custom tour packagesOdessa

Odessa's two most famous landmarks are the Potemkin Stairs and the Odessa National Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet. A wide stairwell harnessing an optical illusion to seem even longer, the Potemkin Stairs (AKA Odessa Steps) starred in Sergei Eisenstein's 1925 "Battleship Potemkin," in a pivotal scene referenced in everything from The Godfather and The Untouchables, to The Simpsons and Star Wars. Odessa's utterly lavish baroque opera house is grand from every angle, inside and out, and is stuffed with literary references. The "Soviet Miami's" beaches still draw crowds, but be sure to visit the museums devoted to topics from the world's largest catacombs network (running over 2,500 kilometers, since the city's grand buildings required a lot of stone) to Alexander Pushkin. The city's grand boulevards and seaside parks attract many strollers, especially Deribasivska Street, named for the Spanish officer who designed the city, and ending at the City Garden. Francophiles should seek out the monument to the Duke of Richelieu, who served as the region's governor before twice serving as the French prime minister.