Dzyarzhynsk: Nature, Culture and Hotels

• Dzerzhinskiy Rayon lies in the Minsk Upland and the Stolbtsy Plain.
• Mount Dzyarzhynskaya is 345 metres high and the highest point in Belarus.
• The State Historical and Local Lore Museum of Dzerzhinskiy Rayon is located in Dzerzhinsk.
• Historic sites include, among others, a church dating from 1850 and a watermill from 1829 in Volma.

The geographical description of Dzerzhinskiy Rayon encompasses both the Minsk Upland and the Stolbtsy Plain. A striking natural landmark is Mount Dzyarzhynskaya: at 345 metres above sea level, it is the highest point in Belarus. Near the “Partisan Camp” by Stankovo also stands an oak known as the “Forest Guard”. It is designated a natural monument and is more than 500 years old. These landscape features offer a different way to experience the region than its museums and buildings.

The State Historical and Local Lore Museum of Dzerzhinskiy Rayon was established to preserve and promote the district’s cultural heritage. Its exhibits include archaeological finds that bear witness to the region’s ancient history, as well as ethnographic objects. These include household items, folk costumes and handicrafts. The museum offers a way to explore archaeological and everyday cultural history through a variety of objects.

The museum offers general and themed guided tours for school pupils, students and anyone interested in history. Interactive programmes include master classes, puzzle games and lectures. If you’d like to focus your trip on regional history, these activities offer another way to explore the collection.

The present-day Church of the Protection of the Holy Mother of God in Dzerzhinsk was completed in 1850. It resumed services in 1942 and has been in continuous operation ever since. St. Anne’s Church in Dzerzhinskiy Rayon dates from the second half of the 18th century. The two churches represent different periods of construction, and their dates provide a specific point of historical comparison.

Volma also has several traces of the past. A 19th-century manor house has been preserved there. The Wankowicz family estate was built at the beginning of the 20th century together with a park and ponds, which have been preserved to this day; restoration work is underway on the site. In the eastern part of the settlement, a watermill built in 1829 stands on the shore of the lake of the same name. The Southern Route of the “Road of Silence” leads to the Wankowicz estate in Volma.

In Stankovo, the manor and park ensemble includes an outbuilding and a former library building dating from the 1880s. The historic sites in Volma and Stankovo therefore differ both in their features and in their periods.

The Stankovo Ecotourism Centre includes the military history complexes “Partisan Camp” and “Minsk Fortified Area”. At the “Partisan Camp”, paths lead through partisan trails and reconstructed areas of the camp. Check whether access is currently possible before visiting. The centre also includes a zoo. A description from 2015 states that it had more than 40 species of birds and mammals; this figure refers to the situation at that time.

Your trip can therefore include a range of different activities: museum visits and churches, historic sites in Volma and Stankovo, and landscape and nature features.

Discover more destinations: Sula, Maladzechna District, Minsk District, Kletsk District, Smaliavichy District, Stowbtsy District, Valozhyn District and Salihorsk District.

What guided tours and programmes does the museum offer?

The museum offers general and themed guided tours for school pupils, students and anyone interested in history. It also offers master classes, puzzle games and lectures.

What is the highest point in Belarus?

Mount Dzyarzhynskaya is 345 metres high and the highest point in Belarus.

Is the Church of the Protection of the Holy Mother of God in Dzerzhinsk in operation?

It resumed services in 1942 and has been in continuous operation ever since.

Return to the main travel overview: Minsk Region.