Russia's Golden Ring Is Expanding From 9 Towns to 49

The classic Golden Ring tourist route northeast of Moscow is being rebuilt into a much larger national tourism route, adding 40 new towns and villages to the original nine.

Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko announced in January 2026 that the Golden Ring — the historic loop of medieval towns northeast of Moscow, including Sergiyev Posad, Suzdal, Vladimir and Yaroslavl — is being transformed from its classic nine-town route into a much broader network of 49 towns and villages, adding places like Gorokhovets, Myshkin, Rybinsk and Gzhel to the map.

The expansion is part of a national push to modernize the decades-old Golden Ring brand for current travelers, and ties into a broader goal of raising tourism's share of Russia's GDP to 5% and reaching 140 million domestic trips a year by 2030.

For visitors, the original nine towns remain the easiest and most well-trodden entry point to the region — the expanded list mostly opens up options for a second or third trip once the classic loop has been covered.