Coat of arms

Aleksandrovsk-Sakhalinsky

Aleksandrovsk-Sakhalinsky is located approximately halfway up Sakhalin, a night train’s trip from Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. It was founded in the mid-19th century as a prison camp and named in honour of Emperor Alexander II. Today tourists are drawn to Aleksandrovsk-Sakhalinsky due to its connection with the famous Russian author Anton Chekhov who lived here in 1880 while researching life on what was then a prison island for his book Sakhalin Island.


Basic facts
Name in Russian
Александровск-Сахалинский
Status
City-municipality and administrative centre of the Aleksandrovsl-Sakhalinsky District of the Sakhalin Region
Location
On the River Bolshaya Aleksandrovka in the middle of Sakhalin
Distance
561km north of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk
Time Zone
Vladivostok Time (Moscow +7)
Population
9,737 people (2014)
Founded
1862
Former Names
Aleksandrovsky Post
Official Website
http://www.aleks-sakh.ru/