The Pskov Region is located in the north-west of Russia and shares a border with Belarus, Latvia and Estonia.  It is a region rich in history; Izborsk was first mentioned in 862 and has an ancient fortress, and Pskov, the administrative centre, was first mentioned in 903 as the homeland of Princess Olga - Rus’ first female ruler and one of its first Christians.  Lake Peipus (Lake Pskovo-Chudskoe) on the Estonian-Russian border is the fifth largest lake in Europe and the site of Aleksandr Nevksy’s famous victory against the Teutonic Knights at the Battle on the Ice in 1242.

  The region is also connected with some of Russia’s greatest cultural figures. The poet Aleksandr Pushkin had an estate located in beautiful natural surroundings outside Pushkinskie Gory. He wrote many works there during his period of exile and is buried there.  Just outside Velikie Luky is the estate of the great composer Modest Mussorgsky.

  The best way to travel around the region is by car or bus and there are good bus links from Pskov to other cities in the region. Trains directly connect Pskov with Moscow and St Petersburg and trains from Moscow to the Baltic states pass via the south-west of the region (Velikie Luky and Sebezh).