The Volgograd Region is located in south Russia in between the Saratov, Rostov, Astrakhan and Voronezh Regions and the Republic of Kalmykia.  It also shares a state border with Kazakhstan.  The administrative centre of the region is the Hero City of Volgograd which was previously known as Stalingrad.  During the Second World War, the city was the scene of one of the bloodiest battles in the history of warfare.  As a result Stalingrad was practically wiped off the face of the earth.  It was subsequently rebuilt after the war and now the city has probably the highest concentration of grand Soviet-style architecture of any Russian city.

  The nature of the region consists of forests, swamps, steppe and deserts.  The region has seven nature parks including Lake Elton - the largest saltwater lake in Europe.  The mud found in this lake is said to have healing and age-reversing properties.