Industrial tourism in Belarus is quite well developed. You can get to dozens of enterprises with a guided tour. But before you rush off into this exciting world of machines and refrigerators, you must remember three very important nuances.
- First of all: all excursions need to be booked in advance (and sometimes it’s not so easy to do this);
- Secondly: it is difficult to get to many enterprises (and on the way you will have time to think 100 times whether you really want to look at the works of the Berezovka glass blowers);
- And, thirdly: not all yoghurts are equally useful (and not all Belarusian enterprises really know how to work with tourists). Therefore, in this collection, as in the movie “Blood Sport”, there will be only the best fighters.
I will tell you about the colorful distilleries and giant machines from the Guinness Book of Records, about breweries with a century and a half history and tractors that have long become a symbol of Belarus. Let’s see what can surprise the world of industrial tourism. And why such a format of excursions is becoming more popular over time.
I hope you’re intrigued. Then let’s get started.
Fighter No. 1. BelAZ factory in Zhodino
The most popular industrial enterprise in the country and at the same time one of the main attractions of Zhodino. Here, huge dump trucks (the size of a 3-storey building) are assembled at a huge factory. Some models have one wheel taller than a man. Imagine what it’s like to stand next to such giants.
Why is it worth coming here? To see with your own eyes the 75710 model, which has already been included in the Guinness Book of Records several times.
How do I get to the factory? All tours of the company are conducted by appointment. But there are a lot of tourists. Therefore, the recording goes about a week ahead. Phone for inquiries: +375 (1775) 27-979.
An easier way is to go to the factory together with an organized tour. An example of one of these can be found here.
Travel companies have tours scheduled for many months in advance, so there is always a place for you. Another plus is the availability of an included transfer, which will save you from getting to know the Zhodinsky minibuses. On a solo trip, you will, of course, have to get to the city of iron dump trucks on your own.
How do I get there myself? By minibus from the Vostok metro station. Flights depart every 20 minutes. But during rush hours, a rather impressive queue forms in front of them.
The ticket price is 6 BYN. The travel time (to the Zhodinsky bus station) is about 40 minutes. Plus, another 1 kilometer on foot – to the factory building itself.
Fighter #2.Minsk Tractor Plant
If a trip to Zhodino seems too difficult to you, then there is a cast-iron oh-go-go in the very heart of Minsk. Here, instead of mining dump trucks, legendary tractors are assembled. The modern MTZ plant is actually a city within a city.
Its scale is comparable to the size of 200 football fields. The territory has its own squares, roads and railways and as many as 33 streets with separate postal addresses. In different years, the number of employees ranged from 16 to 30 thousand people (which is comparable to the size of a conditional Krichev). And the history of the company has been going back 78 years (or even 85, if you count the period when the plant produced airplanes).
How do I get to the factory? There are 4 guided tours of the plant every day. BUT (!) most of them are given to organized groups (usually tourists or schoolchildren). You can get to the factory yourself only by appointment and only if there are free places in the assembly groups. The ticket price is 5 BYN (+ another 26 BYN you will have to pay for the tour service).
Phone for inquiries: +375 (17) 398-94-15. There are 4 time slots available for excursions at the factory: 9:00, 11:00, 13:00 and 14:30.
If you couldn’t sign up (or time is running out) you can also pay attention to organized tours to the factory. There is always a place for you here. Also, travel companies often offer some additional bonuses (such as riding a tractor or participating in the work of an assembly line – with the subsequent issuance of a certificate).
An example of one of these excursions can be found on this page.
How do I get there myself? By metro to the Tractor Plant station.
Fighter #3. Lida Beer Factory
Photo from the website museum.lidskae.by
At the same time, it is one of the oldest and most modern breweries in Belarus. Historical buildings were put in order there, exhibition halls with samples of equipment were equipped and channels were opened in all social networks (and they are conducted on behalf of Nosel Pupko, the 150–year-old founder of the plant).
Photo from social networks @nosel.pupko.
For modern Lida, the local brewery is like Hugh Laurie for the TV series about “Dr. House”. The main star and the main pride. He organizes his own music festival (Lidbeer Fest) in the city. The company actively participated in the reconstruction of the Lida Castle. And even the best restaurant in the city belongs to her too. Therefore, if you find yourself in Lida, be sure to take a tour of this enterprise.
Ticket price: 30 BYN. You can book a seat online on the websitemuseum.lidskae.by .
The only disadvantage is the remoteness of Lida from Minsk. It takes about 2 hours to get here. Therefore, it is best to visit the brewery as part of a long trip around the Grodno region. Wander around the Lida Castle, take a look at the Lida Brovar Museum, and then go on to Grodno to walk among the churches and tiled roofs.
Lida Castle
As a place to stay overnight, you can choose:
- Historical hotel “At the pear tree” (located in an old 19th century mansion);
- Or this apartment with a beautiful view of the local old town.
Grodno, 2024.
And for inspiration, you can read the article at the link below. There I wrote about the ghosts of Grodno and little-known palaces, about the best restaurants in the city and the best viewing platforms.
How to get there? By train Minsk – Lida – Grodno. See the schedule on the websiterw.by . You can also go on a trip on the minibuses of the company atlasbus.by .
Fighter No.4. Museum of the Alivaria factory
The same thing, but in Minsk. The scale is more modest there, but at the moment it is the Alivaria plant that is considered the oldest brovar in Belarus (although this is constantly disputed in Lida). Such Villaribo and Villabajo are obtained (only from the world of beer). Therefore, you can also visit both of these plants and finally decide for yourself which Twix stick tastes better.
Photo from the brewery’s website.
The cost of the tour: 30-35 BYN. The recording is open on the websitealivariamuseum.by .
Currently, there are 2 tours available at the factory – “Historical Route” and “Style Guide“. Everything is clear with the first format. But the second one is rather a lecture about different types of beer, the peculiarities of their preparation and the optimal combination of a drink with snacks. What to choose from this – you already see for yourself. All details are available on the brewery’s website.
How to get there? To the metro station “Victory Square”, and then 3 more stops on trams 3,4 or 5 (towards the “Lake”). You need to get off at the Maxim Bogdanovich bus stop.
Fighter No.5. Naroch Distillery
A historic distillery founded in 1845. Today, whiskey, gin, calvados and traditional Belarusian vodka (rye vodka with the addition of apple and pear leaves) are produced here. At the same time, the production looks as colorful and even cinematic as possible. There are old walls of rough stone, and dark barrels stacked in several rows, and dim lamps under the ceiling (making you think of Lasse Hallstrom’s films).
Guests of the distillery are guided through different workshops – blending, cognac, bottling shop and distillation area. The cost of excursions is 12 BYN. But there are also more expensive “packages” with tasting for 25-30 BYN.
The author of the photo is Ksenia Bulanova. Source of the social network @bulanovaphoto.
Guided tours are available for groups of 5 or more people. On weekends, everything is scheduled by travel agencies, so it’s better to sign up on weekdays.
Phone for inquiries +375 (17) 972-59-85. Address: Naroch agro-town, 58 Zavodskaya Street.
Fighter No.6. Confectionery factory “Kommunarka”
is a good option for family companies. The company actively produces chocolate, waffles, sweet bars, candies and a lot more. The factory regularly organizes workshops on chocolate making. And after visiting the tour, all guests are given a “candy tasting” and sweet gifts are distributed.
In short, if you are a brave man and the prospect of clumped buttocks does not scare you at all, you can safely go to the Kommunarka factory. Booking of excursions is carried out on weekdays from 10:30 to 12:00 by phone: +375 (17) 229 27 75. But in reality, it is quite difficult to get through to them. There are not always free windows, and most of the slots (as in other factories) are given to school groups and travel agencies. Therefore, the easiest option is to go to the factory with a guide.
An example of such an excursion “with a travel agency” can be viewed at this link.
How do I get there on my own? By metro to the Proletarskaya station, and then by bus No. 127 to the Fabrika Kommunarka stop.
Why is it worth going? To please the child, eat sweets and learn the history of the appearance of Alenka chocolates, Ladybug candies and legendary chocolate bottles with cognac.
Noteworthy
If desired, some other companies can be added to this list. For example: Coca-Cola factory in Kolyadichi. For a long time, free excursions were held there for all the suffering. But now there is no such information on the official website anymore – and I couldn’t get through to the company either.
A separate story is Glubokoe Dairy Cannery, where the legendary condensed milk is produced. Tours of this enterprise still exist. But it’s quite a long way to go to Glubokoe. Therefore, you should decide on such a trip only if you are planning some kind of large-scale tour of the Vitebsk region.
Deep. The author of the photo is Kasia Syromolot (@palasatka). Source — 34travel.me .
A lot of ideas for inspiration and interesting routes around the north of Belarus can be found here.
For a long time, the Grodno Dairy World plant was also in my drafts (milk.by ), which produces cheese, yogurt, glazed cheeses and ice cream. Excursions there are quite inexpensive (18 BYN). The price includes tasting (9 types of cheeses + ice cream + cheese + yogurt). And Grodno itself is a very cool city, so it’s definitely worth a trip there.
But these excursions also have several important disadvantages. You cannot go there with children (guests are allowed only from the age of 13); you need to sign up for the tour 5 days in advance – and even by e-mail (excursion@milk.by ). And some tourists even require a certificate of health status. The rules are quite strict, so the “Dairy World” is only among the worthy mentions today. If you’ve been there, write in the comments how good he is compared to the fighters from our main list. And I’ll finish it slowly.
As always, likes, reposts and comments from your side are welcome. I hope my story about industrial tourism in Belarus helped you with ideas for future travel.
