The Far Eastern Federal District or Far Eastern Russia (Russian: Да́льный Восто́к Росси́и, DAHL'-nih vah-STOHK rah-SEE-ee) is the easternmost part of Russia or unofficial edge of the world, comprising a third of the country's land area, with 6.3 million in habitants.
Although traditionally considered part of Siberia, the Russian Far East is categorized separately from Siberia in Russian regional schemes, and today, the Siberian Federal District excludes the Russian Far East.
Federal subjects are either oblasts or krais (counties), or autonomous republics or okrugs, which typically have a significant non-Russian population.
- Khabarovsk. — the region's administrative center
- Birobidzhan. — the capital of Soviet Zion
- Blagoveshchensk. — one of the oldest cities in the Russian Far East
- Komsomolsk-on-Amur. — a big steel city on the Baikal-Amur Mainline
- Magadan. — in the heart of the Kolyma Gulag network
- Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. — gateway to nature lovers' paradise
- Vladivostok. — the largest city and the Russian terminus of the Trans-Siberian Railway
- Yakutsk. — quite possibly Earth's coldest city
- Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. — the Russian Far East's island capital
Khabarovsk. — the region's administrative center
Birobidzhan. — the capital of Soviet Zion
Blagoveshchensk. — one of the oldest cities in the Russian Far East
Komsomolsk-on-Amur. — a big steel city on the [[Baikal-Amur Mainline]]
Magadan. — in the heart of the Kolyma Gulag network
Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. — gateway to nature lovers' paradise
Vladivostok. — the largest city and the Russian terminus of the [[Trans-Siberian Railway]]
Yakutsk. — quite possibly Earth's coldest city
Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. — the Russian Far East's island capital
- Atlasov Island. — a volcanic island renowned for the pure beauty of its perfect conical shape
- The National Parks of Kamchatka. — some of the most stunning landscapes in the world, full of volcanoes, geysers, and lakes of acid.
- Kolyma. — the terrifying Soviet gulag system of Siberia's coldest, remotest, and most hopeless mining region
- Pole of Cold. — the coldest place on earth outside Antarctica, in the heart of Yakutia
- The Sikhote-Alin mountain range. — the region home to the famous Amur Tiger as well as an enormous meteorite crash site, and designated a UNESCO World Heritage site for its diverse ecosystems ranging from Siberian to subtropical.
- Wrangel Island. — an arctic island and UNESCO World Heritage site at the end of the earth, of dramatic mountainous tundra landscapes, biodiversity, walruses, grey whales, and the world's highest concentration of polar bear dens.
Atlasov Island. — a volcanic island renowned for the pure beauty of its perfect conical shape
The National Parks of Kamchatka. — some of the most stunning landscapes in the world, full of volcanoes, geysers, and lakes of acid.
Kolyma. — the terrifying Soviet gulag system of Siberia's coldest, remotest, and most hopeless mining region
Pole of Cold. — the coldest place on earth outside [[Antarctica]], in the heart of [[Yakutia]]
The Sikhote-Alin mountain range. — the region home to the famous Amur Tiger as well as an enormous meteorite crash site, and designated a [[UNESCO World Heritage list|UNESCO World Heritage site]] for its diverse ecosystems ranging from Siberian to subtropical.
Wrangel Island. — an arctic island and [[UNESCO World Heritage list|UNESCO World Heritage site]] at the end of the earth, of dramatic mountainous tundra landscapes, biodiversity, walruses, grey whales, and the world's highest concentration of polar bear dens.
The Russian Far East is extraordinarily far from Russia's major population centers in Europe and is usually visited separately, unless by the Trans-Siberian Railway. The largest city in the region, Vladivostok, is a full seven time zones away from Moscow, with 9,300 km of railroad between them. The Far East is very different from popular conceptions of Russia—it is very mountainous and has an often spectacular Pacific coastline. The people in this region have more in common with those of northern China or the Inuit than to the Slavic Russians; however, Slavs predominate in the larger cities.
If time and money are not constraints, the highlights of this massive region include the city of Vladivostok, the beautiful Kuril Islands, the otherworldly National Parks of Kamchatka, cruising along the coast of Chukotka, and big game hunting in the wildlife paradise of Yakutia.
Russian is the principal language and is spoken by nearly everyone, regardless of their first language. Korean is also widely spoken in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk by the Sakhalin Koreans. Chinese and Japanese are common foreign languages as students learn them in the nearby border regions. There are a good number of Tungusic and Chukotko-Kamchatkan languages spoken throughout the more northerly regions of the Far East.
English is rarely spoken or understood and is mostly known among students and business people. European languages are far less widespread than in Western Russia.
The Far East has some extraordinary natural attractions. The volcanoes of Kamchatka, the Lena Pillars, the central Sikhote-Alin and Wrangel Island are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. There are many sites for birdwatching, whale watching and Eurasian wildlife.
- Kolyma Highway — ultimate adventure in Russian taiga, connecting Magadan with Yakutsk and featuring lots of abandoned towns
The Russian Far East is a challenging destination for outdoor life and winter sport, with vast areas of wilderness.
Cold weather, especially in Yakutia, which has the record low temperature for the northern hemisphere. Bears, including polar bears on the Arctic coast.
The Russian Far East borders Mongolia and China to the south, North Korea and Japan to the southeast, and Alaska to the northeast, and there is transport available to all of them from nearby regions in the Far East.