The northern part of the district lies in the basin of the Vuoksi River, which drains into Lake Ladoga.

Other rivers in the district, the largest of which are the Gryaznovka and the Sestra, drain directly into the Gulf of Finland.

According to the Treaty of Stolbovo, the whole Karelian Isthmus was ceded to Sweden and the border moved southeast.

[2] After the Winter War, Finland ceded this territory to the Soviet Union by the terms of the Moscow Peace Treaty.

The territory was recaptured by Finns between 1941 and 1944 during the Continuation War but was again ceded to the Soviets after the Moscow Armistice.

On March 31, 1940, the Karelian ASSR was transformed into the Karelo-Finnish Soviet Socialist Republic.

[2] On November 24, 1944, Vyborgsky District was transferred from Karelo-Finnish Soviet Socialist Republic to Leningrad Oblast.

It was a part of the Karelian ASSR, and of the Karelo-Finnish Soviet Socialist Republic after March 31, 1940.

[2] On November 24, 1944, Yaskinsky District was transferred from Karelo-Finnish Soviet Socialist Republic to Leningrad Oblast.

[14] A 20–35-kilometer (12–22 mi) wide stretch of land in the district to the west of the Vyborg–Khiytola railway, as well as the islands and shores of the Vyborg Bay, belong to the strictly guarded zone of the border control.

Another line connecting St. Petersburg and Vyborg follows the coastline of the Gulf of Finland, passing Primorsk.

All these railways are served by suburban trains originating from the Finland Station of St. Petersburg and from Vyborg.

The M10 highway which connects Moscow and St. Petersburg with Finland crosses the district and passes Vyborg, where it sharply turns to the west and proceeds to the state border.

The road network in the district was mostly constructed when Vyborg region was a part of Finland before 1940 and is sufficiently dense and reliable.

The Russian part of the canal, which begins in the town of Vyborg, lies in Vyborgsky District.

There are three border control points for vehicles, one on the railroad, and two more in the port terminals on the territory of the district.

[17] The federally protected monuments include the Vyborg Castle, the Mon Repos park, one of the best preserved English landscape parks in Russia, the building of the Viipuri Library designed by Alvar Aalto, and many old buildings in the center of Vyborg, including the St. Hyacinth Church.