►Tours  ►St Petersburg and Moscow tours ►3-day Moscow excursion package

Three days in Moscow is enough to see and enjoy the best sights the Russian capital has to offer. Moscow is over 850 years old and in all these centuries it has acquired a great deal of cultural and historical heritage, which offer stands side by side to features of a modern metropolis. On this three-day tour in Moscow you will of course see the Kremlin – the historical kernel of the city which is now the official residence of the Russian president. You will also visit one of the country's most recognisable symbols – St Basil's Cathedral, plus the beautiful Novdevichy Convent and the Tretyakov Gallery - a treasure trove of Russian art. You will also see some of the monuments of the Soviet era such as the Moscow Metro and the VDNKh Exhibition Centre, where leading artists, sculptors and architects have managed to embody the political ideology of the time in the complex’s style.

All excursions are run by experienced, licensed guides who will show you Moscow’s most beautiful places and tell you about their wonderful history and legends about them.

 DAY1 | MUST-SEE MOSCOW SIGHTS

 Walking excursion around the main sights of the capital - on this excursion you will see:

• Red Square – Moscow's and Russia’s main square, where the Victory Day Parade is held annually in May.
• St Basil’s Cathedral (including interior) – undoubtedly one of the most recognisable cathedrals in the world. Its fairy-cake like domes are unmistakeable.
• Lenin’s Mausoleum – here the founder of the Soviet Union still lies embalmed 90 years after his death. He was briefly joined by Stalin, but Stalin's body was buried behind the mausoleum during the de-Stalinisation period.
• Aleksandrovsky Gardens – these beautiful gardens run along the northern wall of the Kremlin, where once the River Neglinnaya flowed before being diverted underground – previously the kremlin was surrounded on all sides by water. There are many interesting memorials here to historical figures.
• Zaryadye Park - thanks to the creation of this wonderful new park in the very centre of Moscow, the beautiful churches of Ulitsa Varvarka are no longer hidden away and new views of the kremlin and river have been opened up.
• Christ the Saviour Cathedral (including interior) – this is Russia’s main cathedral and one of its largest. It was rebuilt after the fall of the Soviet Union on the site of the original, which was destroyed on the orders of Stalin to make way for a giant Palace of the Soviets. However the palace was never built and instead there was an open-air swimming pool here during the Soviet period.
• Bolshoi Theatre - this is one the most famous ballet theatres for in the world. It is a symbol of Russian culture and national pride. Its name though rather unglamorously translates as Big Theatre.
• GUM Department Store – this grand shopping centre is another famous symbol of the city.
• Ulitsa Vavarka – this is one of Moscow’s oldest surviving streets and it has the highest concentration of old and historic buildings in the whole city. You will find here St Babara’s Church (in honour of which the street is named), St George’s Church, the architectural ensemble of the former Znamensky Monastery, the English Court (an early English embassy) and the Romanov Court (the family estate of the Romanov family before becoming the ruling dynasty).

 Guided tour of the Moscow Kremlin - Moscow's main sight which is simultaneously an impressive fortress, a beautiful religious centre and the official residence of the Russian president. You will visit the ancient cathedrals located here and see the famous Tsar-Bell and Tsar-Cannon.

 Duration: 6 hours |  Transportation: on foot and by metro

 DAY2 | CULTURAL HERITAGE

  Tretyakov Gallery – this gallery is home to the world’s largest collection of Russian art. The original collection with put together by 19th-century Moscow industrialist and patron Pavel Tretyakov, after whom the gallery is now named. The collection now incorporates work dating from the 11th century up until the beginning of the 20th and you will see here masterpieces by Ivan Shishkin, Vasily Polenov, Ilya Repin, Isaak Levitam, Valentin Serov and Mikhail Vrubel, to name but a few. One hall is completely dedicated to the massive painting of The Appearance of Christ before the People by Aleksandr Ivanov. In addition the museum also has a large collection of Russian icons from the 11th to 17th century, including the revered Trinity Icon by Andrey Ryublev.

  Novodevichy Convent – the history of this convent began with Grand Prince Vasily III making a vow to build a monastery in honour of the Our Lady of Smolensk should the Russians be successful in recapturing Smolensk. In 1514 Smolensk was indeed returned and 10 years later, in 1524, work began on building the Novodevichy Convent. Later in its history the convent became closely connected with female members of the royal or other noble families. During the reign of Ivan the Terrible many noble women were exiled here. Most famously, Peter the Great exiled his sister Sofia here after the Streltsy Rebellion and also sent his first wife here when he wished to remarry.

 Duration: 6 hours |  Transportation: on foot and by metro

 DAY3 | SOVIET MOSCOW

 VDNKh Exhibition Centre- this is the main Soviet-style complex in Moscow; its initials stand for the Russian of the ‘Exhibition of Achievements of National Economy’. The Exhibition Centre began its life as the All-Union Economic Exhibition in 1939. Later more than 250 pavilions were constructed dedicated to the Soviet republics and various branches of industry and science. In addition to the pavilions, attractions, theatres and recreation zones were also built. Today only several of these pavilions still have their original designation, most now hold more popular exhibitions dedicated to various themes. The main symbol of the park is the People’s Friendship Fountain which depicts women in the national dress of each of the republics of the Soviet Union. There are 16 figures, not 15 as you might expect, as the fountain was created when the Karelian-Finnish Soviet Republic was in existence, making 16 republics.

  Cosmonautics Museum – this is one of the best museums for those interested in the history of the Soviet space race. Here you will see models of several satellites, including the world's first, models of space stations, spacesuits and even the stuffed bodies of the famous space dogs Belka and Strelka.

  Moscow Metro - the Moscow Metro was the first to be built in Russia and the largest. In terms of daily passenger numbers, it is the fifth busiest metro system in the world. It is also widely believed to be the most beautiful metro. On this excursion you will visit the most beautiful stations which are often reminiscent of underground palaces, including Ploschad Revolyutsi, Komsomolskaya, Kievskaya, Kropotkinskaya.

 Duration: 6 hours |  Transportation: on foot and by metro

• The tour is available the whole year round starting on any day, but please take into account that the museum’s working hours and days-off vary so we reserve the right to change the itinerary while trying to save the excursion programme.
• Transportation can be changed to a car upon request, but please note that the transport situation in Moscow is not very good, so you could get stuck in a traffic jam.
• Tickets to museums cannot be sold without an excursion with a guide.
• During state holidays and celebrations, Red Square may be closed (either partially blocked off or completely closed).
• All excursions/guided tours included in the itinerary are private which means private guides - unless otherwise stated.
• Best time to travel on this route: from the end of April to mid-October and from December to mid-March.

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