Moscow itinerary: 1 to 3 days
Plans for one to three days in Moscow, day by day: the Bolshoi Theatre, the Alexander Garden, the Kremlin, Red Square, GUM, Saint Basil's Cathedral, Zaryadye Park and the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour first, then the Arbat, Lenin's Mausoleum, the Tretyakov Gallery, Gorky Park, Sparrow Hills and the Novodevichy Convent, and Komsomolskaya Metro station, VDNKh, the Cosmonautics Museum and the Pushkin Museum as you add days. Every stop has a typical visit length.
How long do you have?
Map: 3 days
Moscow in 1 day
Day 1
Bolshoi Theatre
Moscow's historic opera and ballet house on Theatre Square; the classical facade is worth seeing, the inside during a performance.
Alexander Garden
Park along the Kremlin's western wall with the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and its eternal flame and guard change.
Kremlin
Fortified heart of Moscow, with its red walls and towers, cathedrals on Cathedral Square, the Armoury and the Grand Kremlin Palace.
Red Square
Moscow's great central square between the Kremlin, Saint Basil's Cathedral and GUM, the setting of parades and history.
GUM
Grand 1890s shopping arcade facing the Kremlin across Red Square, with glass roofs, cafes and the old-style Gastronom No. 1.
Saint Basil's Cathedral
Sixteenth-century cathedral with brightly patterned onion domes at the end of Red Square, now a museum with small chapels inside.
Zaryadye Park
Modern park beside Red Square with landscapes from across Russia, a concert hall and a floating bridge over the Moskva River.
Cathedral of Christ the Saviour
Huge white cathedral with golden domes on the Moskva River, rebuilt in the 1990s after its destruction in 1931.
Moscow in 2 days
Day 1
Bolshoi Theatre
Moscow's historic opera and ballet house on Theatre Square; the classical facade is worth seeing, the inside during a performance.
Alexander Garden
Park along the Kremlin's western wall with the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and its eternal flame and guard change.
Kremlin
Fortified heart of Moscow, with its red walls and towers, cathedrals on Cathedral Square, the Armoury and the Grand Kremlin Palace.
Red Square
Moscow's great central square between the Kremlin, Saint Basil's Cathedral and GUM, the setting of parades and history.
GUM
Grand 1890s shopping arcade facing the Kremlin across Red Square, with glass roofs, cafes and the old-style Gastronom No. 1.
Saint Basil's Cathedral
Sixteenth-century cathedral with brightly patterned onion domes at the end of Red Square, now a museum with small chapels inside.
Zaryadye Park
Modern park beside Red Square with landscapes from across Russia, a concert hall and a floating bridge over the Moskva River.
Cathedral of Christ the Saviour
Huge white cathedral with golden domes on the Moskva River, rebuilt in the 1990s after its destruction in 1931.
Arbat Street
Pedestrian street of old merchant houses, souvenir shops, cafes and street performers in the historic centre.
Day 2
Lenin's Mausoleum
Granite tomb on Red Square where the embalmed body of Vladimir Lenin has been on view since the 1920s.
Tretyakov Gallery
The leading collection of Russian art, from medieval icons such as Rublev's Trinity to 19th-century masters, in Zamoskvorechye.
Gorky Park
Central riverside park with gardens, a long embankment walk, the Garage Museum of Contemporary Art and winter skating.
Sparrow Hills
High riverside ridge with a viewing platform over the Moskva River, the Luzhniki Stadium and the city skyline.
Novodevichy Convent
Sixteenth-century fortified convent by a pond, with gilded churches and a famous cemetery where Chekhov and Khrushchev are buried.
Moscow in 3 days
Day 1
Bolshoi Theatre
Moscow's historic opera and ballet house on Theatre Square; the classical facade is worth seeing, the inside during a performance.
Alexander Garden
Park along the Kremlin's western wall with the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and its eternal flame and guard change.
Kremlin
Fortified heart of Moscow, with its red walls and towers, cathedrals on Cathedral Square, the Armoury and the Grand Kremlin Palace.
Red Square
Moscow's great central square between the Kremlin, Saint Basil's Cathedral and GUM, the setting of parades and history.
GUM
Grand 1890s shopping arcade facing the Kremlin across Red Square, with glass roofs, cafes and the old-style Gastronom No. 1.
Saint Basil's Cathedral
Sixteenth-century cathedral with brightly patterned onion domes at the end of Red Square, now a museum with small chapels inside.
Zaryadye Park
Modern park beside Red Square with landscapes from across Russia, a concert hall and a floating bridge over the Moskva River.
Komsomolskaya Metro station
Ring line station beneath three railway terminals, known for its yellow Baroque vaulted hall and ceiling mosaics.
Day 2
VDNKh
Vast Soviet-era exhibition park with grand pavilions, gilded fountains and museums in the north of the city.
Memorial Museum of Cosmonautics
Space museum under the soaring Monument to the Conquerors of Space, with Soviet spacecraft, satellites and cosmonaut stories.
Pushkin Museum
Moscow's largest museum of European art, from ancient casts to Impressionist and modern paintings, on Volkhonka Street.
Cathedral of Christ the Saviour
Huge white cathedral with golden domes on the Moskva River, rebuilt in the 1990s after its destruction in 1931.
Arbat Street
Pedestrian street of old merchant houses, souvenir shops, cafes and street performers in the historic centre.
Day 3
Lenin's Mausoleum
Granite tomb on Red Square where the embalmed body of Vladimir Lenin has been on view since the 1920s.
Tretyakov Gallery
The leading collection of Russian art, from medieval icons such as Rublev's Trinity to 19th-century masters, in Zamoskvorechye.
Gorky Park
Central riverside park with gardens, a long embankment walk, the Garage Museum of Contemporary Art and winter skating.
Sparrow Hills
High riverside ridge with a viewing platform over the Moskva River, the Luzhniki Stadium and the city skyline.
Main building of Moscow State University
One of Stalin's Seven Sisters skyscrapers, the university's main building, seen from outside from the Sparrow Hills.
Novodevichy Convent
Sixteenth-century fortified convent by a pond, with gilded churches and a famous cemetery where Chekhov and Khrushchev are buried.
Watch: Moscow
A one-minute look at the plan: every stop, day by day, with the map.
When to go to Moscow
Late May to early September is warm, with long days and outdoor life in the parks, though July can be hot and is the busiest time. Winters are long and cold with snow from about December to March, while the city looks its most wintry. Red Square can be closed for events, especially around the Victory Day parade on 9 May.
Plan the rest of your trip
- Where to stay: hotels in Moscow on Booking.com or Trip.com
- Skip-the-line tickets: museums and sights in Moscow on Tiqets
- Tours and day trips: things to do in Moscow on GetYourGuide
- Data on arrival: an eSIM for Russia from Airalo
Some of these are affiliate links: we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Tips for Moscow
- Kremlin tickets cover the grounds and cathedrals, while the Armoury has its own timed tickets; the Kremlin museums are closed on Thursdays.
- Lenin's Mausoleum opens only a few mornings a week; bags and cameras must be left before passing through the security check.
- Several Metro stations, such as Komsomolskaya and Ploshchad Revolyutsii, are sights in themselves; a Troika card covers the metro, buses and trams.
- The Tretyakov Gallery and the Pushkin Museum are usually closed on Mondays; check opening days before planning a museum day.
- Orthodox churches expect covered shoulders and knees, and women are asked to cover their heads.
Make it your own
Open the guide in Andiamo Places to see every stop on a map with walking directions, move places between days, check opening hours for your dates, and add your own finds. After the trip, your photos become a journal and, if you like, a printed photo book.
Guides are made with the help of AI and public sources such as Wikipedia, and may contain errors. Opening hours and prices change, so check before you go. Spotted a wrong photo, a pin in the wrong place, a missing stop or a better one? Write to andiamotravelapp@gmail.com: the e-mail opens with this guide filled in.
Photo credits
- Alexander Garden: Минеева Ю. (Julmin), CC BY-SA 1.0
- Arbat Street: Florstein ( Telegram: WikiPhoto.Space ), CC BY-SA 4.0
- Bolshoi Theatre: DmitriyGuryanov, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Cathedral of Christ the Saviour: Alvesgaspar, CC BY-SA 3.0
- GUM: Josef F. Stuefer, CC BY 2.0
- Gorky Park: A.Savin, FAL
- Komsomolskaya Metro station: A.Savin, FAL
- Kremlin: Pavel Kazachkov from Moscow, Russia, CC BY 2.0
- Lenin's Mausoleum: Stefano Vigorelli, CC0
- Main building of Moscow State University: Dmitry A. Mottl (cropped by King of Hearts ), CC BY-SA 3.0
- Memorial Museum of Cosmonautics: Don-vip, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Novodevichy Convent: Ivtorov, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Pushkin Museum: user:Ghirlandajo, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Red Square: mos.ru, CC BY 4.0
- Saint Basil's Cathedral: Diego Delso, Public domain
- Sparrow Hills: Dmitry A. Mottl, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Tretyakov Gallery: A.Savin, CC BY-SA 3.0
- VDNKh: Ignat pavlov111, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Zaryadye Park: mos.ru, CC BY 4.0
Opening hours change; check before you go. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
