8 most beautiful squares in Moscow

1. Red Square is the main square of Moscow, from which acquaintance with the city begins. The red-brick Kremlin walls, the Lenin mausoleum, the monument to Minin and Pozharsky, St. Basil's Cathedral - you can spend the whole day here visiting various museums and historical sites. GUM (the oldest and one of the most expensive department stores in Moscow) has a "secret" canteen decorated in Soviet style and at affordable prices.

2. The district of Khitrovskaya Square (aka Khitrovka) and its streets were especially vividly described by Vladimir Gilyarovsky in his book “Moscow and Muscovites” (1926), calling it “the foggiest place in Moscow” – hinting, of course, at its reputation. At that time, it was more often mentioned in newspapers as a criminal zone: brothels, gambling houses, a dubious bazaar. Today it is one of the most comfortable squares in Moscow, where you can see city mansions of the 18th and 19th centuries and old tenement houses, as well as wander along the narrow atmospheric streets.

3. On the site of the Boulevard Ring near T3. On the site of the Boulevard Ring, about three centuries ago, there was a fortress wall of the so-called White City - this was the historical name for several areas outside Kitai-Gorod. In the early 2000s, a fragment of this wall became the center of Khokhlovskaya Square, one of the favorite places for Moscow youth. It was planned to build a shopping center on the square, but the workers unexpectedly unearthed part of the wall of the White City. At public hearings, Muscovites voted to create a public space on this site, and the renovated square turned into an amphitheater overlooking the archaeological exposition. There are many trendy cafes around this chamber space, and on warm days, a large number of young people gather in the Pit, as the locals call it.

4. Square near Paveletsky railway station - a new pedestrian zone, opened at the end of 2021. On the upper level there are luminous swings, cozy benches and a beautiful park; below it is a musical fountain (in winter - a skating rink) and various installations, and on the lower level - a shopping center with fashion stores and gastronomic delights. Can you imagine that this square was abandoned a long time ago and was even once marked on the map as "Paveletskaya puddle", because after the rain it was constantly flooded with water? The new concept looks very attractive.

5. The huge square in front of Moscow State University is one of the most recognizable views of Moscow. This is a wide open space with a fountain, flower lawns and an alley with monuments to outstanding Russian scientists. University Square ends with the main observation deck of Moscow on Sparrow Hills and the funicular station.

6. A huge swing near the Mayakovskaya metro station is impossible to miss. In Soviet times, there was a tradition of poetic meetings at the monument to Vladimir Mayakovsky - anyone could come and publicly read their poems. In 2015, a new point of attraction appeared on Triumfalnaya Square - a series of huge white swings that take adults back to childhood. The area is also decorated with a view of the Peking Hotel in the Stalinist Empire style.

7. One of the central squares of Moscow, which is located right at the exit from the metro station of the same name "Revolution Square". Although the square has been rebuilt several times, here you can still see old Moscow buildings from different eras and climb the steep stairs to the tourist Nikolskaya Street. The square hosts themed fairs all year round, and a free skating rink is open in winter.

8. The square, named after the Russian poet Alexander Pushkin, is one of the most famous places in Moscow. Fairs, concerts, city events are often held here, and Muscovites spend their free time here. Behind the monument to Pushkin there is a huge fountain and many flower beds - in the summer it is simply wonderful here.