Passport to Moscow
Words: Catherine Quinn History, culture, hotels, shops and nightspots – Moscow has something for everyone TOUCHDOWN Head to the Red Square for a legendary, panoramic view that takes in several of the city’s most famous attractions, including St Basil’s Cathedral. This onion-domed landmark in all its gaudy glory is just a stone’s throw from Lenin’s [...]
Words: Catherine Quinn
History, culture, hotels, shops and nightspots – Moscow has something for everyone
TOUCHDOWN
Head to the Red Square for a legendary, panoramic view that takes in several of the city’s most famous attractions, including St Basil’s Cathedral. This onion-domed landmark in all its gaudy glory is just a stone’s throw from Lenin’s sombre mausoleum.
alt="That’s what you call shopping – Moscow’s awesome GUM store is now filled with boutiques">
SLEEP
The luxurious Ritz-Carlton on the edge of Red Square can’t be beaten for location or service [3 Tverskaya Street, +7 (495) 225 8888;
www.ritzcarlton.com]. The Renaissance Moscow has a slightly less central location but a more contemporary feel [18/1 Olympiski Prospect, +7 (495) 931 9000;
www.marriott.com], while for the cost-conscious, the ex-Soviet style Arbat still comes with creature comforts in the high-end shopping district [12 Plotnikov Pereulok, Arbatskaya, + 7 (499) 271 2801].
EAT
Moscow’s famous retro-styled Petrovich cooks up meals like mama-babushka used to make [24/3 Myasnitskaya ul, +7 (495) 923-0082]. For a new twist on Russian classic dishes, head to hip eatery Gogal for Russian salads and smoked cheese to die for [11 Stoleshnikov Pereulot (Metro Pushkinskaya), +7 (495) 514 0944]. For high-rollers, Ukrainian theme restaurant Shinok attracts wealthy diners to eat topdollar peasant food in a farmyard styled venue [Ulitca 1905
Goda, +7 (495) 651 8101; www.shinok.ru/eng].
THE MUSEUMS
The whole of central Moscow is something of a museum so visitors won’t be stuck for old buildings or sites of historical interest. Lenin’s Mausoleum is the most famous museum in Moscow, with daily queues stretching right around the Red Square. The Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts is a sterling tribute to Russian history [12 Volkhonka Street, +7 (495) 203 9578], and don’t miss the spectacularly ornate Moscow metro.
SHOP
Russians love their designer labels, and when strolling through the pedestrianised Arbat area you wander past row upon row of Gucci, Fendi and the rest. Head east towards Red Square, and you’ll be rewarded with the millennial embodiment of Moscow’s famous communist GUM shopping centre – now
filled with ritzy boutiques and the top designer brands.
alt="The world-renowned Bolshoi Theatre"
NIGHTLIFE
With the beautiful people now out in force on the Moscow club scene, there is a wealth of venues to choose from. Head to Propaganda for a laid-back sample of clubbing Muscovite style [7 Bolshoi Zlatoustinsky, +7 (495) 624 5732, www.propagandamoscow.com] or try cult favourite The Chinese
Pilot [25 Proyezd Lubyansky, +7 (495) 623 2896; www.jao-da.ru].
COMING UP
Russia’s Winter Festival takes place towards the end of December in Izmailovo Park and is a great way to experience a Moscow Christmas complete with free blinis and the Snow Maiden. If you’re in Moscow in mid-November then you’ll catch the opera Carmen at the Bolshoi Theatre (20-23 November), and the ballet Giselle runs through to mid-December (9 and 30 November, 13 and 14 December). [Teatralnaya Ploshcard, +7 (495) 250 7317;
www.bolshoi.ru].
