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Regular version of the site

Winter in Moscow: New Museum Expositions, Fairs and Skating Rinks

With the frosty weekend and long New Year public holidays approaching, check out our list of recommendations on what to do in Moscow this winter.

Skating Rinks

Over 150 skating rinks are open in the city. We have prepared an update to our list of the most popular rinks, which includes Red Square, Gorky Park, VDNKH and others. As part of COVID prevention policies, visitors to all skating rinks in Moscow must register and/or purchase online tickets in advance. The number of slots in each rink is limited, so we recommend planning your skating beforehand.

You can also see the list of skating rinks open as part of the Moscow Seasons festival.

Cryptography Museum

December 2021 saw the opening of the new Cryptography Museum in Moscow. Its exposition covers the past, present and future of cryptography, mathematics and related fields. The museum features multimedia exhibits, infographics and interactive islands with a ‘look & feel’ format. The museum building, which in Soviet times was a secret institute where scholars developed equipment to encrypt telephone communications, is now open to the public for the first time.

Tickets: 250 – 500 RUB. Buy online.

Address: 25 Botanicheskaya Ulitsa, Building 4. How to get there.

Important: A QR code (from vaccination or a fresh PCR test) and an ID are required.

New Exposition at the Victory Museum

The Victory Museum at Poklonnaya Gora has a new exposition: ‘Feat of the Nation’. While the museum’s other exhibitions usually focus on military aspects of the Great Patriotic War (the term used in Russia to refer to the Soviet involvement in WWII), the new exposition pays tribute to thousands of ordinary citizens—scientists, health and cultural workers—who selflessly worked for the country during the difficult wartime period. The exhibition combines unique exhibits, visual effects and scenery recreated with stunning authenticity. Admission to the ‘Feat of the Nation’ exposition is possible only as part of excursions.

Address: 3 Ploshad Pobedy. How to get there.

Opening hours: 10 am – 10 pm.

Tickets: 500 RUB. Visitors can buy tickets in advance online or on-site (if there are free slots available).

Important: A QR code (from vaccination or a fresh PCR test) and an ID are required.

Journey to Christmas

The annual Journey to Christmas fairs are open in four locations in downtown Moscow: Ploshad Revolutsii, Tverskaya Ploshad (near the Yury Dolgoruky monument), Kuznetski Most (near TSUM), and Novy Arbat (buildings 13, 15, 19 and 22).

The festival locations feature ornaments, photo zones, merry-go-rounds and Christmas fairs.

Christmas Concert at Praktika Theatre

On January 6th and 7th, 2022, Praktika Theatre will present their holiday Christmas Concert at the Museum of Moscow.

The team of the Christmas Concert evolved in 2011 at the initiative of Cazimir Liske and Odin Biron, American actors who came to study in Moscow. They started out by gathering their friends for impromptu Christmas concerts, and by 2016, the core programme of the project had taken shape.

Singers from Russia and the U.S. create an atmosphere of a Christmas night at home full of Russian and American carols, New Year hits, and variations on popular soundtracks. The programme includes a mini performance of O. Henry’s The Gift of the Magi.

Address: 2 Zubovsky Bulvar, Museum of Moscow.

Tickets: 2,000 – 4,000 RUB. Buy online.