Top 5 places in Moscow for the space lovers

Moscow is a top destination for all admirers of space exploration. This guide will cover the main space attractions of the city

Moscow Planetarium

Moscow Planetarium is one of the largest in the world and the oldest planetarium in Russia.

It was recently reopened to become a significant educational center for space lovers. Inside, you can find Large and Small Star Halls, the Lunarium interactive museum, Urania Museum, and a 4D cinema and an observatory. In the Lunarium, you can ride a bike around the Galaxy, dock a spaceship with a station, and measure your weight on Mars. In addition to many educational projects presented here, the planetarium provides visitors with exclusive services. For example, lovers can organize a real date under the stars: a romantic rendezvous occurs after the last guest leaves the building.

The address: Sadovaya-Kudrinskaya ul. 5/1, Metro: Krasnopresnenskaya, Barrikadnaya

Hours of operation: daily 10 am to 9 pm; closed Tuesdays

Moscow Museum of Cosmonautics

The Cosmonautics Museum is a must-see destination for all travelers interested in space exploration. Here, you can see models of satellites and a space station, spacesuits, and personal belongings of the first cosmonauts, stuffed Belka and Strelka, space chess, a rocket engine, and even samples of lunar soil. Among the museum collection highlights are three flown Soyuz capsules and an original Apollo-11 spacesuit of Michael Collins. The museum takes you through space exploration from the beginnings of the Space Race to the present. You can find authentic space food in the gift shop.

Your space tour will not be complete without a walk outside the museum. Atop the museum is a sculpture representing a rocket heading towards space, and at the foot, you'll see a statue of Tsiolkovsky, one of the founders of rocket science. Do not miss the Cosmonauts Alley to see the busts of the most important Soviet cosmonauts in history, including Yuri Gagarin, Valentina Tereshkova, Alexey Leonov, and others.

The address: Prospekt Mira 111, Metro: VDNKh

Hours of operation: Tue, Wed, Fri-Sun 10:00-19:00, Thu 10:00-21:00; closed Mondays

Cosmos pavilion at the VDNH

Another space attraction in the same part of Moscow is the Cosmos pavilion in VDNKh park. You’ll need to walk 20 min walk from the same metro station VDNKh that you needed to reach the Moscow Museum of Cosmonautics.

An interesting exhibit in the center is a full-scale model of the Mir orbital complex. The exposition presents both the equipment of the time of the first launches of spacecraft and samples of modern technologies.

The museum features quite a lot of interactive exhibits, educational games, and quizzes. Thus, you can communicate with a space robot, perform a virtual flight into space, or "land" on a scientific mission on the moon. The exhibition is a must if you wish to explore Moscow with kids.

The pavilion itself is a unique place from the architectural point of view and one of the highlights of VDNKh park.

The address: Prospect Mira 119, pavilion 34, Metro: VDNKh

Hours of operation: daily 11:00-22:00; closed Mondays

Korolev house-museum

Not many Moscow visitors know about the museum of Sergej Korolev, which is only 10 minutes walk from the Moscow Museum of Cosmonautics. Korolev was a leading Soviet rocket engineer and spacecraft designer. He was the one who launched the first dogs and the first human being, Yuri Gagarin, into space. It was in this house where the designer lived from 1960 until he died in 1966.

The museum interior, furniture, and personal belongings remain almost intact since the time of his life. You'll see various documents, letters, photographs, household items, works of fine art, and his extensive library.

The address: 1-aya Ostankinskaya ul.28, Metro: VDNKh

Hours of operation: Tue, Wed, Fri-Sun 11:00-19:00, Thu 11:00-21:00; closed Mondays

Star City

A truly unique experience is to visit the town where Russian Cosmonauts live.

The tour gives you an opportunity to learn more about the everyday life of the former secret town. You can see the Russian spacecraft "Soyuz", "MIR" space station, the model of ISS (International Space Station), and a gigantic centrifuge designed to simulate G-force. In addition, they offer a lot of exclusive services such as centrifuge training or Hydro-laboratory training.

Please note that a visit to Star City has to be arranged a minimum of 45 days in advance.

With extensive research and study, Simon passionately creates blogs on divergent topics. His writings are unique and utterly grasping owing to his dedication in researching for distinctive topics.