With the fall time there also comes the rain. If you are deciding to visit Moscow during fall or winter you will probably experience one or more rainy days. But don’t let that scare you off because the Russian capital has plenty of activities to offer even if the weather is not at its best. In this blog you will find five recommendations for activities on a rainy day in Moscow.
Underground shopping in Okhotny Ryad
The underground shopping mall Okhotny Ryad is located near the Red Square but unlike GUM or TSUM offers a more affordable price range. It is one of the largest shopping centres in Moscow and on its three floors you will find over 160 brands of clothing, footwear, makeup and much more. On the top floor there are a lot of cafes where you can enjoy a great view to the Kremlin. On the lower floor bistros and snack bars will make sure that you won’t get hungry during your visit. The Okhotny Ryad shopping mall is opened daily from 10am to 10pm.
Address: Manezhnaya Ploschad; Metro station: Okhotny Ryad, Teatralnaya, Ploschad Revolyutsii
Go to a bookstore to read
Moscovites love reading. It doesn’t matter whether young or old and even during the rush hour you will find someone reading a book in the metro. If it’s raining just go to one of the numerous bookstores in the city and let the hours pass until the rain finally stops. Dom Knigi is a cultural attraction for tourists as well as locals. It was opened in 1960 and offers 13 different departments. You will also find books in different languages like English, French, German and Spanish.
Dom Knigi even offers a “Russian as a foreign language” section for foreign visitors so why not give it a try and sit down to read there. The bookstore is opened every day until 23.
Location: Novy Arbat; Metro station: Arbatskaya
Visit food markets
Use the excuse of bad weather to indulge yourself with your favourite foods in one of the city’s food markets. The Danilovsky market is the oldest trading place in Moscow. It is named after the near Danilov Monastery which was founded in 1282. The market assumedly has been existing since the 13th or 14th century and was fully renovated in 2017.
Today you can still find fruits, vegetables, meat and fish in the stalls but also plenty of eateries. Aside from typical Russian food you can also discover flavours from all around the world like Greek, Chinese and many more. With so many delicious dishes to try from you can easily spend your whole day here. Even if you don’t plan on eating anything be sure to take your time to soak in the unique atmosphere of this food market.
Address: Mytnaya ulitsa; Metro station: Tulskaya
Stand above the rain in the Sixty Bar
Why not use a rainy day to go out for some cocktails and food in the evening in one of Moscow’s rooftop bars while enjoying an incredible view over the city. The Sixty Bar is Europe’s highest-placed restaurant and is located on the 62nd floor of the Federation tower. You can choose from a wide variety of food and cocktails. While you might spend a bit more money the view is incredible. Prices for cocktails start from 900 rubles and the prices for coffee drinks from 450 rubles.
Adress: Presnenskaya Naberezhnaya; Metro station: Mezhdunarodnaya
Visit non-art museums
If you ‘re not a fan of paintings and sculptures or if you’ve already been to plenty of art museums there are many other choices in Moscow for different tastes. Become a small kid again when visiting the famous Cosmonautics museum. You probably won’t leave this place until you’ve discovered every detail of the museum. There is a large exhibition area where the history of space exploration is presented and you will see anything related to outer space – from cosmonaut suits, spacecrafts to the first artificial earth satellite. You can even buy real space food from one of the several vending machines there. Why not try it? The cost for a ticket for the museum is only 250 rubles.
Adress: Prospekt Mira; Metro station: VDNKh
