Moscow in 6 Days on a Budget (With Daily Costs)
Six days builds on the 5-day plan of the Kremlin, St Basil’s, two free park days, and the Moscow City towers, adding a Bolshoi Theatre evening and a wander around Patriarch’s Ponds. Sort out cash before anything else, since Western cards do not work anywhere in Russia. Days 1 through 5 are unchanged; Day 6 is the cultural splurge day. Shorter trip? See the 4-day or 5-day versions. Have a full week? See the 7-day plan, which adds a flexible finale to this one.
Book these before you go:
- Kremlin Armoury Chamber, online-only from 17 days ahead, 1,400 RUB (kreml.ru )
- St Basil’s Cathedral, roughly 1,000-2,000 RUB, check the current price (tickets.shm.ru )
- Tretyakov Gallery, around 700 RUB (tretyakovgallery.ru )
- Bolshoi Theatre, ONLY at bolshoi.ru , released roughly 3 months ahead; resale sites mark tickets up 200-500 percent
- A central budget bed: check rates on Ostrovok.ru
| Day | Focus | Est. spend (excl. lodging) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Red Square, Kremlin and Armoury Chamber, cash sorted | 3,500-5,000 RUB |
| 2 | St Basil’s, Metro palace stations, Tretyakov Gallery | 2,500-3,500 RUB |
| 3 | Gorky Park, GUM, Zamoskvorechye, all free | 500-1,000 RUB |
| 4 | VDNKh grounds and Kolomenskoye estate, both free | 500-1,000 RUB |
| 5 | Moscow City towers (optional splurge), Arbat Street | 1,800-3,000 RUB |
| 6 | Bolshoi evening, Patriarch’s Ponds | 3,000-15,000 RUB |
Is it worth buying Bolshoi tickets on a resale site?
No. The Bolshoi doesn’t partner with resellers, who mark up official prices 200-500 percent, specifically targeting foreign visitors who can’t pay on bolshoi.ru with a foreign card. Buy at the official box office in person with cash on arrival, or via bolshoi.ru if you’ve arranged a MIR card; either way, skip the resale sites entirely.
Day 1: Red Square and the Kremlin
Morning: land, exchange cash (USD, EUR, or CNY) at a bank counter rather than a street window, and settle into a central budget bed near a metro stop.
Midday: walk Red Square, free and open at all hours. Photograph St Basil’s from the outside for now; its ticket is tomorrow’s stop.
Afternoon: the Kremlin’s Armoury Chamber , 1,400 RUB adult, booked online from 17 days ahead. Arrive 45 minutes early for airport-style security; large bags go in free storage at the Kutafya Tower, not inside.
Evening: a stolovaya cafeteria meal, 600-900 RUB, near Red Square. Card terminals here only read Russian-issued cards, so pay cash.
Day 2: St Basil’s, the Metro, and the Tretyakov
Morning: St Basil’s Cathedral , a separate ticketed building from the Kremlin, not part of it, roughly 1,000-2,000 RUB (confirm the current price before you go, sources disagree).
Midday: ride the Metro’s palace stations, Komsomolskaya and Mayakovskaya, for the price of a single Troika-card ride, roughly 75 RUB.
Afternoon: the Tretyakov Gallery , around 700 RUB, Russia’s premier collection of Russian art and one of the best-value tickets in the city.
Evening: a biznes-lanch-style dinner or Georgian khachapuri, 400-700 RUB.
Day 3: Gorky Park, GUM, and Zamoskvorechye
Morning: Gorky Park, free, 24 hours, along the Moskva River. Rent a bike if you want to (extra cost); walking it costs nothing.
Midday: window-shop GUM, the 1893 arcade facing Red Square, free to walk through even though it’s a private mall today, not a Soviet state store.
Afternoon: wander Zamoskvorechye, the old merchant quarter across the river, quieter and lower-rise than the Kremlin side, free to explore.
Evening: a stolovaya or biznes-lanch dinner, 400-900 RUB.
Day 4: VDNKh and Kolomenskoye
Morning: the VDNKh grounds, the vast former Soviet exhibition park, free to enter; the restored Cosmos pavilion carries a modest separate fee if you want to go inside.
Midday: ride the metro south to Kolomenskoye, a former royal estate roughly 10km from the Kremlin. Park entry is free; individual museum buildings run 50-350 RUB if you want to see inside them.
Afternoon: keep wandering Kolomenskoye’s grounds, genuinely one of the lowest-commitment “estate” stops in the city, no dedicated travel day required.
Evening: a Georgian dinner, 400-700 RUB.
Day 5: Moscow City and Arbat Street
Morning: decide on the OKO observation deck, 1,800 RUB, or skip it and keep the day free.
Midday: walk the Moscow City towers cluster on foot regardless, a working financial district as much as a sightseeing stop, free to view from ground level.
Afternoon: wander Arbat Street, Moscow’s pedestrian tourist strip, free to browse, though it’s also where the fake-police and string-bracelet scams concentrate, keep your passport in your bag, not your hand.
Evening: a mid-range dinner, roughly 5,000 RUB for two without drinks, before tonight’s Bolshoi curtain if you booked one.
Day 6: Bolshoi evening and Patriarch’s Ponds
Morning: sleep in, or use the slow start to double back to any museum building you didn’t finish earlier in the week.
Midday: wander Patriarch’s Ponds, a compact, well-off district around a small park pond, free to walk, boutique cafes if you want a sit-down coffee.
Afternoon: a light lunch near the Ponds, 400-700 RUB, before the evening’s main event.
Evening: Bolshoi Theatre , restricted-view upper gallery seats from around 500 RUB, stalls for a high-demand ballet running well into five figures; buy only through the official box office or bolshoi.ru, never a resale site.
How much should you actually budget per day?
Roughly 500-15,000 RUB a day (about USD 6-192) excluding lodging, from nearly free park days to a Bolshoi night. Add the Aeroexpress fare (about 500 RUB) if you’re arriving via Sheremetyevo, and keep enough cash on hand since foreign cards won’t cover any of it.
Six days covers the city thoroughly, cultural splurge included; extend into a 7-day plan and the extra day is yours to spend however you like.