TOP 10 landmarks along the Moscow Central Circle (PHOTOS)
The Moscow Central Circle (MCC) opened on 10 September 2016. It’s based on the Moscow Circular Railway, built in 1903, which ran within a radius of several kilometers from the city center. Back then, this was the outskirts, but, today, the area is home to modern residential neighborhoods, skyscrapers and huge parks. We’ve put together a list of all the most interesting places worth taking a 54‑km loop for!
1. Moscow City
Let’s start our journey with skyscrapers! ‘Moscow City’ is the Russian capital’s business district, home to towering office blocks, residential buildings and shopping malls. The best views of the skyscrapers open up from the embankment. The nearest MCC station is called ‘Moscow City’.
2. Botanical Garden
The main botanical garden of the Russian Academy of Sciences is located between the ‘Vladykino’ (main entrance) and ‘Botanichesky Sad’ stations. It’s the largest in Europe, home to more than 8,000 plant species, both in greenhouses and in the park area. During warmer months (April to October), the Japanese Garden is open, featuring pagodas, tiny waterfalls and ponds.
3. ‘Huaming’ Chinese Park
In 2023, a park designed in the traditional Chinese landscape-style opened near the ‘Botanichesky Sad’ station. Most of the materials were brought from China. Visitors pass through a large archway with mythical creatures and, inside, you can wander along paths with pavilions surrounded by rocks and water.
4. ‘Losiny Ostrov’ National Park
The ‘Belokamennaya’ station leads directly to this vast forest park. It’s the largest forest within city limits in the world. Not only moose live there (hence its name), but also hares, foxes, beavers and many other animals.
5. Rostokinsky Aqueduct
Not far from the ‘Rostokino’ station, you can see an old section of Moscow’s water supply system – the Rostokino Aqueduct. It was built in the 1780s to carry water to Moscow from the village of Bolshiye Mytishchi. There were a total of five such aqueducts in different parts of the city, but only this one has survived to this day.
6. Izmailovo Kremlin
From a distance, the kremlin near the ‘Izmailovo’ station looks like an ancient castle: tall white‑stone walls, colourful roofs and gingerbread‑style houses. However, it was built in the early 2000s, inspired by Russian fairy tales. It houses several museums (e.g., the Museum of Bread), a famous open-air square where artists sell their works and a large flea market with Soviet‑era items and trinkets.
7. Izmailovsky Park
And next to the kremlin, you can visit one of the largest natural parks in Moscow. It features a historic series of cascading ponds, as well as rare trees and plants. The park, which offers cultural and recreational activities – including a Ferris wheel and other attractions – gradually gives way to the forest.
8. Tyufeleva Grove Park
If you get off at the ‘ZIL’ station, you will find yourself in a modern Central‑European‑style neighborhood built on the site of the automobile factory of the same name. There, you will find unique buildings, a private museum of contemporary art, beautiful embankments and piers. The heart of the quarter is ‘Tyufeleva Roscha’ Park, with a giant pergola over a kilometer long that symbolises an assembly line and serves as a reminder of the area’s automotive past.
9. Gagarin Square
One of the capital’s most recognisable landmarks is the 42‑meter monument to Yuri Gagarin, mounted on a pedestal shaped like a rocket taking off. It’s located near the ‘Ploshchad Gagarina’ station. And if you walk a little further, you will find yourself in Moscow’s oldest park – Neskuchny Sad.
10. Novodevichy Convent
Not far from the ‘Luzhniki’ station stands one of Moscow’s most famous monasteries. It was founded back in the 16th century. The convent complex is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.