Gorky Park, Neskuchny Garden and Sparrow Hills along the river: a walk in Moscow

A long riverside walk from the Muzeon sculpture park through Gorky Park and the shady Neskuchny Garden, along the Andreevskaya embankment to the Academy of Sciences terrace and the classic panorama by Moscow State University.

Best time: Late afternoon in the warm months, timed to reach the Sparrow Hills viewpoint for sunset; the last stretch climbs the wooded slope.

The route, stop by stop

1
Muzeon Park of Arts
Sculpture park next to the New Tretyakov Gallery. 20 min
An open-air sculpture park on the Krymsky Val embankment where sculptures stand on the lawns, among them monuments to Soviet leaders of the 1930s-1950s and Socialist Realist…
2
Gorky Park
Walk the riverside promenade through the park. 30 min
Moscow's best-known central park along the Moskva River, one of the largest and most popular in the city, joined to Neskuchny Garden and named after Maxim Gorky.
3
Neskuchny Garden
Old estate park with limes and paths down to the river. 30 min
Almost 60 hectares of landscape park left from the Neskuchnoye noble estate, with old limes, squirrels and shady paths down to the river. It is formally part of Gorky Park but…
4
Andreevsky Monastery
Small monastery on the Andreevskaya embankment, first recorded in the 17th century. 10 min
5
Russian Academy of Sciences viewpoint
Free terrace about 60 metres up by the Academy of Sciences building, open round the clock. 15 min
A free terrace about 60 metres up by the Academy of Sciences building with one of the widest panoramas of the city: the river embankments, the Academy and the Gagarin monument…
6
Sparrow Hills Viewpoint
The classic city panorama over Luzhniki; the cable car goes down from here. 20 min
The high right bank of the Moskva River with the city's classic panorama over Luzhniki to the centre, next to the Moscow State University main building; a cable car runs down…
7
Moscow State University Main Building
End at the tallest Stalin high-rise. 10 min
The tallest of the seven Stalin high-rises, 183.2 m high, the central building of the Moscow State University campus on Sparrow Hills.

Walking directions

Gorky Park, Neskuchny Garden and Sparrow Hills along the river

The route, stop by stop

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