Russia
15 Best Museums in Russia
The museums travelers rate highest across Russia, with what makes each worth the trip.
Ranked by traveler review volume across 552 tracked places in Russia. Updated monthly.
Hermitage Museum
Museum · Saint PetersburgFree entryThe State Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia, holds the largest collection of paintings in the world.
Read our full guide →Polytechnic Museum
Museum · MoscowThe Polytechnic Museum in Moscow is a premier science and technology museum, founded in 1872. Its vast collection spans transportation, energy, computing, and space, with interactive exhibits and historic artifacts.
Read our full guide →Tretyakov Gallery
Museum · MoscowThe Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow is the definitive museum of Russian fine art, housing over 180,000 works spanning the 11th to 20th centuries.
Read our full guide →Russian Museum
Museum · Saint PetersburgThe State Russian Museum, housed in the Neoclassical Mikhailovsky Palace on Arts Square, is the world's largest depository of Russian fine art.
Read our full guide →Diamond Fund
Museum · MoscowThe Diamond Fund is a unique museum within the Moscow Kremlin, housing an extraordinary collection of state jewels, precious stones, and gold nuggets.
Read our full guide →Winter Palace
Museum · Saint PetersburgThe Winter Palace in Saint Petersburg was the official residence of the Russian emperors from 1732 to 1917.
Read our full guide →Pushkin Museum
Museum · MoscowThe Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts is a vast treasure house of European art, spanning ancient Greek and Roman sculptures to Impressionist and Post-Impressionist paintings.
Read our full guide →The State Central Museum of Contemporary History of Russia
Museum · MoscowThe State Central Museum of Contemporary History of Russia offers a deep dive into the nation's tumultuous journey from the late Tsarist era through the Soviet period and into the post-1991 years.
Read our full guide →The museum of the Patriotic War of 1812
Museum · MoscowThe Museum of the Patriotic War of 1812 is a specialized museum located in central Moscow, within the historic Tverskoy district.
Read our full guide →L. Tolstoi's Khamovniki Memorial Estate
Museum · MoscowFree entryL. Tolstoi's Khamovniki Memorial Estate is a serene museum dedicated to the life and work of the legendary Russian author Leo Tolstoy.
Read our full guide →Zurab Tseretelli's Art Gallery
Museum · MoscowZurab Tseretelli's Art Gallery, housed in a grand 18th-century mansion on Prechistenka Street, offers an intimate look at one of Russia's most prolific and controversial contemporary artists.
Read our full guide →S. Obraztsov State Academical Puppet Theatre
Museum · MoscowThe S. Obraztsov State Academical Puppet Theatre is one of the largest and most famous puppet theatres in the world, located in central Moscow.
Read our full guide →Zoological Museum of Moscow State University
Museum · MoscowThe Zoological Museum of Moscow State University is one of Russia's oldest and largest natural history museums, located on Bolshaya Nikitskaya Street within the Garden Ring.
Read our full guide →Vernadsky State Geological Museum of Russian Academy of Sciences
Museum · MoscowThe Vernadsky State Geological Museum, part of the Russian Academy of Sciences, is a treasure trove for anyone fascinated by the Earth's composition.
Read our full guide →MUSEUM-ESTATE OF F.I. SHALYAPIN
Museum · MoscowThe Museum-Estate of F.I. Shalyapin is a historic house museum located on Novinskiy Bulvar in Moscow's Presnensky district.
Read our full guide →
Good to know
What is the best-known of the museums in Russia?
Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg is the most reviewed, with 26,761 traveler reviews and a 4.7 rating. That makes it the safe choice if you are only fitting in one.
Which of Russia's museums is worth going out of your way for?
Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow rates highest at 4.7 out of 5 across 5,965 reviews. Smaller crowds than the headline entry usually explain the gap.
Which city in Russia has the most museums?
Moscow, with 12 on this list, ahead of Saint Petersburg on 3. The list spans 2 cities in total, capped at three per city so one big city cannot crowd out the rest of the country.
Are any of these museums free to visit?
Yes, 2: Hermitage Museum, L. Tolstoi's Khamovniki Memorial Estate. That is based on each place's own visiting information, not an assumption about the category.
How is this list of museums ranked?
By how many travelers reviewed each place, filtered to those rated well enough to be worth your time, drawn from 552 tracked places in Russia. No one pays to appear on it, and the order is refreshed monthly as new reviews land.
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