Moscow Shopping

Shopping in Moscow can be an adventure. With the new infusion of modernization that has occurred in the last twenty years since the fall of the Soviet Empire, the city has overall become more vibrant and the population’s taste for the finer things has been escalating. As such, the visitor to this city will find plenty of upmarket shops selling elegant and expensive wares. But it’s important to note that bargains can still be had in the right places. Many stores available in the West opened up branches in Moscow after the fall of the U.S.S.R. , so westerners will be able to find goods from some of their favorite retailers back home, including those from Gucci, Tiffany, and Rolex, among many others.

Russia’s most famous department store is TSUM, or the Central Universal Store. This department store is found at Petrovka Street, in the vicinity of the Bolshoi Theater and Red Square. Many of the stores specialize in fashion, jewelry, and fragrances. Numerous brands are available.

GUM, or Main Department Store, is an elegant shopping complex in Moscow, found on Red Square’s east side. It is seen as a wonder of architecture for its mix of medieval and modern styles. It is full of souvenir shops and boutiques selling designer goods.

A famous shopping district in Moscow is Okhotny Ryad. This district is close to Red Square, and is also near Alexandrovsky Sad, Tverskaya Street, and Teatralnaya Square. This is an unusual shopping district, as it is three levels of stores of stores, cafes, restaurants, banks, and travel agencies, all underground. Many tourists travel to this district just to marvel at the uniqueness and the variety.

CrocusCity is a large mall on Volokolamskoye Highway, featuring hundreds of thousands of products for sale, including furnishings, electronics, video and audio items, books, flowers, toys, and many more items. There are also famous designer stores at CrocusCity, such as Agent Provocateur.

Shoppers should be aware that the hours the stores are open are typically 9:00am until 6:00pm from Monday until Saturday. The larger and more commercial shops have hours from 10:00am until 10:00pm. With some smaller stores, visitors may find that they are closed between 1:00pm and 3:00pm.