Moscow Transport Museum Unveils Metro Audio Guide

The Moscow Transport Museum has launched the Metro Art Tour audio guide, offering a self-guided introduction to the art and architecture of the city’s underground. The route runs through six stations, with audio commentary and activities encouraging visitors to look closely at their surroundings.

Six stations, one route

The route includes Kievskaya, Ploshchad Revolyutsii, Mayakovskaya, Belorusskaya, Novoslobodskaya and Komsomolskaya. At each stop, visitors are invited to pay attention to the architecture, sculpture and monumental art, and learn how the stations’ designs were created.

The stated duration varies: Moscow Deputy Mayor for Transport and Industry Maksim Liksutov puts it at around an hour and a half, while the route announcement gives a duration of two hours. Before setting out, check the museum’s latest information.

Audio stories in the creators’ own voices

The audio guide is built around monologues by architects Lev Lilje and Alexey Dushkin, sculptor Matvey Manizer and artist Pavel Korin. Their stories guide listeners’ attention, suggesting where to look, which details to notice and what to compare them with.

The format is designed for independent exploration, not just listening to historical information. Short interactive activities are included along the route: visitors answer questions, assemble an ornament from its parts or put events in chronological order.

The Metro as part of a museum exhibit

The museum links the new audio guide to the idea of the Metro as a place where urban infrastructure meets architecture and art. Museum director Oksana Bondarenko notes that the walk can be a starting point for discovering works featured in a dedicated section of the Moscow Transport Museum’s permanent exhibition on floor −1.

The project adds to the museum’s guided tours exploring the underground. These include Metro: The Dawn of an Era, devoted to the Sokolnicheskaya and Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya lines, and The Unknown Metro, which visits stations rarely included in familiar routes. The Metro Art Tour focuses specifically on the artistic design of six stations.

How to prepare for the walk

Because the audio guide links stations on different lines, it is worth planning transfers and time for exploring in advance. The interactive activities are designed for visitors to look closely at details on site, not just listen.

The museum has presented the Metro Art Tour as a new format for a self-guided excursion. Before your trip, check the Moscow Transport Museum’s website for the audio guide’s availability and the route’s current duration.