“Grand Maket Russia” is truly a unique attraction in Petersburg. Here, every visitor can feel like Gulliver: observing a tiny world and its inhabitants.
I have already written about the “Peter the Great's Water Area” at “Admiralteyskaya.” Although these two museums are similar in nature, they represent different geographical areas. While “Peter the Great's Water Area” showcases old St. Petersburg of the 18th century, “Grand Maket Russia” features our vast country, from the bridges of Vladivostok to the Gothic buildings of Kaliningrad.
How to Get There by Metro
“Grand Maket” is located in the Moskovsky district of Saint Petersburg, with the nearest metro station being “Moskovskie Vorota.” After exiting the metro, turn right and cross the road to the other side of the avenue. Then walk straight and turn onto Zastavskaya Street. Continue straight for two blocks, and on your right, you will see the model building.
Museum Address: 16L Tsvetochnaya Street. The price of an adult ticket is 480 rubles (winter 2019).
Tour of the Model
“Grand Maket Russia” is the largest in Russia and the second largest in the world, with only the model in Germany being larger. The area of this model is about 800 square meters. All models are scaled at 1:87.
The exhibition is divided into two main parts—East and West. They are separated by the Ural Mountains. Of course, this division is conditional. The western and eastern parts are further divided into smaller territories: Siberia, the Far East, Northern and Central regions, and others.
A distinctive feature of this model is the large number of trains. Freight, passenger, at stations and on the move—trains are everywhere. In some areas, you can see transparent windows showing the “backstage” of the model—here you can observe how trains pass beneath the model to appear on the surface in a new tunnel.
Another feature of the exhibition is the day and night cycle. Every 12 minutes, the tiny world plunges into darkness. It gets dark first in the east. An electric sun rises there. In the western part of the model, the night brings stormy weather—thunder rumbles, and lightning flashes.
Near many exhibits in the model, there are special buttons that trigger various interactive scenes. You can turn on a wind generator, start helicopter blades, or make chickens peck at feed. Some scenes are triggered by a timer; for example, you can watch a forest fire being extinguished every few minutes. Believe me, it looks impressive.
In the model, you can find well-known landmarks: the Moscow Kremlin, the Exchange Building on Vasilyevsky Island in Petersburg, or the Cathedral of Kaliningrad. But there are also many fictional locations, so don't look for exact matches with real topography and city locations. Among the characters in the model, you can even find mythical ones, like the Yeti. And not far from it, you can see “crop circles” from a UFO landing.
In summary:
- An interesting and unusual attraction that will appeal to both adults and children;
- Binoculars and audio guides are available for rent at the museum;
- The museum is quite far from the city’s tourist center; it is most convenient to plan your route using online maps.
