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Any advice on "Imagine Asia Travel Agent"

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We're really pleased that you are happy with your itinerary for your trip.

Imagine Asia are part of the Imagine Travel Group. The Imagine Travel Group includes Imagine Africa, Imagine Latin America and Imagine India. We are all part of the same office, dedicated to offering the same high levels of service and using our honest opinions on the different hotels and areas we've visited to design great holidays.

The Imagine Travel Group was established first with the company Imagine Africa so for independent opinions on our levels of service there are plenty of reviews built up over the years for Imagine Africa.

We are also ATOL bonded (number 6607).

I hope this has helped.

Kind regards,

Did you book with Imagine Asia, would you recommend them?

I can thoroughly recommend using Imagine India for holiday's in India.

I booked a holiday in India from which we got back on Monday (10th Feb 2014). All the plans worked perfectly. In fact, we had less issues than any other holiday I have booked through a travel agent before. Worst problem was one of the hotels failing to re-stock our mini-bar!

It was the second cheapest quote I got but James and the team demonstrated an excellent knowledge of the country which gave me the confidence to use them. (I have no links with the company or it's staff - apart from booking this holiday through them).

I would not hesitate to use them again.

Travellled with imagine India in April. Cannot fault service, fantastic guides and personal chauffeurs. Hotel booked in Agra had no hot water, we mentioned to our guide when he picked us up and without us knowing arranged for us to be upgraded to presidential suite in samode palace (not to be missed) at our next stop in jaiphur. Ended with week at taj exotica hotel in goa. Fantastic.

Intend using imagine Asia maybe next year for tour of china. They listen to what you want and arrange /suggest with no pressure.

Marie-Madeleine & John Scott

I googled top travel agencies in the Uk for 2014 and imagine travel won about 6 awards so now I am looking into Myanmar with them. And seeing all these good reviews I am more convinced that I will be doing the right choice

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More than just a

Home to a rich and fascinating past, an exhilarating present day and a remarkably promising future – a cruise of Asia provides a storied journey of discovery permeated with vibrant cultures, colourful cities and amazing contrasts. Established as the world’s largest continent, Asia stretches from the fringes of Europe and the Arabian Peninsula to the Far East; with some of its countries rivalling continents in size, you’ll uncover vast and diverse territories. In every region of Asia you’ll find enthralling narratives of influential civilizations, captivating cultures, era-defining architecture and lost empires.

We create Asia cruise holidays with a range of well-known cruise lines, paired with immersive land tours, so you can maximise the things you see and do while on holiday. We take care of all the details including flights, transfers, hotels and tour excursions, so all you need to do is pack your suitcase and passport and look forward to your Asia holiday.

Our most popular Asia cruise holidays

Luxury Cunard Japanese Voyage & Mount Fuji in Cherry Blossom

• 10 night full-board cruise on board Queen Elizabeth
• FREE fully escorted tours of Mount Fuji
• FREE hotel stay in Tokyo

India's Luxury Maharajas' Express Rail & All-Inclusive Asia Cruise

• 12 night all-inclusive cruise on board Celebrity Millennium®
• 6 night luxury Maharajas' Express rail journey with fully escorted tours
• Five-star hotel stays in Delhi and Mumbai
• All flights and transfers

All-Inclusive Voyage & India Experience: The Himalayas & 5* Golden Triangle Tour

• FREE  Classic Drinks, Wi-Fi and Tips
• Rail journey on board the Shatabdi Express and Shimla Toy Train
• Fully escorted tours of the Golden Triangle, Ranthambore, Shimla and more

Luxury All-Inclusive Celebrity Voyage, Maldives and Bali New Year Celebrations

• FREE classic drinks, WI-FI & tips included
• All-inclusive hotel stays in Bali and the Maldives
• Five-star hotel stay in Singapore

Cunard Queen Anne Voyage & All-Inclusive Maldives Escape

• 13 night full-board cruise on board the  BRAND-NEW  Queen Anne
• Five-star hotel stays in Singapore and Dubai
• Four-star all-inclusive hotel stay in the Maldives
• All flights & transfers

Luxury All-Inclusive Japan Voyage with Autumn Cherry Blossom & Mount Fuji Tour

• 12 night all-inclusive* cruise on board Celebrity Millennium® 
• FREE Classic Drinks Package, Wi-Fi and Tips
• 3 night four-star hotel stay at the Grand Nikko Tokyo Daiba 

Cherry Blossom Discovery, All-Inclusive Asia Voyage & Luxury Bali Retreat

• 16 night all-inclusive luxury cruise on board Silver Moon
• FREE hotel stays in Tokyo and Singapore
• FREE 5* all-inclusive hotel stay in Bali
• All flights and FREE transfers

Opulent Silversea Voyage with All-Inclusive Maldives Retreat, Great Barrier Reef & Blue Mountains

• 18 night all-inclusive luxury cruise on board the flagship Silver Nova
• FREE fully escorted tours of Blue Mountains & The Great Barrier Reef
• FREE hotel stays in Maldives, Singapore, Cairns & Sydney
• All flights and FREE transfers included

Riches of India, Japan's Cherry Blossom & All-Inclusive Asia Voyage

• 16 night all-inclusive luxury cruise on board  Silver Muse
• FREE fully escorted tours of the Golden Triangle, and Mount Fuji
• FREE hotel stays in Delhi, Agra, Jaipur, Singapore and Tokyo
• FREE flights & transfers

Luxury Cunard Voyage from Barcelona to Singapore with Hotel Stays

• 20 night full-board cruise on board Queen Elizabeth
• FREE hotel stays in Barcelona and Singapore
• FREE flights                                                          

Ultra-Luxury All-inclusive Seabourn Cruise & India's Maharajas' Express Rail

• 14 night all-inclusive ultra-luxury cruise on board Seabourn Encore
• 3 night luxury Maharajas' Express rail journey with fully escorted tours
• Five-star hotel stays in Delhi & Singapore

Luxury Celebrity Cruise, Japan in Bloom & Mount Fuji Explorer

• 12 night five-star all-inclusive cruise on board Celebrity Millennium®
• FREE 3 night hotel stay at the Grand Nikko Tokyo Daiba or similar
• FREE Fully escorted tours of Mount Fuji, Lake Ashi & Bullet train to Tokyo

Ultra-Luxury All-Inclusive Seabourn Cruise, Maharajas' Express Rail

• 14 night all-inc cruise on board Seabourn Encore
• 6 night luxury Maharajas' Express rail journey with fully escorted tours
• FREE fully escorted tours of Shimla including Shimla Toy Train and the Himalayas
• FREE five-star luxury hotel stays

From the Forbidden City to Mount Fuji: China and Japan Explorer

• 9 night full-board cruise on board Queen Elizabeth
• Fully escorted tours of the Great Wall of China, Forbidden City, Mount Fuji & more
• Hotel stays in Beijing, Xi'an, Hong Kong & Tokyo
• All Flights & Transfers

Luxury Cunard Japanese Voyage & Mount Fuji in Bloom

• FREE fully escorted tours of Mount Fuji*

Cunard Asia Voyage: Mount Fuji in Bloom & All-Inclusive Bali Retreat

• 15 night full-board cruise on board Queen Elizabeth
• FREE Oceanview to Balcony upgrade
• FREE five-star all-inclusive hotel stay in Bali
• FREE four-star hotel stay in Tokyo
• Fully escorted tours of Mount Fuji*

START SEARCHING

For your asia holiday today.

Popular Asia destinations

Sprawling cities, ancient sights and colourful cultures: Asia travel is both a rewarding and immersive experience. Uncover futuristic capitals, explore hidden alleyways, relax on picturesque beaches lined with swaying palms and meet some of the friendliest locals in the world - cruising is a fantastic way to explore Asia.

Whether you delve into Singapore’s amazing street food culture, uncover Vietnam’s rich and tumultuous past in Ho Chi Minh City, explore the enchanting forests of Borneo or relax at the luxurious spas and on stunning sweeps of white sand in Thailand; Asia is a continent that ticks every box for the insatiably curious traveller.

Search for your perfect Asia Cruise itinerary from our top destination picks:

Combine your cruise with a

FULLY ESCORTED TOUR

Many of our Asia cruise holidays include exciting land tours that offer you a bespoke holiday experience and let you explore some of the most famous natural and man-made wonders on our planet.

A tour is the perfect way to immerse yourself in a country’s culture, history and wildlife. All our tours offer an authentic insight into the true character of a destination, by taking you right to its very heart and creating experiences you’ll never forget. However, tours with Imagine offer so much more than the opportunity to see the iconic sights of a destination. They empower you with the confidence to explore new places that you might have believed were once out of reach and to share amazing travel experiences with new-found, like-minded friends. We work with established tour partners so you can explore the area with confidence - there’s no need to decipher complicated transport timetables, navigate language barriers or worry about transfers and entrance fees as this is all arranged for you. You’ll travel in air-conditioned, premium vehicles, enjoy included meals during your excursions and will stay in well located hotels that make exploring the area easy. Find out more by selecting from one of our recommended holidays below.

Japan  

China  

Discover China’s greatest treasures during a fully escorted tour that begins with a flight to Beijing, China’s sprawling capital. Home to six UNESCO World Heritage Sites, be captivated by the city’s most famous sites, both ancient and modern. Marvel at the magnificent wonder of the weaving Great Wall of China, admire the symmetry of the Temple of Heaven and uncover history in the Forbidden City. Next, you’ll travel by fast train to Xi’an, one of the birthplaces of Chinese civilisation. Here you’ll visit the Terracotta Army, one of the greatest archaeological sites in the world.

Golden Triangle Tour

India  

Not many destinations inspire the senses quite like India. An enigmatic clash of colours, smells, sounds and flavours, a journey to India will captivate you with its deep-rooted cultures and bucket-list landmarks. This classic seven-day Northern India tour will help you uncover Delhi’s colonial splendour, where the old and new stand side by side, and experience the immaculate elegance of the iconic Taj Mahal, its grace and poise a stark contrast to the muddled streets of Agra that lead to it. The final “point” of your triangle takes you to Jaipur, its hillside Amber Fort and ornate Hawa Mahal beautiful examples of the extravagant building designs that typify the region.

Combine your cruise with an  ICONIC RAIL JOURNEY 

Great rail journeys offer a unique and intimate way to take you to the heart of a region in opulent style and glamour.

Luxurious by their very nature, you’ll experience a level of service reserved only for passengers of the world’s most prestigious locomotives. From the unspoilt rainforests and tea plantations of Malaysia on the Eastern and Oriental Express to the astonishing treasures of India’s Golden Triangle on board the Maharaja’s Express; travelling by rail is so much more than a way of getting from one place to another. As you cover epically long distances, the windows of your carriage reveal amazing panoramas and offer remarkable insights into the beauty, culture and character of many different countries.

Just like cruising, with rail travel the joy is in the journey; it’s an opportunity to travel rather than simply visit. Combined, they offer an irresistible draw for so many and the chance to create a holiday on board two of the most luxurious modes of transport in the world, experiencing the joys of a holiday on both land and sea. Find out more by selecting from one of our recommended train journeys and holidays below.

Maharajas’ Express

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Imagine Asia

Travel with imagination.

© 2020 ImagineAsia Travel LLC. Luxury Travel with Imagination. All rights reserved. T: 800.220.8701 • 11 Oak Ridge Road, Suite 201, Caldwell, NJ 07006 • Site Map

Imagine Asia

Korean: 이매진아시아 japanese: イマジンアジア.

South Korea

• Introduction

Imagine Asia (이매진아시아) is a South Korean entertainment company. It was founded in 1976 as Banpo Industry, later as Banpo Tech in 2000. The company then merged with StarM Entertainment in 2006 to form StarM. In 2008, they again changed their name to Wellmade StarM. It acquired DreamT Entertainment in 2013 and merged with Yedang Company in 2014 to form Wellmade Yedang. Following Yedang Company's (Banana Culture) separation from the company in March 2016, Wellmade renamed to Imagine Asia in June 2016.

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• Former groups
• Former artists

Lee Ji Hyun 2006 - 2022

Ryu Hwa Young 2014 - 2019

SuA 2016 - 2016

Go Na Eun 2017 - 2023

Hwang Soyeon 2018 - 2018

Da Min 2018 - 2018

• Recommendations

Kithewhale Entertainment

TM Entertainment

TIPTOP Entertainment

GRID Entertainment

Irion Entertainment

Cream Entertainment

• Table of contents

Daily popularity

Add your biases, undefeated xg.

Single album 2 hours

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PUNK HOT 1CHU

Single album 2 days

Community sponsors

Turtle Front LLC

Inspire Development through Action and Adventure.

Imagine is one of the fastest-growing, most widely loved brands of outdoor activities in East and South East Asia, with branches in Beijing (including Chongli) and Taiwan, and further entities, partners and operations all around China, Hong Kong, Japan and East, and South East Asia.

Imagine activities are loved for their reliable, safe, exciting and quirky style, that never disappoints.

Working with Imagine is truly an adventure that will Open Your World. If you share our passion and fit any of the following profiles, come join the family!

Year-round Activity Project Manager with Ski Instructor Qualification

(visa included, can apply from abroad).

As a full-time project manager and instructor, you will organise ski trips and many other types of adventure activities, according to your strengths. You will also be trained to gain new skills in Bushcraft/Survival and Parkour, team-building games, Great Wall hikes, and others. This position is a great way to balance a passion for outdoor sports with some serious career development in management roles, and have a stable job year-round rather than having to hunt for a new job each season!

Requirements:

• Ski instructor qualification
• Bachelor’s Degree (for visa)
• 2+ years relevant work experience since graduation date
• Great with kids
• Native or near-native spoken and written English
• (Chinese skills ideal but not required).
• Existing skills in some of the other Imagine activities (e.g. Survival, Parkour, Watersports or Climbing)
• Able to ‘Imagine’: to create brand new games, programs and activities.

Package: 12,200-17,000 RMB/month (comprised of base and lesson commission, gross) + free accommodation (or allowance) + optional Mandarin classes reimbursement. Pay increases the longer you are with Imagine.

Visa: We sponsor a full work visa. Visa fees not included.

The equivalent of all Chinese national holidays (many) + 5 days paid holidays in second 6 months, 10 in the second year. + flexible unpaid holiday options.

A chance to travel to various regions for activities across the entire Imagine network of branches and destinations of the Greater China region.

Semi-nomadic Digital Marketing Guru

Anywhere in east asia.

This is a dream job for the right person! Focus on what you do best, with a stable full time career, while being connected to an inspiring outdoor adventure network all around East Asia. No need to be based in one place all the time, you can live wherever you like in East Asia! Around 30% of the time you will be asked to spend periods of time in various different branch or activity locations, such as Beijing, Chongli, Shenzhen, Zhejiang, Hainan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, and South East Asia as Imagine expands. This enables you to remain in human contact, fully understand the activities and local market environments, and to sometimes even get involved in the trips as an assistant instructor!

• Freedom to live where you choose and work to your own work schedule, no need to commute or be tied to one location.
• Stable, long-term, full-time job, no need to constantly hunt around for your next freelance job
• Be connected to a community and network of like-minded people with a positive mission, Inspiring Development Through Action and Adventure
• Get to visit some amazing locations and meet lots of different people in each location
• Take part in all kinds of fun action and adventure trips
• Make your impact, being a key developer of a brand with an infinite, bright future
• Work in a range of marketing roles, enabling wide-ranging personal and career development, rather than being stuck on one specific type of work. Fill in skill gaps by researching and learning to be able to take on the full range of challenges.
• Potential to work up to manage people and departments as the company expands in future

Roles (you should be ready to take on around 80% of these areas, according to strengths and interests, while any weak areas may be filled by other team members):

• Maintain a consistent, strong and awesome brand image across the entire online presence of Imagine in Asia.
• Upkeep of all social media accounts (you manage the overall strategies, posting schedules and stylistic/strategic elements, and create many of the posts yourself, while some more local elements such as knowledge of local platforms, and translation, can be delegated to local teams).
• Upkeep and improvement of the WordPress framework/theme settings/troubleshooting/layout of all websites
• Efficient creation of beautiful new webpages for each new activity as it gets created by teams
• Thinking of, and implementing special marketing campaigns
• Desktop publishing: receiving text and images and turning them into professional-looking documents such as brochures, pdfs. Creation of templates to make this process more efficient.
• Video Editing
• Photo Editing
• Writing and/or editing of marketing text such as adverts, activity promotions, blog articles, etc.
• Design of branded merchandise
• Some assistant instructing, depending on skills, interests and location
• Native or near-native English, with exciting, creative and persuasive writing style for marketing
• Ability to make own living arrangements and visa arrangements somewhere in East Asia, ideally in Taiwan, Beijing, Shenzhen or HK most of the time
• Flexible for travel when needed e.g. if required to spend a month in another location at short notice, or to consider relocating to one location for an extended period. I.e. not committed to one location long term due to family or other reasons.
• Really understand and believe in our mission and why it is important
• A passion outdoor adventure/experiential education
• Great eye for design
• Strong WordPress skills
• Intermediate I.T. Skills (for fixing problems with server settings, email accounts, website settings etc)
• Efficient and hard-working
• Photoshop/ID/digital design skills
• Video editing skills (flexible)
• Some Chinese or Japanese character-reading ability is a huge plus. Ability to write in Chinese even better. Not compulsory.
• Trust-worthy, reliable and self-motivated (able to be trusted to work remotely and not needing to be micro-managed or checked)
• Creative and imaginative, able to come up with new marketing ideas
• Deep knowledge of a variety of social media platforms, both Western and Asian, and a passion for developing great social media marketing strategies.
• Education and/or experience in marketing concepts in general, not only online/digital but also traditional. Particularly regarding building and maintaining effective international brands.
• Continuously self-educating: reading books, blogs and articles to improve skills and stay on top of technology and trends
• Positive, open, well-rounded character and fun personality

Part-time Instructor, China

If you are already there.

Already in one of our Mainland China locations? You may be able to join us for flexible part-time outdoor instructor work.

Preferred Skills

• At least two  of the following:
• Ski/Snowboard instructor qualification
• Outdoor bushcraft/survival skills or military/scouting experience
• Parkour skills
• Climbing instructor qualifications
• Experience leading team-building games
• Experience coaching sports
• Experience working with kids on camps, birthday parties and physical activities.
• Watersports/lifeguard qualifications/experience
• First-aid trained
• Near-native English

You don’t have to be able to do everything at first, and for many of these activities, we can train you.

Part-time work varies from 500-1100 RMB per activity (or day) depending on abilities, experience, and type of activity.

Mainland China Regional Managing Partner in Training

Beijing or guangdong.

It’s not easy, but it’s an awesome challenge for the right person! Are you bi-lingual in English and Chinese and have the right mix of outdoor education industry experience combined with business management skills?

It’s not every day someone like this comes along. So pass it on to any friends who might fit, or if this is you, raise your hand! You may have just found your ideal career path.

• A share of Mainland Regional Profit once trained up, likely transferring to company share options over the long run.
• Be a key figure in a fast-paced and meaningful entrepreneurial adventure, changing thousands of lives for the better
• Competitive base starting salary depending on experience and fit
• Working visa, Insurance, Annual holidays etc.
• Free access to many outdoor locations and activities
• The chance to develop your career faster than you ever expected
• Fluent spoken and written Chinese and English
• A university bachelor degree (minimum)
• At least two years experience in the western outdoor activity industry
• Experience and/or education in business management, ideally in the adventure industry
• Likely to be able to stay for at least three years
• Strong Skier (ski instructing qualification and experience would be strongly preferred)
• Other specific outdoor sports skills in survival, parkour, climbing or watersports, preferably with some instructor qualifications

Regional Partner

(various regions and countries in east and south east asia).

Are you based in a location that you believe would fit well with Imagine’s style and mission to Inspire Development Through Action and Adventure? There are many ways to become part of the Imagine network, whether as a local location scout, a part-time instructor, a provider of local activity or local logistics, or even a business partner with an idea for more long-term business cooperation. We are currently particularly interested in continuing to build on our support networks in Guangdong, Hainan, Hong Kong, Japan, Thailand, and Singapore. However, we will listen to good people with good ideas anywhere in East and SE Asia.

For business cooperation you may also like to check out our licensing options.

For Mainland China roles, please directly contact:

[email protected], for other parts of asia, please email:.

• [email protected]

Mainland China

Copyright © 2024 Imagine (Enjoyment Culture International Limited)

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The Moscow Metro Museum of Art: 10 Must-See Stations

There are few times one can claim having been on the subway all afternoon and loving it, but the Moscow Metro provides just that opportunity.  While many cities boast famous public transport systems—New York’s subway, London’s underground, San Salvador’s chicken buses—few warrant hours of exploration.  Moscow is different: Take one ride on the Metro, and you’ll find out that this network of railways can be so much more than point A to B drudgery.

The Metro began operating in 1935 with just thirteen stations, covering less than seven miles, but it has since grown into the world’s third busiest transit system ( Tokyo is first ), spanning about 200 miles and offering over 180 stops along the way.  The construction of the Metro began under Joseph Stalin’s command, and being one of the USSR’s most ambitious building projects, the iron-fisted leader instructed designers to create a place full of svet (radiance) and svetloe budushchee (a radiant future), a palace for the people and a tribute to the Mother nation.

Consequently, the Metro is among the most memorable attractions in Moscow.  The stations provide a unique collection of public art, comparable to anything the city’s galleries have to offer and providing a sense of the Soviet era, which is absent from the State National History Museum.  Even better, touring the Metro delivers palpable, experiential moments, which many of us don’t get standing in front of painting or a case of coins.

Though tours are available , discovering the Moscow Metro on your own provides a much more comprehensive, truer experience, something much less sterile than following a guide.  What better place is there to see the “real” Moscow than on mass transit: A few hours will expose you to characters and caricatures you’ll be hard-pressed to find dining near the Bolshoi Theater.  You become part of the attraction, hear it in the screech of the train, feel it as hurried commuters brush by: The Metro sucks you beneath the city and churns you into the mix.

With the recommendations of our born-and-bred Muscovite students, my wife Emma and I have just taken a self-guided tour of what some locals consider the top ten stations of the Moscow Metro. What most satisfied me about our Metro tour was the sense of adventure .  I loved following our route on the maps of the wagon walls as we circled the city, plotting out the course to the subsequent stops; having the weird sensation of being underground for nearly four hours; and discovering the next cavern of treasures, playing Indiana Jones for the afternoon, piecing together fragments of Russia’s mysterious history.  It’s the ultimate interactive museum.

Top Ten Stations (In order of appearance)

Kievskaya station.

Kievskaya Station went public in March of 1937, the rails between it and Park Kultury Station being the first to cross the Moscow River.  Kievskaya is full of mosaics depicting aristocratic scenes of Russian life, with great cameo appearances by Lenin, Trotsky, and Stalin.  Each work has a Cyrillic title/explanation etched in the marble beneath it; however, if your Russian is rusty, you can just appreciate seeing familiar revolutionary dates like 1905 ( the Russian Revolution ) and 1917 ( the October Revolution ).

Mayakovskaya Station

Mayakovskaya Station ranks in my top three most notable Metro stations. Mayakovskaya just feels right, done Art Deco but no sense of gaudiness or pretention.  The arches are adorned with rounded chrome piping and create feeling of being in a jukebox, but the roof’s expansive mosaics of the sky are the real showstopper.  Subjects cleverly range from looking up at a high jumper, workers atop a building, spires of Orthodox cathedrals, to nimble aircraft humming by, a fleet of prop planes spelling out CCCP in the bluest of skies.

Novoslobodskaya Station

Novoslobodskaya is the Metro’s unique stained glass station.  Each column has its own distinctive panels of colorful glass, most of them with a floral theme, some of them capturing the odd sailor, musician, artist, gardener, or stenographer in action.  The glass is framed in Art Deco metalwork, and there is the lovely aspect of discovering panels in the less frequented haunches of the hall (on the trackside, between the incoming staircases).  Novosblod is, I’ve been told, the favorite amongst out-of-town visitors.

Komsomolskaya Station

Komsomolskaya Station is one of palatial grandeur.  It seems both magnificent and obligatory, like the presidential palace of a colonial city.  The yellow ceiling has leafy, white concrete garland and a series of golden military mosaics accenting the tile mosaics of glorified Russian life.  Switching lines here, the hallway has an Alice-in-Wonderland feel, impossibly long with decorative tile walls, culminating in a very old station left in a remarkable state of disrepair, offering a really tangible glimpse behind the palace walls.

Dostoevskaya Station

Dostoevskaya is a tribute to the late, great hero of Russian literature .  The station at first glance seems bare and unimpressive, a stark marble platform without a whiff of reassembled chips of tile.  However, two columns have eerie stone inlay collages of scenes from Dostoevsky’s work, including The Idiot , The Brothers Karamazov , and Crime and Punishment.   Then, standing at the center of the platform, the marble creates a kaleidoscope of reflections.  At the entrance, there is a large, inlay portrait of the author.

Chkalovskaya Station

Chkalovskaya does space Art Deco style (yet again).  Chrome borders all.  Passageways with curvy overhangs create the illusion of walking through the belly of a chic, new-age spacecraft.  There are two (kos)mosaics, one at each end, with planetary subjects.  Transferring here brings you above ground, where some rather elaborate metalwork is on display.  By name similarity only, I’d expected Komsolskaya Station to deliver some kosmonaut décor; instead, it was Chkalovskaya that took us up to the space station.

Elektrozavodskaya Station

Elektrozavodskaya is full of marble reliefs of workers, men and women, laboring through the different stages of industry.  The superhuman figures are round with muscles, Hollywood fit, and seemingly undeterred by each Herculean task they respectively perform.  The station is chocked with brass, from hammer and sickle light fixtures to beautiful, angular framework up the innards of the columns.  The station’s art pieces are less clever or extravagant than others, but identifying the different stages of industry is entertaining.

Baumanskaya Statio

Baumanskaya Station is the only stop that wasn’t suggested by the students.  Pulling in, the network of statues was just too enticing: Out of half-circle depressions in the platform’s columns, the USSR’s proud and powerful labor force again flaunts its success.  Pilots, blacksmiths, politicians, and artists have all congregated, posing amongst more Art Deco framing.  At the far end, a massive Soviet flag dons the face of Lenin and banners for ’05, ’17, and ‘45.  Standing in front of the flag, you can play with the echoing roof.

Ploshchad Revolutsii Station

Novokuznetskaya Station

Novokuznetskaya Station finishes off this tour, more or less, where it started: beautiful mosaics.  This station recalls the skyward-facing pieces from Mayakovskaya (Station #2), only with a little larger pictures in a more cramped, very trafficked area.  Due to a line of street lamps in the center of the platform, it has the atmosphere of a bustling market.  The more inventive sky scenes include a man on a ladder, women picking fruit, and a tank-dozer being craned in.  The station’s also has a handsome black-and-white stone mural.

Here is a map and a brief description of our route:

Start at (1)Kievskaya on the “ring line” (look for the squares at the bottom of the platform signs to help you navigate—the ring line is #5, brown line) and go north to Belorusskaya, make a quick switch to the Dark Green/#2 line, and go south one stop to (2)Mayakovskaya.  Backtrack to the ring line—Brown/#5—and continue north, getting off at (3)Novosblodskaya and (4)Komsolskaya.  At Komsolskaya Station, transfer to the Red/#1 line, go south for two stops to Chistye Prudy, and get on the Light Green/#10 line going north.  Take a look at (5)Dostoevskaya Station on the northern segment of Light Green/#10 line then change directions and head south to (6)Chkalovskaya, which offers a transfer to the Dark Blue/#3 line, going west, away from the city center.  Have a look (7)Elektroskaya Station before backtracking into the center of Moscow, stopping off at (8)Baumskaya, getting off the Dark Blue/#3 line at (9)Ploschad Revolyutsii.  Change to the Dark Green/#2 line and go south one stop to see (10)Novokuznetskaya Station.

Check out our new Moscow Indie Travel Guide , book a flight to Moscow and read 10 Bars with Views Worth Blowing the Budget For

Jonathon Engels, formerly a patron saint of misadventure, has been stumbling his way across cultural borders since 2005 and is currently volunteering in the mountains outside of Antigua, Guatemala.  For more of his work, visit his website and blog .

Photo credits:   SergeyRod , all others courtesy of the author and may not be used without permission

Claudia Looi

Touring the Top 10 Moscow Metro Stations

By Claudia Looi 2 Comments

Komsomolskaya metro station looks like a museum. It has vaulted ceilings and baroque decor.

Hidden underground, in the heart of Moscow, are historical and architectural treasures of Russia. These are Soviet-era creations – the metro stations of Moscow.

Our guide Maria introduced these elaborate metro stations as “the palaces for the people.” Built between 1937 and 1955, each station holds its own history and stories. Stalin had the idea of building beautiful underground spaces that the masses could enjoy. They would look like museums, art centers, concert halls, palaces and churches. Each would have a different theme. None would be alike.

The two-hour private tour was with a former Intourist tour guide named Maria. Maria lived in Moscow all her life and through the communist era of 60s to 90s. She has been a tour guide for more than 30 years. Being in her 60s, she moved rather quickly for her age. We traveled and crammed with Maria and other Muscovites on the metro to visit 10 different metro stations.

Arrow showing the direction of metro line 1 and 2

Moscow subways are very clean

To Maria, every street, metro and building told a story. I couldn’t keep up with her stories. I don’t remember most of what she said because I was just thrilled being in Moscow.   Added to that, she spilled out so many Russian words and names, which to one who can’t read Cyrillic, sounded so foreign and could be easily forgotten.

The metro tour was the first part of our all day tour of Moscow with Maria. Here are the stations we visited:

1. Komsomolskaya Metro Station  is the most beautiful of them all. Painted yellow and decorated with chandeliers, gold leaves and semi precious stones, the station looks like a stately museum. And possibly decorated like a palace. I saw Komsomolskaya first, before the rest of the stations upon arrival in Moscow by train from St. Petersburg.

2. Revolution Square Metro Station (Ploshchad Revolyutsii) has marble arches and 72 bronze sculptures designed by Alexey Dushkin. The marble arches are flanked by the bronze sculptures. If you look closely you will see passersby touching the bronze dog's nose. Legend has it that good luck comes to those who touch the dog's nose.

Touch the dog's nose for good luck. At the Revolution Square station

Revolution Square Metro Station

3. Arbatskaya Metro Station served as a shelter during the Soviet-era. It is one of the largest and the deepest metro stations in Moscow.

Arbatskaya Metro Station

4. Biblioteka Imeni Lenina Metro Station was built in 1935 and named after the Russian State Library. It is located near the library and has a big mosaic portrait of Lenin and yellow ceramic tiles on the track walls.

Lenin's portrait at the Biblioteka Imeni Lenina Metro Station

5. Kievskaya Metro Station was one of the first to be completed in Moscow. Named after the capital city of Ukraine by Kiev-born, Nikita Khruschev, Stalin's successor.

Kievskaya Metro Station

6. Novoslobodskaya Metro Station  was built in 1952. It has 32 stained glass murals with brass borders.

Novoslobodskaya metro station

7. Kurskaya Metro Station was one of the first few to be built in Moscow in 1938. It has ceiling panels and artwork showing Soviet leadership, Soviet lifestyle and political power. It has a dome with patriotic slogans decorated with red stars representing the Soviet's World War II Hall of Fame. Kurskaya Metro Station is a must-visit station in Moscow.

Ceiling panel and artworks at Kurskaya Metro Station

8. Mayakovskaya Metro Station built in 1938. It was named after Russian poet Vladmir Mayakovsky. This is one of the most beautiful metro stations in the world with 34 mosaics painted by Alexander Deyneka.

Mayakovskaya station

One of the over 30 ceiling mosaics in Mayakovskaya metro station

9. Belorusskaya Metro Station is named after the people of Belarus. In the picture below, there are statues of 3 members of the Partisan Resistance in Belarus during World War II. The statues were sculpted by Sergei Orlov, S. Rabinovich and I. Slonim.

10. Teatralnaya Metro Station (Theatre Metro Station) is located near the Bolshoi Theatre.

Teatralnaya Metro Station decorated with porcelain figures .

Taking the metro's escalator at the end of the tour with Maria the tour guide.

Have you visited the Moscow Metro? Leave your comment below.

January 15, 2017 at 8:17 am

An excellent read! Thanks for much for sharing the Russian metro system with us. We're heading to Moscow in April and exploring the metro stations were on our list and after reading your post, I'm even more excited to go visit them. Thanks again 🙂

December 6, 2017 at 10:45 pm

Hi, do you remember which tour company you contacted for this tour?

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Elektrostal , Moscow Oblast, Russia