secret underground tour

Hidden London tours: The secrets of Down Street Tube station

Posted on Last updated: April 8, 2020

Beneath the streets of London is a hidden underground world of abandoned Tube stations and deserted tunnels, each with their own story to tell. Most of them are locked away and inaccessible, but a series of Hidden London tours run by the London Transport Museum gives you access to this secret underground world. Their mix of history, architecture and the chance to get beyond the barriers makes them one of my favourite alternative things to do in London – so I headed underground for the third time to Mayfair’s Down Street, a station whose wartime history and connection to Winston Churchill make it one of the most fascinating.

My visit was hosted by the London Transport Museum, but all views are my own.

Down Street in its Tube station days – photo credit London Transport Museum

The history of Down Street Tube station

Down Street opened in March 1907 as part of the new Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway (now on the Piccadilly line). Land disputes and layout issues meant it opened late, and it never really caught up. It was too close to other stations and trains didn’t always stop. And being hidden away down a side road off Piccadilly didn’t help – surrounded by rich local residents who had their own transport and didn’t want Tube signs spoiling the neighbourhood.

With nearby Green Park and Hyde Park Corner stations being enlarged for escalators to be built and the Piccadilly line extension in 1929 putting the pressure on to close quieter stations, Down Street’s time was up. It finally closed in May 1932, destined to spend the rest of its days as a ventilation shaft for the Piccadilly Line. Well at least until the Second World War broke out, when it got a new life as the secret headquarters of the Rail Executive Committee (REC).

Inside Down Street – with the meeting room table marked out on the floor

The REC controlled Britain’s railways during the war – making sure people, weapons and supplies were where they needed to be. Made up of representatives of the four mainline railway companies plus the London’s transport board, they needed a wartime HQ that was bombproof, had a central London location and was big enough to house an underground telephone exchange. Enter Down Street, whose deep tunnels and Mayfair location made it perfect.

So in 1939 the tunnels got a makeover – converted into a network of offices and meeting rooms, with living accommodation for up to 40 staff. Bombproof, gas-proof and hidden away from prying eyes, it was seen as the safest place during the Blitz so was used by Winston Churchill as a shelter until the Cabinet War Rooms were ready (the off-ration supplies of caviar, Champagne and cigars might have helped). Once the war was over the tunnels were cleared and abandoned. So what’s left of Down Street now? I took a trip back in time to find out its secrets.

Heading underground

Hidden London’s Down Street Tube station tour

Our Down Street Tube tour started in an office building tucked down a side street in Mayfair, where we were kitted out with torches and given a safety briefing before heading to the station entrance. What was the ticket office is now the Mayfair mini-market, but if you look up it still has that distinctive Tube station look, with its arches and oxblood red tiles marking it out as one of the 50 stations designed by Leslie Green in his distinctive Arts and Crafts style.

A thick metal door takes you inside, where you can see traces of the different phases in its history all around you. There’s the original tiling from its days as a Tube station, the wartime signs and peeling yellow painted walls which were used to mark the public spaces, and the modern notices in case it’s needed as an emergency exit from the Piccadilly Line.

Working underground

The lifts built for the REC have long since been removed, so we headed down 122 spiral stairs to reach the main tunnel. Almost everything was stripped out at the end of the war, turning the tunnels back into ventilation shafts, but photos and documentary records have been used to piece together how the space was used. And as we walked through the different sections, squeezing our way through tight spaces into different rooms, there were echos of what it must have been like living and working underground while London battled the Blitz.

Ghosts of its past life still remain – snipped off wires hanging from ceilings, shadows where clocks hung on the walls, marks where gas-proof doors once stood, an old tin bath in a tiny partitioned bathroom, fat-stained kitchen walls where chefs would cook up off-ration steak, the button REC executives would press to summon more Champagne in the dining room. And the one thing still there in its entirety is the telephone exchange – clearly getting that back out was a bit too much of a challenge, so it sits in a corner, layered with 70 years of grime.

Narrow corridors and the old telephone exchange

Every tiny bit of space was made use of. When the station was converted in 1939, the tunnels were kitted out by railway carriage fitters – guided by REC secretary Gerald Cole Deacon, whose sailing experience came in handy when it came to getting the most out of the space. As well as meeting rooms, offices, a typing pool and telephone exchange, dormitories, bathroom,  kitchens and dining rooms made it into a self-contained underground settlement.

No one knew that Down Street was there, so staff would work and sleep in shifts so they didn’t draw attention to the site by coming and going. And being down there it’s amazing to think that up to 40 people lived and worked in these tunnels at a time, packed into such tiny spaces – connected by corridors just wide enough to get a tea trolley down. It was cramped, dark, stuffy and most of all noisy, with trains running day and night. And they still run right past.

Doorway to the tracks

Every time a train passed we were told to turn out our torches so we didn’t startle the drivers, and standing in the dark with trains rumbling past and dust and air swirling around gives you an insight into how disorientating it must have been to spend weeks at a time down there.

The trains pass just a few feet away, and when one slowed down we could see into the carriage at passengers who had no idea that we or any of the tunnels were down there. A section of the platform was left open so REC executives could signal to to picked up by passing trains – which made me wonder about those unexpected mid-tunnel stops on the Tube these days?

Original tiling and the old bathrooms

Although every bit of space from the two main tunnels was made use of, when Down Street was converted there were strict instructions that the emergency tunnel was to be kept clear for ventilation. But in 1941, an order from above came that ‘a certain gentleman’ had requested his own personal quarters be constructed down there, and within six weeks they were ready.

It’s thought that Churchill never actually made use of his Down Street quarters, but with the discovery of more historic records and documents, there might well still be more stories to uncover and more secrets of Down Street Tube station still hidden away underground.

Our guide lighting the way

The details

Down Street is one of the London Transport Museum’s Hidden London tours, which cover eight different underground sites across the city. The Down Street tour takes 90 minutes and costs £85 per person (£80 concessions),  including include a one-day pass to London Transport Museum. Hidden London tickets go on sale a few times a year and usually sell out fast, so it’s worth signing up to the mailing list to get notified when the next batch will be released.

Please note that visitors need to climb up and down 122 stairs on the tour – there’s no lift or toilets on the route and it can be dark and includes small spaces and uneven pathways. You can also take a special tour and cocktails package (£104 per person or £99 concessions) which includes a gin or whisky cocktail at nearby Flemings Hotel in Mayfair as well as a sharing food platter – not quite Churchill’s Champagne and caviar but a very good end to the tour!

Cocktails at Flemings

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Veronica Franks

Thursday 12th of May 2022

Could you tell me if I can go on a tour of Down Street station please?

Lucy Dodsworth

Friday 13th of May 2022

Hi, yes tours are available to book through Hidden London at the London Transport Museum – these are the current dates https://www.ltmuseum.co.uk/whats-on/hidden-london/down-street

Colin Affleck

Tuesday 11th of August 2020

Many thanks for this. I'll get right on it. Cheers! Colin

Sunday 2nd of August 2020

Hello Some time ago I finished the biography of my late mother Beryl M. Affleck (nee Dodd) 1923-2007. While not explicitly naming Down Street station in my conversations with her, I am quite certain that she was employed there during the blitz as a telephone operator or 'telop'. Do you have any idea how I might confirm that this was so? Are there any lists or government files that might be able to help? Many thanks in advance. Colin Affleck

How interesting! It must have been a fascinating place to work. The site is managed through the London Transport Museum so they should be able to put you in touch with whoever is the best person to speak to about accessing records. Best of luck with your search.

Emily-Ann Elliott

Tuesday 28th of January 2020

This sounds brilliant! It's amazing to think of how much is hidden below us when we're rushing around in London!

Yes there's a whole secret underground world we don't know about!

Monday 27th of January 2020

Sounds fascinating I might give this a go when I’m next in London

Definitely worth a trip!

Your special offer

Explore London’s secret underground network on a Hidden London tour

Did you know that there were whole sections of London’s underground network that lay hidden in plain sight? At the London Transport Museum you can explore secret parts of London’s Underground Network on a Hidden London Tour

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Behind closed doors are disused stations and platforms, former ticket halls; and time-capsule corridors that have remained frozen in time since they saw their last commuter – complete with vintage signs, advertising posters and all.

Those secret spaces are usually off limits to the public, but thanks to London Transport Museum ’s award-winning Hidden London tours, you too can now gain exclusive access, both in person and online.

The Hidden London programme include tours of Aldwych disused station’ s ‘abandoned’ ticket halls, original lifts and tunnels; the remains of Piccadilly Circus’s original Edwardian station; and the disused Jubilee line platforms at Charing Cross that have featured in many famous British TV and film productions including Paddington Bear (2013), Killing Eve (2019) and A Spy Among Friends (2022).

Also on offer are tours of the original 19 th century passageways and features at west London station Shepherd’s Bush; Down Street, a bomb-proof wartime bunker and former station that lays concealed between the Piccadilly line tracks in Mayfair; and Clapham South, an expansive Second World War shelter hidden under the streets of south London.

An exclusive walking tour, Secrets of Central London , also takes you around Covent Garden and the surrounding area to reveal unique, fascinating and historical tales and titbits about this part of the city and how it has transformed over the last 200 years.

All tours are guided and share the exclusive historical stories that the museum’s experts found in its extensive archive and collection; allowing you to discover little-known facts about London, right where all this history took place.

If your next trip to London is still a long way away or if going underground simply isn’t your thing, the museum also offers a series of live virtual tours including one launched to celebrate the Tube’s 160 th birthday earlier this year, Discovering the Forgotten Underground, which explores how some spaces on the network came to be disused over the years.

The virtual tours are held live via Zoom and hosted by a tour guide, using a combination of video footage, historical documents and archive images. Other virtual tours include visits of disused stations York Road and Brompton Road, and behind the scenes glimpses into two of London’s newest Elizabeth line stations, Tottenham Court Road and Liverpool Street.

The Hidden London tours were named ’Best Hidden Gem in the World’ at the International Tiqets ’ Remarkable Venue Awards 2022 by public vote.

Tickets are available to book via London Transport Museum’s website at here.

Tours run throughout the year with new dates frequently released. Subscribers to the Museum’s free e-newsletter get 24-hour priority booking upon release.

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These London Tours Explore Abandoned Tube Stations And Other Secret Spots Of The City

Early 2024 tickets for the London Transport Museum's award-winning Hidden London tours will be released tomorrow (November 8).

Here at Secret London , we sure do love a bit of transport talk . Tubes , trains, buses , bikes; you name it, we’ve written (and had an extensive conversation) about it. So, you can imagine how enthusiastic we are about the London Transport Museum – and more specifically, their Hidden London tours. I mean, who doesn’t love discovering hidden gems of London’s historic Transport Network?

Luckily for us (and our fellow transport-lovers), the ever-so popular Hidden London tours will be returning to the capital at the start of 2024 , and you can secure your space as early as tomorrow (November 8). Yippee!

What is a Hidden London tour?

The historical experts over at the London Transport Museum have curated these fascinating tours based on the museums extensive archive and collection. The exclusive tours will uncover the whats, whys and whens of some forgotten London locations . You’ll be taken along by expert guides, learning interesting facts by the bucket-load as you go. A variety of tours are running from January 10 until the end of March , each giving a unique glimpse into London’s history .

Granting visitors behind-the-scenes access to locations on the transport network that are usually closed to the public, Hidden London tours were voted ‘ Best Hidden Gem in the World ‘ at the Tiqets Remarkable Venue Awards last year. So they’re certainly doing something right, hey?

What tours are on offer?

There will be seven in-person tours on offer, ensuring that there’s something for everybody to enjoy. Discover deserted passageways and original design details of Piccadilly Circus station or explore the exclusive (and usually, no-entry) areas of Charing Cross . Be transported back in time at Baker Street and adventure into the disused parts of London’s first underground station . Uncover a labyrinth of dark and dusty passageways in Euston , unveil the secrets of Shepherd’s Bush , or head underground to the subterranean WWII shelters, built deep beneath the streets of Clapham South .

A virtual tour, retracing the 160-year history of the London Underground will also be taking place and a new experience will be available; combining a tour of Piccadilly Circus with a delicious meal at the Hard Rock Café.

If all that still leaves you wanting more, super-fans can also subscribe to Hidden London Hangouts , a regular series hosted on London Transport Museum’s YouTube channel. Watch as the series takes viewers behind the scenes of some of the Hidden London tours , as they explore various nooks and crannies of the transport system and share their thoughts and findings. Count me in.

Find out more and book your Hidden London tour here .

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A Secret Underground City: Tour The World’s Largest Prepper Community

Posted: March 29, 2024 | Last updated: March 29, 2024

This man is building a survivalist city the size of Manhattan

While countries around the world continue to grapple with volatile wars, the threat of nuclear disaster and the prospect of future pandemics, one secretive community nestled in the wilds of the American Midwest has been planning for global disaster long before coronavirus struck.

The size of a small city, click or scroll through our gallery to delve inside this sprawling doomsday refuge, designed to shelter 5,000 people should the worst occur – and meet the man behind it all...

South Dakota's best-kept secret

Hidden away from the world in South Dakota's remote Black Hills, Vivos xPoint is the self-proclaimed largest survival community in the world.

From the sky, the site looks like little more than a vast expanse of undulating land. In reality, however, each small hill is home to an underground bunker, stretching as far as the eye can see.

Military heyday

The compound's history dates back to 1942, just after the United States entered the Second World War. Fort Igloo was established as the US Army's Black Hills Ordnance Depot, named after the hundreds of reinforced concrete domes built to store weapons and ammunition.

Once bustling with workers and their families, the military base was eventually closed in 1967 and the site abandoned.

Disaster-proof real estate

Around 2016, real estate mogul Robert Vicino bought up the land from a local cattle rancher, having founded Vivos, a global underground network of apocalypse shelters, back in 2008.

With its expanse of blast-proof concrete bunkers, the vast compound was the perfect fit for his plans to create a sprawling survivalist community.

Building for the end of the world

Vicino has been building shelters for a decade. He built his first bunker community back in 2012 and now sees it as his life's calling. 

"I don't  want  to build anything. I  have  to. There are thousands of people who believe we are living in very dangerous times. There's going to be an extinction-level event," he explained to Netflix when they visited the site back in 2018.

"My mission is to build as many shelters for as many people as possible, in time, before the end of the world." 

Secure location

Vivos xPoint is ideally located to help Vicino fulfill his mission. Situated in one of the safest areas in North America, it's at least 100 miles away from the nearest known military nuclear targets.

Perched at an altitude of 3,800 feet, the site is at a distance from any large bodies of water and enjoys relatively mild weather, minimizing the likelihood of freak weather events.

Closely guarded compound

Almost the size of Manhattan, Vivos xPoint encompasses 18 square miles of secure land, with 575 bunkers arranged along 100 miles of private roads.

Built like a fortress, the fenced compound has just one road in and out, allowing the 24/7 onsite security team, comprising military-trained guards, to identify anyone approaching the property from up to three miles away.

An insurance policy

In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, Vivos says demand for its bunkers grew exponentially, with inquiries and applications up over 1,000% year on year, while annual sales increased by 400%.

The company refers to its underground hideouts as a "backup plan for mankind", an insurance policy of sorts should a global catastrophe strike.

Making the cut

However, securing your own bunker in Vivos xPoint isn't quite as simple as purchasing a unit.

Prospective applicants have to first apply for membership, detailing skills and areas of expertise that may come in handy should the end of the world roll around. After careful vetting, the best candidates are selected from the membership pool and invited to join the community.

Virtually indestructible

If your application is successful, you'll be able to purchase one of the compound's private concrete shelters. Built by the army to withstand a 500,000-pound internal blast, these tough hideouts are as resilient as they come.

The semi-subterranean structures feature a large bulkhead wall and a steel blast door that seals to prevent water, air or gas from entering, while thick berms of earth covering the domed roof add extra protection.

The price of protection

According to the Vivos website, you can purchase a private bunker for an upfront payment of $55,000, plus an ongoing annual ground rent of $1,000 per shelter.

The units are sold as shells without furnishings or equipment. Full outfitting is available for an extra cost, which the company says can be as much as $75,000, depending on the finish. However, Vivos' show bunker illustrates what can be achieved…

Behind the blast doors...

Robert Vicino gave Netflix viewers a glimpse behind the blast doors of the company's prototype on the TV series Amazing Interiors   back in 2018. The show documented the outfitting of the unit, which is designed to demonstrate the potential of these wartime relics to prospective buyers.

Abandoned since the 1960s, the reinforced bunker required a major overhaul to transform it into a comfortable space for modern living. As well as configuring the interior floor plan and fixtures, there was also the matter of installing what Vicino calls the "mechanical life safety systems" to deal with any catastrophic future events. 

Stylish subterranean retreat

Inside, the finished product is astonishing. Encompassing around 2,200 square feet of floor space, Vivos says that each bunker has the capacity to accommodate 10 to 24 people along with their supplies for a year or more, without the need to venture outside.

And what's more, you'll be far from slumming it. The outfitted model offers a spacious, open floor plan with wood-effect floors and zoned living areas.

Flexible living space

Distinctive spaces for cooking, dining and relaxing create a functional, family-friendly layout, while living areas and storage can be extended even further with the addition of an attic level.

This prototype design has four bedrooms and two bathrooms, but ultimately, buyers get free rein to create a hideout home that works for them.

Functional fixtures

The compact kitchen has everything you need to cook up a storm, from a full-sized fridge and oven to a snug breakfast bar.

Rather than merely catering to the super-rich like some survival shelter companies, Vivos says its members are "well-educated, average people with a keen awareness of the current global events." 

Going off-grid

Running completely off the grid, the bunkers are designed to be hooked up to solar arrays and wind turbines, generating their own power source that won't be affected if a national blackout occurs.

Water is drawn from two underground wells and stored in reinforced concrete water tanks, while a water distribution system services each individual bunker.

A secure sanctuary

As well as cozy sitting areas and no shortage of space to socialize, the bunkers also have a series of measures in place to limit the spread of harmful germs or gases.

Vivos explains: "All of our shelters have air scrubbers to eliminate all pathogens and radioactive particles before entering the underground space."

Plenty of privacy

A stark contrast to the fallout shelters constructed in basements and backyards during the Cold War, where a whole family would often hole up in a single fortified room, Vivos xPoint's underground hideouts can accommodate plenty of private bedrooms.

There's enough floor space for a generous master like this, plus the usual wardrobes and furnishings you'd expect at home.

Space for the whole family

You can even add bunk rooms to your shelter's design, perfect for younger members of the family – there'd be no arguing over sleeping arrangements here.

According to the company, the shelters can withstand everything from a surface blast wave to radioactive fallout, so the compound's residents can sleep easy at night.

Creature comforts

In the event of global disaster, locking down doesn't have to mean sacrificing life's little luxuries.

The Vivos show bunker features a full-sized bathroom, complete with a composting toilet, bathtub and overhead shower, so there's no need to go without a long, indulgent soak in the tub.

The lap of luxury

For survivalists with a taste for the finer things in life, the sky's the limit when it comes to customization.

Pictured here, Vivos' deluxe floor plan offers an idea of the luxe bunker setup you could create – if you can foot the bill that is. The perfect billionaire bolthole, this extravagant design even comes with a home cinema.

Plush accommodation

This interior render reveals a whole host of indulgent extras, from a pool table and bar to LED windows that simulate scenic views of the outside world. We wouldn't mind being locked down here if the end of the world rolled around!

Opulent sleeping quarters

The master bedroom is equally as extravagant, with polished wood floors, dramatic feature walls and atmospheric spotlights – more akin to a luxury suite in an upmarket hotel than a doomsday shelter.

While pricing isn't available for this deluxe design, we have a feeling it might include more than a few zeros...

A market for the prepper mentality

There's evidently an appetite for modern survival shelters. Here, Robert Vicino shows prospective buyers, Megan and Michael, around the show bunker.

Megan explains why they're so motivated to invest in a fortified hideout: "If anything were to happen, if it would be a disaster or a war... just to be able to have that peace of mind that we have a place that we can go to, that you have food, you have clothes, you have everything you need there. It's reassuring really."

Meanwhile, when the pandemic struck back in 2020, Vivos saw an uptick in snap investments in the company's apocalypse-proof real estate, while some of its members even hunkered down in their bunkers.

A potential plan B?

Vivos has plans to add more amenities to the South Dakota site in the future, including a hot tub, spa and theater for members to enjoy when it's safe to resurface.

Ultimately though, the company sees its underground communities as humanity's last chance. 

"What it's about is the next generation. Providing them an opportunity to survive, to come out of the bunker someday, to look around and say, wow, we have another chance," says Vicino.

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You can now go on hidden London tours of secret tube stations

London Transport’s Hidden London tours take visitors to remote and closed stations and tunnels on the Underground

Londoners are suckers for the Underground. Sure, we moan about it constantly, but – like school, marriage and German cooking – if you can just look at it in a slightly different way, it can become magical. Specifically, we get a collective frisson as a city thinking about all the spooky shut-off tube tunnels, disused stations and plentiful ghosts below our feet. To speak to that romantic and spooky appetite, London Transport Museum has just announced a new season of its ever-popular Hidden London tours of unseen parts of the capital’s vast transport network, including some new places they’ve never visited before.

There are in-person and virtual tours available, so even if you live miles from London (or don’t fancy creeping about in a filthy warren), you can still be a tube explorer.

Highlights of the new season include evening tours of Charing Cross and Down Street stations. The Jubilee line platforms at Charing Cross have been inoperative since 1999, and since used for lots of film and TV productions. Down Street station, meanwhile, you might not even have heard of. Located in Mayfair, it was shut down way back in 1932 because of low passenger numbers (locals presumably all travelled by Rolls-Royce). In WWII, it was used as an air raid shelter and, intriguingly, was used by Winston Churchill during the Blitz.

Another perennial favourite are the tours of Aldwych tube station on the Strand near Somerset House, and there are also in-person tours of Shepherd’s Bush station’s hidden nooks and crannies, and the same at Euston.

Virtual tours allow visitors a behind-the-scenes look at the new Elizabeth line stations at Tottenham Court Road and Liverpool Street, as well as a look at the closed Kingsway areas of Holborn.

So, you can spend a whole lot more time on the tube, if you fancy it. Do – it’s really worth it. But book soon – these tours always sell out.

Find more details of London Transport Museum’s ‘Hidden London’ tours and book places here .

Take a look at the sensational restoration of Battersea Power Station .

A first glimpse inside new Canning Town club space The Beams .

• Chris Waywell Deputy Editor, Time Out London

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Moscow Metro Tour - With Reviews & Ratings

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Key Details

• Mobile Voucher Accepted
• Free Cancellation
• Duration: 1 Hr 30 Mins
• Language: English
• Departure Time : 3:00 PM
• Departure Details : Sapozhkovskaya Ploshchad', Manezhnaya Ulitsa, 13/1, Moskva, Russia, 125009
• Return Details : Returns to original departure point
• Cancellation Policy : For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours in advance of the start date of the experience. Tours booked using discount coupon codes will be non refundable.

See the best examples of underground Soviet-era architecture on a 1.5-hour walking tour of Moscows metro stations! With an expert guide at your side, visit five of Moscows must-see stations, including iconic Mayakovskaya , and learn all about Stalins visions for the former Soviet Union. Hear about the Metro-2, a secret line said to have been used by the government and Kgb , and see grandiose architecture, mosaics, sculptures and more!

Know More about this tour

Meet your expert guide outside the Kremlin and head underground with your Moscow metro ticket to discover the citys underground treasures. See the most interesting stations with extravagant Soviet-era architecture and hear the history surrounding the metro stations from your expert guide. Widely praised as one of Stalins finest architectural achievements, Moscow 's subway was created to symbolize his rising regime and a recognized empire. Learn about his successors, who later toned down the ornateness of the subways architecture, and see how the different eras are reflected in the character of each station. If you're lucky, you may even find the secret entrance to the unconfirmed Metro-2, a parallel underground system used by the government -- a mystery which has neither been denied nor confirmed today. Visit Revolution Square Station ( Ploschad revolyutsii ) and admire the 72 magnificent bronze sculptures that depict the people of the former Soviet Union, set underneath marble arches designed by the legendary Russian architect Alexey Dushkin. Another Dushkin-created station is Novoslobodskaya , and youll head here next to admire its dazzling stained-glass panels. Discover Baroque dcor, vaulted ceilings and chandeliers at Komsomolskaya Station, and then marvel at the grandiose and pompous design of Kurskaya Station -- one of the first stations to be built. Its design reflects Stalins communist ideals and youll note its left-wing slogans on the walls, next to mosaics that symbolize the victory of his regime over poverty and starvation. Finally, pay a visit to Mayakovskaya , the station thats named after Russian poet Vladmir Mayakovsky, and see why its often considered the most beautiful and iconic Moscow Metro station. Gaze upward at some 30 fascinating mosaics that depict Stalins vision for a bright Soviet future, and then admire the features of typical pre-World War II architecture that the station embodies. Your tour ends here.

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Traveler Reviews

It was an amazing tour and an amazing metro, very much enjoyed it and the tour guide Ana was great !

Really excellent tour of the beautiful Moscow metro with an excellent guide who told us very interesting additional information as we went round.

Definitely do this if you’re in Moscow.

We were surprised at how interesting and beautiful the Moscow metro stations are. We had a great guide who spoke excellent English and explained lots of history associated with the stations.

Loved the tour of Moscow metro stations. The architecture inside the metro stations is gorgeous. Very informative tour guide. Definitely recommend this trip when you are in Moscow

Very informative and fun tour, Nick was a great guide, very knowledgeable and enthusiastic. Meeting point was easy to find.

Well, honestly I always wanted to visit Moscows metro.The whole experience was incredible, the knowledge of the guide was very good too.Maybe you cannot see the whole thing, but note there are more interesting stations than you can see In just some hours

Probably one of the best tours I have ever been on. Each train station was so unique and beautiful.

Very interesting tour with great guides

My guide Ana was amazing!! So nice and informative. She spoke perfect Spanish and English.

Interesting and fun walk!

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Moscow Metro

The Moscow Metro Tour is included in most guided tours’ itineraries. Opened in 1935, under Stalin’s regime, the metro was not only meant to solve transport problems, but also was hailed as “a people’s palace”. Every station you will see during your Moscow metro tour looks like a palace room. There are bright paintings, mosaics, stained glass, bronze statues… Our Moscow metro tour includes the most impressive stations best architects and designers worked at - Ploshchad Revolutsii, Mayakovskaya, Komsomolskaya, Kievskaya, Novoslobodskaya and some others.

What is the kremlin in russia?

The guide will not only help you navigate the metro, but will also provide you with fascinating background tales for the images you see and a history of each station.

And there some stories to be told during the Moscow metro tour! The deepest station - Park Pobedy - is 84 metres under the ground with the world longest escalator of 140 meters. Parts of the so-called Metro-2, a secret strategic system of underground tunnels, was used for its construction.

During the Second World War the metro itself became a strategic asset: it was turned into the city's biggest bomb-shelter and one of the stations even became a library. 217 children were born here in 1941-1942! The metro is the most effective means of transport in the capital.

There are almost 200 stations 196 at the moment and trains run every 90 seconds! The guide of your Moscow metro tour can explain to you how to buy tickets and find your way if you plan to get around by yourself.

Moscow Metro Tour

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Description

Moscow metro private tours.

• 2-hour tour $87:  10 Must-See Moscow Metro stations with hotel pick-up and drop-off
• 3-hour tour $137:  20 Must-See Moscow Metro stations with Russian lunch in beautifully-decorated Metro Diner + hotel pick-up and drop off. 
• Metro pass is included in the price of both tours.

Highlight of Metro Tour

• Visit 10 must-see stations of Moscow metro on 2-hr tour and 20 Metro stations on 3-hr tour, including grand Komsomolskaya station with its distinctive Baroque décor, aristocratic Mayakovskaya station with Soviet mosaics, legendary Revolution Square station with 72 bronze sculptures and more!
• Explore Museum of Moscow Metro and learn a ton of technical and historical facts;
• Listen to the secrets about the Metro-2, a secret line supposedly used by the government and KGB;
• Experience a selection of most striking features of Moscow Metro hidden from most tourists and even locals;
• Discover the underground treasure of Russian Soviet past – from mosaics to bronzes, paintings, marble arches, stained glass and even paleontological elements;
• Learn fun stories and myths about Coffee Ring, Zodiac signs of Moscow Metro and more;
• Admire Soviet-era architecture of pre- and post- World War II perious;
• Enjoy panoramic views of Sparrow Hills from Luzhniki Metro Bridge – MetroMost, the only station of Moscow Metro located over water and the highest station above ground level;
• If lucky, catch a unique «Aquarelle Train» – a wheeled picture gallery, brightly painted with images of peony, chrysanthemums, daisies, sunflowers and each car unit is unique;
• Become an expert at navigating the legendary Moscow Metro system;
• Have fun time with a very friendly local;
• + Atmospheric Metro lunch in Moscow’s the only Metro Diner (included in a 3-hr tour)

Hotel Pick-up

Metro stations:.

Komsomolskaya

Novoslobodskaya

Prospekt Mira

Belorusskaya

Mayakovskaya

Novokuznetskaya

Revolution Square

Sparrow Hills

+ for 3-hour tour

Victory Park

Slavic Boulevard

Vystavochnaya

Dostoevskaya

Elektrozavodskaya

Partizanskaya

Museum of Moscow Metro

• Drop-off  at your hotel, Novodevichy Convent, Sparrow Hills or any place you wish
• + Russian lunch  in Metro Diner with artistic metro-style interior for 3-hour tour

Fun facts from our Moscow Metro Tours:

From the very first days of its existence, the Moscow Metro was the object of civil defense, used as a bomb shelter, and designed as a defense for a possible attack on the Soviet Union.

At a depth of 50 to 120 meters lies the second, the coded system of Metro-2 of Moscow subway, which is equipped with everything you need, from food storage to the nuclear button.

According to some sources, the total length of Metro-2 reaches over 150 kilometers.

The Museum was opened on Sportivnaya metro station on November 6, 1967. It features the most interesting models of trains and stations.

Coffee Ring

The first scheme of Moscow Metro looked like a bunch of separate lines. Listen to a myth about Joseph Stalin and the main brown line of Moscow Metro.

Zodiac Metro

According to some astrologers, each of the 12 stops of the Moscow Ring Line corresponds to a particular sign of the zodiac and divides the city into astrological sector.

Astrologers believe that being in a particular zadiac sector of Moscow for a long time, you attract certain energy and events into your life.

Paleontological finds 

Red marble walls of some of the Metro stations hide in themselves petrified inhabitants of ancient seas. Try and find some!

• Every day each car in  Moscow metro passes  more than 600 km, which is the distance from Moscow to St. Petersburg.
• Moscow subway system is the  5th in the intensity  of use (after the subways of Beijing, Tokyo, Seoul and Shanghai).
• The interval in the movement of trains in rush hour is  90 seconds .

What you get:

• + A friend in Moscow.
• + Private & customized Moscow tour.
• + An exciting pastime, not just boring history lessons.
• + An authentic experience of local life.
• + Flexibility during the walking tour: changes can be made at any time to suit individual preferences.
• + Amazing deals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner in the very best cafes & restaurants. Discounts on weekdays (Mon-Fri).
• + A photo session amongst spectacular Moscow scenery that can be treasured for a lifetime.
• + Good value for souvenirs, taxis, and hotels.
• + Expert advice on what to do, where to go, and how to make the most of your time in Moscow.

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