Frankly, during my research I got the impression that the Hermitage Museum is overcrowded and you will waste a lot of time if you don’t purchase tickets online in advance (it was $18 online if I remember correctly). But I’m glad I went fearlessly, and that I didn’t try to replace the Hermitage with other attraction. Was there a huge line? In my case, no. I arrived at 11am.
There were only 3 people in the line for buying tickets from the machine kiosks. But it went so smoothly that I forgot I should be buying tickets from a person and not the machine kiosks. Ahhh.
If you intend to exchange student tickets (free), don’t get in the line of machine kiosks. Machine kiosks are placed in the courtyard before the lines for getting into the building.
There were less than 30 people in this line. And I only realized I could have get into the line with them so that my brother could get a free ticket….. well, maybe next time…!
And it was possible that I went on the Sunday after the first Thursday of the month. It is FREE to enter the Hermitage on the first Thursday of a month!
Again, internet world is biased. I didn’t understand why people said there was a huge line. But maybe I was just lucky? In any case, just go and see if there’s a huge line. Don’t worry too much, but try to get there beforr
There are four machine kiosks and it sells only adult tickets (600 rubbles, $10). When you have tickets, you don’t need to get in the line again to enter the builing.
And when you go inside, you can’t bring food inside the museum. Everything stays in the cloakroom (before the entrance to the gallery) And you are only allowed one entrance.
So try to eat and drink well before entering. There are two small coffee shops that sell sandwiches.
It is important that you know where you are going. I marked room 195,197,198,204,254,214,229,227,247. This will help you to navigate without feeling overwhelmed.
In my opinion, only the first floor worth exploring. The Egyptian exhibition on the ground floor was alright.
I hope I’m not biased, but I really enjoyed my 3 hours in the Hermitage (you can stay longer, and you should.) And till now no museum is at bar with it for me! And get a guidebook if you are more enthusiastic about art! There’s also audio guide available for a fee.
Traveling Mega
