Moscow has always had an extensive underground system. You've probably heard about the
Visitors on a tour of the Neglinnaya river tunnel during an underground walking tour.
Iliya Pitalev/RIA NovostiThe Neglinnaya, an underground branch of the Moskva
The Neglinnaya’s size and easy entrance points make it the perfect place to begin your digging experience, as it is spacious, generally flat, and an easily manageable walk for first-timers. Tour-goers will also find out about the river’s creepiest dwellers, such as Darya Saltykova, Moscow’s sadistic landowner who tortured at least 38 of her serfs to death, or the world’s biggest rat, alleged to have grown to 10 meters long.
A two-hour tour (link in Russian) starts at 3,000 roubles ($52) per person.
Moscow diggers explore underground channel.
Sergei Bobylev/TASSThis is an authentic digger experience, in which you will get the chance to climb through tight tubes, traverse waterfalls, and wade through waist-high water. Bring a spare pair of socks.
The tour (link in Russian) costs 2,000 ($34) roubles per person, including all clothes and equipment.
If you’ve tried the Moscow underground experience and are left craving something more authentic, Daniel Davidov is the man to hit up. Davidov is something of a legend among diggers, as his tour service Puteshestvie pod
Nowadays, opting to avoid the Neglinnaya River due to “broken bottles and drunk people,” Davidov offers tourists the chance to explore the more dilapidated but untouched parts of the capital’s
Davidov works with the Moscow City Council to support the Moscow underground’s ecological maintenance, making the tour completely legal.
Prices for the 2.5-kilometer tour (link in Russian) start at 4,000 roubles ($70), which includes all the necessary equipment.
Most diggers are proactive in sharing their underground findings online. Keep up to date on the latest digging discoveries on the following sites and pages:
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