Headquarters of the RGS

The grand opening of the Headquarters of the Russian Geographical Society in Moscow took place in 2013, in a building of the 19th century, where the tenement of the Moscow Merchant Society was originally located. In the 1920s, it housed the dormitory of the Department of Ethnology of Moscow State University, whose foundations were laid, among others, by the members of the Russian Geographical Society.
The Moscow Headquarters houses a library, a media studio, a lecture hall, and an exhibition hall. The office premises of the Executive Directorate of the Society are also located here.

Nowadays, you can take an excursion to the Moscow Headquarters of the RGS, learn the history of the creation of one of the oldest societies in the world, and see with your own eyes both historical relics and modern finds of the RGS’s expeditions. 

And for collectors of unique experiences, there is an exclusive trip to the Headquarters of the RGS in Moscow starting at 10,000 rubles. A special opportunity to appreciate the spirit of the expeditions and discoveries made by the great Russian geographers of the past... and which are happening to this day! You will visit the great halls of the historic building in the heart of Moscow and get acquainted with the artifacts – the pride of the permanent exhibition and recent finds. The keeper of the collections of the RGS will hand you white gloves and introduce you to ancient maps and atlases. We will exchange impressions over friendly coffee with signature "expedition" desserts. Souvenirs are available for travelers from the limited collection of the RGS. 

Book your trip to the RGS Headquarters in Moscow by sending a request to travel@rgo.ru.

Address: Novaya Ploshchad, 10, Stroenie 2. 

TOURS OF THE RGS HEADQUARTERS IN ST. PETERSBURG

Dear guests! We are glad to welcome you!

We invite you to get acquainted with the history of the unique building, built specifically for the Russian Geographical Society in 1908 and that has never changed its owner. You will have the opportunity to admire the unique interiors, carefully preserved by the members of the RGS to the present day. You will visit the Scientific Library, which is a unique specialized book collection and is one of the largest geographical libraries in the world. You will visit the Yu.M. Shokalsky Lecture Hall, where you will be told about the legendary scientists, researchers, and discoverers who made their presentations there. You will see the Presidium Hall, where seasoned travelers and reputable geographers still gather at a large table in impressive chairs of the 19th century and share their scientific achievements. During the tour you will learn a lot of new and interesting things about modern expeditions and educational projects of the Russian Geographical Society.

Please note!

— The Headquarters of the RGS is a unique object of historical and cultural heritage. Researchers work daily in its collections, so you need to follow the rules of conduct and keep quiet and calm. We take care of your comfort and safety based on the capacity and maximum load on the halls.

— Entry is available only via a tour. The number of tickets for each tour is limited.

— We ask you to sign up for the tour at least two days before the desired date.

Ticket type

Combined group (5 to 20 people)
Full-price entrance ticket – 800 rubles.
Discount ticket* – 400 rubles.

Group of friends (1 to 15 people)**
Full-price entrance ticket (1 to 3 people, per group) – 4,800 rubles.
Full-price entrance ticket (4 to 15 people) – 1,600 rubles.
Discount ticket (4 to 15 people)* – 800 rubles.

VIP and exclusive excursions***
Full-price entrance ticket – starting at 5,000 rubles.

Discount group tour for RGS partners (from 4 to 20 people)****
Full-price entrance ticket for the group – 4,000 rubles.

*Upon entry, you must present a document confirming that the visitor belongs to the category of citizens eligible for the discount.

Citizens who have the right to purchase tickets at a discounted price:
1. pensioners;
2. schoolchildren (under 18 years old);
3. full-time university students;
4. members of large families.

Citizens eligible for free admission:
1. participants and veterans of the Great Patriotic War;
2. persons awarded the medal "For the Defense of Leningrad";
3. combat veterans, compulsory military service military personnel;
4. participants of the Special Military Operation and their family members upon presentation of the relevant documents (participant's certificate, as well as a certificate issued to family members that their relatives are participants of the Special Military Operation);
5. people with category I and II disabilities and disabled children with one accompanying person;
6. persons under the age of seven;
7. Heroes of the Soviet Union;
8. Heroes of the Russian Federation;
9. Heroes of Socialist Labor;
10. Heroes of Labor of the Russian Federation;
11. Full Cavaliers of the Order of Glory;
12. Honored Geographers of the Russian Federation.

The list of categories of guests eligible for a 20% discount:
1. members of the Russian Geographical Society;
2. cadets of educational institutions of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation, the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation, and the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia;
3. students of Suvorov, Nakhimov Schools, and cadet corps.

**The group consists only of your friends, acquaintances or relatives.

***In addition to visiting the main halls, “VIP and exclusive excursions” include acquaintance with unique publications from the personal libraries of famous members of the RGS: P. P. Semenov-Tyan-Shansky, Yu. M. Shokalsky, V. A. Obruchev, I. I. Babkov, and others. In particular, you will be able to learn about the work of the oldest and only geographical Scientific Archive in the country, which contains over 64,000 units of storage of unique documents. Here you will get acquainted with the personal collections of outstanding Russian geographers and travelers: N. M. Przhevalsky, N. N. Miklukho-Maklai, G. E. Grumm-Grzhimailo, and many others. In addition, during the tour you will see the unique items of the Cartographic Collection, which contains over 48,000 units of domestic and foreign publications, rare handwritten materials, relief maps compiled from many fields of geographical science and related disciplines, which cover the period of the last quarter of the 15th century to the present. The collection is the largest cartographic accumulation among the geographical societies of the world.
VIP guests have the opportunity to independently choose the topic of the tour, for which we will select materials, as well as the format of the tour – for example, the ending in the form of an exclusive tea party. We take into account all your wishes and discuss them individually. Phone: +7 (921) 413-41-68 (WhatsApp, Telegram).

****To register in this category, you need to provide an official letter confirming the status of a partner of the Russian Geographical Society, and send it five business days before the expected date of the visit by e-mail spb@rgo.ru. The duration of the tour is 60 minutes. (for the "VIP" category – 120 min. and more).

Tours

For the "Combined Group" and "Group of Friends" categories (Monday through Friday):
— 11:00;
— 14:00;
— 16:00.

For the category "VIP and exclusive excursions":
— weekdays, from 10:00 to 19:00;
— Saturday, from 11:00 to 15:00.

Contacts
The address of the RGS Headquarters in St. Petersburg: Pereulok Grivtsova, 10A.
Phone: +7 (921) 413-41-68 (WhatsApp, Telegram).
E-mail: spb@rgo.ru.

The joint work of the Sevastopol Branch of the RGS and the Konstantinovskaya Battery Museum Complex gives fruitful results in the field of scientific, historical, and cultural education of the population. To date, scientific conferences, seminars, and round tables are regularly held within the walls of the battery, graduate theses are defended by graduates of Sevastopol State University, and many other scientific, educational, and patriotic events are held here as well. All-Russian expeditions start and finish here, and youth and patriotic organizations set off on trips from this location. New traditions are given rise to here.

In addition to the main exhibition dedicated to the heroic history of the city and the battery, exhibitions dedicated to travel and research are regularly held at the Konstantinovskaya Battery Museum with the support of the Russian Geographical Society.

The Headquarters regularly receives interesting guests. Among them are Albert Sokolov, who is the only participant of the expedition "Around Russia in 100 Days", and the great-grandson of the Russian traveler Nickolay Miklouho-Maclay Jr., continuing and adding to the work of his ancestor.

In 2021, from a grant from the Russian Geographical Society, a large-scale long-term project "Permanent Underwater Expedition at the Museum and Exhibition Complex of the RGS Konstantinovskaya Battery" was launched.