Tsaritsyno Park + palace, Palace complex and park in Orekhovo-Borisovo Severnoye District, Moscow, Russia
Tsaritsyno Park and palace form a Gothic Revival complex with several buildings, ponds, and bridges across roughly four hundred hectares in southeastern Moscow. The different pavilions and palaces sit along winding paths through hills, gardens, and wooded areas.
Catherine the Great commissioned the construction starting in 1776 as a summer residence, but she later rejected the completed main building and never lived there. The complex remained unfinished for over two centuries until extensive work in the early 2000s restored the structures.
Locals walk around the ponds and watch the fountain displays on the Great Pond, where families gather on warm evenings. The name means "place of the tsarina" and recalls the imperial patron who commissioned the estate.
Most paths are paved and suitable for wheelchairs, while some hills and staircases lead to certain viewpoints. A visit takes at least two to three hours if you want to explore both the interiors and the outdoor grounds.
The main palace stood as a roofless ruin for over two hundred years until restorers in the early 2000s created an entirely new interior. Today it houses concert halls and exhibition rooms that were never part of the original plans.
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