Visiting Rules for the Hermitage

The time-slot system is intended to avoid gatherings of people in the entrance zone and so access to the museum premises is not allowed until 30 minutes before the start of each time slot. Visitors are recommended to arrive at the museum entrance 15 minutes before the start of the time slot for which they hold tickets. Visitors will be allowed to enter the display area no later than 30 minutes after the start of their time slot. After that time, the electronic system blocks the ticket, which will be cancelled, and no refund will be made.

The number of visitors in any time slot is restricted to allow comfortable passage through the museum's entrance zone and viewing of the displays. Visitors are recommended to follow the direction of movement indicated when making their way around the displays to avoid intersecting streams of people from opposite directions and make your time in the museum more pleasant.

Wearing personal protection in the museum is currently a recommendation, but not a requirement.

We recommend buying tickets to the museum in advance online through the official website tickets.hermitagemuseum.org. Electronic tickets are available on the website only for the nearest 2–4 weeks; entrance tickets from the ticket offices only for the current day. This measure has been introduced to counter profiteering. Buy your tickets only from official sales points operated by the museum itself!

Electronic tickets do not need to be exchanged at the ticket offices. To enter the museum, you will need to present the barcode, printed out or stored on a mobile device, to the reader at the entrance turnstile.

Holders have the right to return tickets that they have purchased no later than three days before the date of their scheduled visit. Payments for electronic entry tickets can only be refunded to the person who paid for them through the museum website. Details of the rules for buying and returning tickets can be found here.

IMPORTANT: If you appear to have not received letters confirming your order or containing the electronic tickets, please check your e-mail's "Spam" folder.

If you have questions about buying or returning tickets, you should contact us by telephone +7 (812) 710 99 60 during the museum's working hours, or by e-mail: tickets@hermitage.ru.

To visit the museum, holders of Hermitage Friends' Club personal cards will need to scan the barcode of a valid membership card at the entrance turnstile.
Entry to the Main Museum Complex for members of the Hermitage Friends' Club is through the Commandant's Entrance of the Winter Palace. Entry to the General Staff building is through the same entrance as for other visitors from Palace Square.

Further details of the procedure that members of the Hermitage Friends' Club should follow to reach the museum displays can be found in a special section of the website.

Dear Visitors

We seek to ensure your safety and comfort during your time in the museum. Please take note of the Rules for Visiting the Hermitage that need to be followed to ensure the safety of the museum's guests and staff, and also to preserve its exhibits.
Under section 5 of the Rules for Visiting the Hermitage in the museum it is not permitted:

• to run within the displays, make unnecessary noise or engage in any other activity that causes inconvenience to other museum visitors
• to soil the museum premises or leave litter
• to go beyond any barriers or into areas and rooms that are closed to visitors
• to smoke on museum premises, including the use of electronic cigarettes, tobacco-heating devices, vaping or the like
• to disrupt public order; use abusive language or ill-mannered behaviour when interacting with members of the Hermitage staff or other museum visitors
• to wear outer clothing or to have clothing or other objects that may stain other people and/or museum objects and elements of the interior
• to be on museum premises in a state of intoxication from alcohol, narcotics or any other harmful substance
• to bring any animals onto museum premises
• to touch museum objects and elements of the interior, labels or showcases, decorative features or display structures, to lean on interior features (the bases of columns, pedestals and so on)
• to consume food or drink anywhere on Hermitage premises apart from the designated café areas
• to carry out any propaganda activity aimed at an unspecified section of the public, or any sort of socio-political, theatricalized, religious or other events that have not been previously agreed with the administration of the State Hermitage

The Checkpoint Module

The entrance zones to all the State Hermitage's display facilities contain checkpoints where inspection of visitors and their hand luggage is performed. This measure is vital to ensure the safety of the museum's guests and staff, as well as the preservation of the State Hermitage's cultural valuables.
The central route into the Main Museum Complex from Palace Square is equipped with a specially constructed checkpoint module. The checkpoint located within an archway of the Main Gates of the Winter Palace is an element in the museum's security system and functions as part of the measures to protect the State Hermitage from acts of terrorism. Within the module, personnel from the National Guard and the Hermitage Security Service inspect visitors immediately before they enter the museum premises.
Entry to the Great Courtyard of the Winter Palace is through the right-hand part of the main arch, while the exit is on the left. A separate entrance is provided for people with restricted mobility through the left side, while visitors with pacemakers will undergo manual inspection on presenting an appropriate document.
We remind readers of the things that visitors are not permitted to bring into the museum:

• any form of weapon or its component parts, also imitations of weapons, explosive substances or their components
• liquids in any sort of container, with the exception of food for infants
• poisonous, harmful and intoxicating substances
• sharp or fragile objects
• gas containers, knives, tools
• bulky objects
• sports equipment, and also means of transport (bicycles, scooters, self-balancing scooters (hoverboards), electric unicycles and the like)

It is also not permitted to bring in or use on museum premises unmanned aerial devices (drones) without the agreement of the museum administration.

When planning your visit to the museum, we recommend that you do not bring bulky hand luggage, suitcases, large rucksacks or sports bags. Items larger than 45 × 40 ×35 cm (17.7 × 15.75 × 13.8 inches) cannot be left in the cloakrooms. It is not permitted to enter State Hermitage premises with such baggage.
Going through the checkpoint does not take long. The module has sufficient capacity to cope with a large flow of visitors. Nevertheless, we recommend arriving at the museum in good time for the start of your time-slot.
After passing the checkpoint, visitors with electronic tickets can make their way to the entrances to the museum displays indicated in their tickets. Other guests of the Hermitage have the opportunity to buy entry tickets from the ticket offices or machines. It is important to note that visitors who have already acquired entry tickets through the museum's official website do not need to go to the ticket offices.
In order to ensure good order and visitors' safety, over the New Year and the school holidays there will be short intervals in access to the ticket offices. This will make it possible to avoid excessive crowding in the entrance zone and cloakrooms.

Holders of a Pushkin Card* can obtain entry tickets to the Main Museum Complex at the reduced price of 300 roubles. The number of tickets is limited. Entry for holders of tickets obtained with the Pushkin Card is through the Small Hermitage from Shuvalov Passage (which runs from Millionnaya Street to Palace Embankment).**

Holders of tickets obtained with a Pushkin Card and friends or relatives holding standard-category tickets who are planning to visit the museum together can enter the museum as a group through the Small Hermitage from Shuvalov Passage.

It is also possible to visit the Main Museum Complex on a general guided tour with a ticket obtained using the Pushkin Card. After the tour, ticket holders can continue to view the museum displays independently. Entry to the Main Museum Complex for guided tours is through the Commandant's Entrance of the Winter Palace directly from Palace Square.

Holders of a Pushkin Card can also obtain tickets for guided tours of the two parts of the Treasure Gallery – the Gold Rooms or Diamond Rooms. After the tour, ticket holders can continue to view the displays of the Main Museum Complex independently.

Entry tickets bought through the Pushkin Card programme are personalized. When placing an order on the website, the visitor will need to give their full name and details of an ID document. Tickets can be obtained from the museum website tickets.hermitagemuseum.org and also from the ticket office in the Small Hermitage (entry from Shuvalov Passage, which runs from Millionnaya Street to Palace Embankment). Please note that only tickets remaining unsold through the website are available at the ticket office.

As visitors are entering the museum through the turnstiles, the member of staff monitoring the entrance zone has the right to request an identity document from a ticket-holder and also proof of their participation in the Pushkin Card programme in electronic or physical form.

The Hermitage has a Special Offer on tickets for certain categories of visitor, including pensioners, students, large families and the staff of other museums. A ticket of this sort allows the holder to visit the Main Museum Complex at the reduced price of 300 roubles, and the General Staff building and Museum of the Imperial Porcelain Factory free of charge altogether.

Special Offer tickets are issued in fixed quotas. When ordering electronic tickets on the website, the user must fill out the registration form giving details of an identity document for each visitor for whom a Special Offer ticket is being obtained.

As visitors are entering the museum through the turnstiles, the member of staff monitoring the entrance zone has the right to request an identity document from a visitor and also a document confirming that a visitor belongs to one of the concessionary categories. A complete list of the concessionary categories that apply for each museum facility can be found in the corresponding Visit Us section of the website.

Each third Thursday of the month, the Main Museum Complex, General Staff building and Museum of the Imperial Porcelain Factory can be visited with tickets that are available free of charge to:

• children under the age of 18 (irrespective of citizenship)
• families with three or more children under 18 (citizens of the Russian Federation and other states of the Eurasian Economic Union)
• pensioners (citizens of the Russian Federation and other states of the Eurasian Economic Union)
• students attending educational institutions in the Russian Federation (irrespective of citizenship)
• postgraduate students and interns attending educational institutions in the Russian Federation (irrespective of citizenship)
• child invalids with one accompanying person (irrespective of citizenship)
• invalids of the 1st Group (citizens of the Russian Federation and other states of the Eurasian Economic Union) with one accompanying person (irrespective of citizenship)
• invalids of the 2nd Group (citizens of the Russian Federation and other states of the Eurasian Economic Union), among whom invalids with damage to the locomotor apparatus who are unable to move fully independently, wheelchair-bound invalids and visually impaired invalids have the right to one non-paying accompanying person (irrespective of citizenship)
• accompanying an invalid of the relevant group
• members of staff of museums in the Russian Federation
• members of creative unions of the Russian Federation (artists, designers, architects)
• members of ICOM (the International Council of Museums)
• Full Members of the Order of Labour Glory
• Heroes of Socialist Labour
• veterans of the Great Patriotic War, including recipients of the medal For the Defence of Leningrad, invalids from childhood due to wounds, contusions or mutilation connected with military action during the Great Patriotic War of 1941–45
• persons awarded the badge Resident of Besieged Leningrad
• former under-age inmates of concentration camps, ghettos and other places of enforced detention set up by fascists and their allies during the Second World War (irrespective of citizenship)
• military cadets attending educational institutions in the Russian Federation (irrespective of citizenship)
• members of the armed forces doing their compulsory military service (citizens of the Russian Federation)
• veterans of military operations

The free-of-charge entry ticket permits the holder to make a single visit without guiding services. The number of tickets available is limited.

Those in the concessionary categories planning to visit the Hermitage on the third Thursday of a month need only to obtain free-of-charge tickets through the website tickets.hermitagemuseum.org. When placing the order, details should be given of an ID document for each visitor with a right to the concession.

It is also possible to obtain free-of-charge tickets on the day from the ticket office. Please note, however, that the ticket office can only issue tickets remaining from the quota that have not been allocated through the website. To avoid a situation where there are no tickets left for the time slot that you want, we recommend obtaining free-of-charge tickets in advance through the website.

Children under the age of 14, irrespective of citizenship, can visit the museum facilities listed below with free-of-charge tickets* on any day when they are open to the public:

• the Main Museum Complex

• the General Staff building

• the Museum of the Imperial Porcelain Factory

Free of charge tickets for children under the age of 14 can be obtained not only from the ticket office immediately before a visit, but also in advance through the website: tickets.hermitagemuseum.org. When buying a ticket through the website, an adult visitor needs to add to their own ticket a child's ticket priced at 0 roubles. Please note that tickets in the "Children under 14" category can only be processed as an addition to a basic one. No more than three children's tickets can be included in a single order.

Please note that children under the age of 12 must be accompanied by an adult who has obtained an electronic entry ticket through the website tickets.hermitagemuseum.org.

When obtaining a free-of-charge child's ticket from the ticket office, visitors may be asked to produce documents confirming the age of the child – a birth certificate or (the parent's or child's) passport.

*The entry tickets allow the holder to view the displays without guiding services. Please note that anyone under 18, irrespective of age, who is visiting the museum for a guided tour must have their own separate ticket including guiding services bought either at the full price or the Special Offer price.

Persons belonging to certain concessionary categories may visit the Main Museum Complex, General Staff building and the Museum of the Imperial Porcelain Factory free of charge on any day when those facilities are open to the public. Tickets should be obtained from the ticket office immediately before a visit on presentation of a document confirming the holder's right to the concession.

• Children under the age of 14, irrespective of citizenship (their tickets can also be obtained in advance through the website)
• Child invalids with one accompanying person (irrespective of citizenship)
• Invalids of the 1st Group (citizens of the Russian Federation and other states of the Eurasian Economic Union) with one accompanying person (irrespective of citizenship)
• Invalids of the 2nd Group (citizens of the Russian Federation and other states of the Eurasian Economic Union), among whom invalids with damage to the locomotor apparatus who are unable to move fully independently, wheelchair-bound invalids and visually impaired invalids have the right to one non-paying accompanying person (irrespective of citizenship)
• veterans of the Great Patriotic War, including recipients of the medal For the Defence of Leningrad, invalids from childhood due to wounds, contusions or mutilation connected with military action during the Great Patriotic War of 1941–45
• persons awarded the badge Resident of Besieged Leningrad
• Heroes of the Soviet Union
• Heroes of the Russian Federation
• Full Members of the Order of Glory

Participants in the Special Military Operation and veterans of military actions can visit the Hermitage using free-of-charge entry tickets on any day when the museum is working.
From 5 September 2023, the right to free-of-charge visits to the Main Museum Complex, General Staff building and Museum of the Imperial Porcelain Factory has been granted to family members of participants in the SMO:

• Parents
• Spouses
• Children under the age of 18
• Children over 18, who became invalids before that age
• Children under the age of 23 attending a Russian educational institution full-time
• Dependants

Free-of-charge entry tickets can be obtained ahead of time through the website tickets.hermitagemuseum.org or from the museum ticket offices on the day of the visit. In order to obtain a free-of-charge entry ticket, it is necessary to present a document confirming the family member's participation in the SMO as well as documents proving the relationship.

• For a spouse – the marriage certificate
• For children – the birth or adoption certificate
• For parents – the birth certificate

When ordering an electronic ticket on the official Hermitage website, the full name of each visitor must be provided.

The documents confirming the right to the concession will be checked by a member of staff at the ticket office or in the entrance zone of the museum. A complete list of concessionary categories can be found in the Visit Us section of the website.

Amateur* photography and video-filming is permitted in the museum's displays with the exception of places where photography is expressly forbidden (such as temporary exhibitions, the Treasure Gallery and the Staraya Derevnya Restoration and Storage Centre).

To hold an amateur photo shoot – a wedding or costumed photo session – you will need to:

• purchase entry tickets to the Hermitage for all the participants in the shoot (no more than five persons, including the photographer)
• go to the museum ticket office before the visit to purchase a ticket for a photo-shoot. A costumed session costs 10,000 roubles; a wedding session costs 5,000 roubles.
• inform the administrators of the entrance zone of your visit by telephone +7 (812) 710-90-79.

A costumed session refers to a photo-shoot whose participants wear formal or festive clothing appropriate to the setting of the museum state rooms and display halls. During the shoot, it is not permitted to engage in any kind of performance or public action that might distract other museum visitors and interfere with their viewing of the displays.

*Amateur photography and video-filming is performed for personal, family, domestic or other purposes not associated with obtaining a profit, reproduction in large quantities, public exhibition and the like, and not requiring preparation or the use of special equipment (tripods, monopods, other special props, the use of flash or other lighting devices).

If you wish to carry out a professional shoot in the museum, an official request should be submitted by e-mail to directorate@hermitage.ru.

The Hermitage has temporary new visiting rules drawn up to safeguard the health of both visitors and the museum staff. Various services are constantly monitoring the characteristics of how visitors move around the museums and analysing feedback, and on that basis they are fine-tuning the existing logistical possibilities to improve the experience for the Hermitage's guests.

Wearing personal protection in the museum is currently a recommendation, but not a requirement.

Movement around the fixed routes is strictly one-way to avoid intersecting streams of people from opposite directions. The number of visitors in any time slot is restricted to allow observance of physical distancing between people and comfortable viewing of the displays. For visitors' convenience appropriate signs and markings have been installed.

Anyone who has symptoms of a viral respiratory infection or is running a temperature must avoid visiting the museum.

If you observe all the recommendations, your visit to the museum will be not only interesting but safe as well! We also ask our guests to respond with understanding to requests from the museum staff aimed at protecting everyone's health.

The rules are constantly being amended depending on the epidemiological situation in the region.