It is mistakenly believed that the only large and conveniently located shopping center within the Moscow Ring Road in Moscow is one - and this is "Evropeyskiy". Although at a distance of just one metro station from it there is another giant center - Afimall City, which can be reached quickly and easily as well.
How the global crisis disrupted Afimoll's plans
The decision to build one of the most beautiful shopping centers in Moscow was made back in the spring of 2008, but due to the financial crisis, the opening of Afimoll had to be postponed until better times, namely, until May 2011.
Nevertheless, the long-awaited opening was solemn and gathered a lot of Russian pop stars: Dima Bilan, the Fabrika group and Band'Eros.
Unlike most of its competitors, the complex is located not within the boundaries of the Moscow Ring Road, but much closer - in the center of one of the largest investment projects of the last decade, the Moscow International Business Center "Moscow City".
Afimall is also famous for its large-scale exhibitions: for about 2 years on the 6th floor of the mall there was an exhibition of giant nesting dolls. Now it has been replaced by the Titanic exhibition.
3 ways to get to "Afimolla"
To get to the shopping center by public transport, you need to get to the Kievskaya metro station (Filevskaya line).
Since this is the only branch with a fork, you need to be extremely careful: from the same platform, trains leave in the direction of two stations at once - "Kuntsevskaya" and "Mezhdunarodnaya".
In order not to disorient passengers, all trains that go to Kuntsevskaya are not announced, and if a suitable train arrives to Mezhdunarodnaya, they will tell about it over the speakerphone and write on a digital board, which is located above the tracks.
Trains to Mezhdunarodnaya run at long intervals - on average, the waiting time can be up to 10 minutes. After the “correct” train has been selected, it will take only one run to the Vystavochnaya station. But what a! Unlike most routes between stations, the journey from Kievskaya to Vystavochnaya will take about 7 minutes.
But getting out of the metro is convenient - the station is designed in such a way that when you exit you immediately find yourself in a shopping and entertainment center.
You can also get to Afimalla by private car - for this you need to get to the junction where the TRK (Third Transport Ring) crosses Krasnopresnenskaya embankment.
The entertainment center has its own parking, but it is underground and, to the surprise of many, is paid. Parking within 2 hours will cost 100 rubles / hour, 3-4 hours - 50 rubles / hour.
There is a third way to get to Afimalla: by train, which departs from the Belorussky railway station. Electric trains to Odintsovo, Golitsyno, Mozhaisk and Borodino, which make a stop at the Testovskaya station, will do.
Although the mall is located very close to the railway tracks, it is not always easy to get to it - because of the incessant construction on the territory of "Moscow City".
By the way, Afimall is not only one of the most beautiful and non-trivial projects, but, unfortunately for investors, it is also one of the least populated and unprofitable.
According to the development company that financed the construction of the center, Afimall is visited by up to 20 thousand people every day, while the daily traffic of their closest (both in terms of scope and geography) competitor, the Evropeyskiy shopping and entertainment complex, is 130 thousand people.
Despite this, there has been no news yet about the possible closure of the shopping and entertainment center.
