St Petersburg
Splendid wrought-iron gates facing the Fontanka River guard the entrance to the Sheremetyev Palace (built 1750–55), now a branch of the State Museum of…
Must-see attractions in St Petersburg
St Petersburg
This innocuous house on the corner of Stolyarny per (called ‘S… lane’ in the book) is one of two possible locations of the attic apartment of Rodion…
Museum of the Imperial Porcelain Factory
St Petersburg
Run as an outpost of the Hermitage, this superb museum has a stellar display of the various designs the factory has produced over the centuries and will…
St Petersburg
This neoclassical cathedral, partly modelled on St Peter’s in Rome, was commissioned by Tsar Paul shortly before he was murdered in a coup. Its 111m-long…
St Petersburg
Century-old dacha (country cottages) and mansions, inhabited by very wealthy locals, line the wooded lanes that twist their way around Kamenny (Stone)…
St Petersburg
This charming log cottage, protected within a stone building, is St Petersburg’s oldest surviving structure. The wooden cabin itself was supposedly built…
St Petersburg
This fabulous and fully restored mansion on the Moyka River belonged to Grand Duke Alexey, the son of Alexander II. The wrought-iron-and-stone fence is…
St Petersburg
Completed in 1744 and marked by a statue of scientist-poet Mikhail Lomonosov (1711–65), the 400m-long Twelve Colleges is one of St Petersburg’s oldest…
St Petersburg
The gilded spire of the Admiralty is a prime St Petersburg landmark, visible from Gorokhovaya ul, Voznesensky pr and Nevsky pr, as all of these roads…
St Petersburg
This fantastic, five-domed cathedral, ascribed to Domenico Trezzini, is the namesake of this neighbourhood. Incorporating both baroque and neoclassical…
St Petersburg
This light-blue baroque cathedral dates from 1740, and having been repainted and restored to its original glory both inside and out, glistens like a pearl…
St Petersburg
Facing Millionnaya ul, the New Hermitage was built for Nicholas II in 1852, to hold the growing art collection and as a museum for the public. Designed by…
St Petersburg
Home of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov for the last 15 years of his life (1893–1908), this is where he composed 11 of his 15 operas, including the Fairy Tale of…
St Petersburg
Russia in all its grit and glory – from the industrial sprawl of Magnitogorsk to the glittering domes of Moscow – is on full display at this vast…
St Petersburg
Surrounded on two sides by canals, this ice-blue cathedral is one of the most picture-perfect in the city, beloved by locals for its baroque spires and…
St Petersburg
This branch of the Russian Museum features temporary exhibitions of contemporary art and a permanent display from Cologne's Ludwig Museum that includes…
Museum of the Arctic & Antarctic
St Petersburg
This museum is devoted to polar expeditions, wildlife, cultures and history. The enormous collection includes scientific equipment, maps, taxidermy,…
St Petersburg
The main burial place for the victims of the Nazi blockade in WWII is a stark and poignant memorial to the tragedy. Some half a million people were laid…
St Petersburg
The Krasin, built in 1917, has a history almost as volatile as the 20th century itself. The Arctic icebreaker was decommissioned in 1971, and can now be…
St Petersburg
Built between 1741 and 1751, with input from a slew of architects, including Rastrelli and Rossi, the Anichkov Palace is now officially known as the St…
St Petersburg
Created by Carlo Rossi in the 1820s and 1830s, this square is named for Alexander Ostrovsky (1823–86), a celebrated 19th-century playwright. An enormous…
St Petersburg
Named after the great scientist Mikhail Lomonosov, this small square forms the southwestern end of the Carlo Rossi–designed ensemble and is the best spot…
Museum of Soviet Arcade Machines
St Petersburg
Giving new meaning to 'back in the USSR', this 'museum' is sure to be one of the most entertaining ones you will visit in St Petersburg. Admission…
St Petersburg
This stunning mint-green, white and gold profusion of columns, windows and recesses, with its roof topped by rows of classical statues, was commissioned…
St Petersburg
Excavations beneath the Hermitage Theatre in the late 1970s revealed remains of the principal residence of Peter the Great, including a large fragment of…
St Petersburg
Lenin’s wife’s family lived in this apartment-turned-museum and VIadimir Ilyich himself laid low here before the revolution while organising the workers…
St Petersburg
Evocative use of the original cells for displays about the former political prisoners of Trubetskoy Bastion – who included the likes of Maxim Gorky, Leon…
St Petersburg
Rebuilt in the 1970s in rectilinear Soviet style, the Finland Station (Finlyandsky vokzal) endures as a place of historical significance, where Lenin…
Cathedral of the Transfiguration of Our Saviour
St Petersburg
The interior of this marvellous 1743 cathedral, which has been beautifully restored and repainted both outside and in, is one of the most gilded in the…
St Petersburg
Right outside the Moskovskaya metro station you’ll see the House of Soviets, a staggeringly bombastic Stalinist beauty. Planned to be the central…
St Petersburg
This excellent museum displays the traditional crafts, customs and beliefs of more than 150 cultures that make up Russia’s fragile ethnic mosaic. It’s a…
St Petersburg
One of the city’s loveliest baroque exteriors, the salmon-pink Stroganov Palace was designed by court favourite Bartolomeo Rastrelli in 1753 for one of…
St Petersburg
This eastern tip of Vasilyevsky Island is where Peter the Great wanted his new city’s administrative and intellectual centre to be. In fact, it became the…
St Petersburg
This grand old Petersburg residence was the home to court poet Gabriel Derzhavin (1743–1816), one of Russia's greatest early writers, who recognised the…
St Petersburg
In a once-industrial part of the city, Lumiere Hall hosts large-format multimedia exhibitions – basically massive 3D projections in a 360-degree space,…
St Petersburg
Moored on the Bolshaya Nevka, the Aurora had a walk-on part in the communist revolution. On the night of 25 October 1917, its crew fired a blank round…
St Petersburg
The biggest of the three northern islands, Krestovsky consists mostly of the vast Maritime Victory Park, dotted with sports fields; at the far western end…
St Petersburg
This now legendary locale is a former apartment block – affectionately called by its street address despite the fact that the public entrance is actually…
St Petersburg
This striking red-and-white 18th-century Gothic church is east off Moskovsky pr. Designed by Yury Felten, it was built between 1777 and 1780 in honour of…
Museum of the History of Political Police
St Petersburg
In the very same building that housed the tsarist and the Bolshevik secret police offices, this small museum recounts the history of this controversial…
