Visit Petersburg

Russian window to the world

Perhaps nothing can genuinely prepare the first-time visitor for the majesty and grandeur of St. Petersburg, the cultural capital of Russia and the northernmost large metropolis in the world, located like a jewel at the mouth of the Neva River flowing to the West on the shores of the Baltic Sea. You may have heard that St. Petersburg was the main stage of Russian history, both imperial and revolutionary, but the city is no less famous as the «Window of Russia» to the rest of Europe and the world in general. With the introduction of a unified e-visa to visit Russia from January 2021, travelers will have many more opportunities to get to know St. Petersburg better than ever before.

Thanks to its privileged location, St. Petersburg is both a magical destination on its own and also a starting point for exploring Russia, and high-speed Sapsan trains bring their passengers to Moscow in just a few hours. Add to that the seaport and international airport, facilitating global transport links, and the introduction of an e-visa, and you will easily realise that St. Petersburg is a perfect match for business travelers. St. Petersburg is a leading MICE destination, and the St. Petersburg Convention Bureau guarantees the success of all your events.

Stay at one-of-a-kind hotels, dine at fabulous restaurants and see world-class events spanning the entire year. In winter, visitors may dive into the Christmas tale of the Festival of Fire. In spring, during the last week before the onset of Great Lent, the city celebrates Maslenitsa with plenty of pancakes to go around and with the traditional burning of the straw man. Summer awaits travelers with the colorful Scarlet Sails and classical nights at the international White Nights festival. In autumn, guests are invited to revel in the world of fabulous installations at the annual Festival of Lights.

St. Petersburg ticks all the right boxes not only as a cultural destination with a rich rhythm of events for all seasons but also as a center for sea cruising and yachting, advanced medicine and ecotourism, offering opportunities for having a relaxing time in nature, too. Be sure to visit the exquisite Peterhof Palace for its stunning gardens and fountains, but do not forget to make time to the remarkable Kronstadt Forts, which construction was started by Peter the Great on Kotlin Island that separates the Neva Bay from the Gulf of Finland.

The most iconic architectural monument of St. Petersburg is the incomparable Winter Palace, home of the phenomenal State Hermitage Museum with three million magnificent works of art in the labyrinth of rooms. It will take over nine years to see them all, but you can take in highlights like the museum’s unmatched galleries of the Old Masters and works by Picasso, Kandinsky and Matisse in a day. In a more contemporary style, St. Petersburg Street Art Museum, or SAM, is located in the building of a former plastics factory in the eastern part of the city.

However, it would not be an understatement to say that the city of Pushkin and Tchaikovsky is an artwork itself. Stroll along purpose-built canals framed by the steep, regal facades of Italian mansions and see how the pastel shades reflect in the mirror-like water. This visual feast unfolds along the entire Nevsky Prospekt, the main architectural highway of St. Alexander Nevsky monastery. Main sights include the gorgeous Stroganov Palace, designed by Bartolomeo Rastrelli in the 1750s and featuring a delicate but dramatic pink façade, the neoclassical Kazan Cathedral, the Art Nouveau Bookhouse, the Eliseev Merchants’ Shop, a luxurious dining hall where you can stock up on all sorts of delicacies, and many other architectural monuments of bygone eras.

At the same time, St. Petersburg knows how to move with the times. The city was the first in Russia to join the international WTTC program for safe tourism: Safe Travels. For tourists, this sign is a guarantee that the services provided by city tourism organisations meet the requirements of sanitary, hygienic and safety standards. In line with international trends, the Safe Travels SPb sign will help you feel secure and safe during your visit.

Along with that a new tourist geography of St. Petersburg is being formed for those looking for a more contemporary edge. For example, on Vasilievsky Island, home of the old St. Petersburg Stock Exchange, linked to the rest of the city by drawbridges, visitors can enjoy the Erarta Museum of Contemporary Art, which boasts not only Russia’s largest collection of contemporary art but also a stunning restaurant with some of the best of St. Petersburg’s desserts. And when it comes to gastronomy, just a short walk from Erarta you will find Sevkabel Port, a vibrant creative gastronomic space with many restaurants and cafes located in a restored former cable factory building facing the sea. Stroll along the embankment with a delicious coffee or a slice of real Italian pizza in hand and admire the view. Also on the island, the Vasileostrovsky market tempts gourmet travelers. How about panoramic views? You can’t miss Lakhta Center because with a height of 462 meters it’s Europe’s tallest skyscraper. Soon the observation deck will be open for everyone to admire the unforgettable views of the city.

Every night when the bridges are raised over the Neva River letting the maritime traffic pass through, you’re reminded again that for all its history St. Petersburg is also a city that beats to a modern rhythm. Even a stay as short as two or three days will be a sensory feast on every level. Visitors will find that St. Petersburg is not only the most cultural city of Russia and a unique example of skillful urban planning but also the place with a special atmosphere where the most memorable tourist routes begin.

Visit Petersburg

Saint Petersburg online

Dear friends!

Take the unique opportunity to enjoy concert performances, exhibitions, lectures, theatre productions without leaving your home.

The best museums and theatres of the city grant everyone the opportunity to feel the cultural atmosphere of St. Petersburg absolutely for free.

We have collected the most interesting offers for you. Enjoy your journey with us online!!

Online tours

We suggest you familiarize yourself with the history of the unique buildings in St. Petersburg — the Egyptian House and the Muruzi House. These tours were prepared by the St. Petersburg City Tourist Information Bureau as part of the «St. Petersburg Kaleidoscope» project.

Museums online

State and private museums of St. Petersburg show you their online opportunities: virtual tours, educational lectures and live broadcasts. Have a nice online journey!

Cultural isolation is offered by the State Hermitage Museum. Take a journey to the museum in the movie «Hermitage on the iPhone 11 Pro» or a virtual tour on the museum’s official website.

The Virtual Russian Museum web portal unites the most up to date projects of the Russian Museum in the field of information technology. Here are collections , vernissages , thematic albums . Also, 3D tours of the halls of the museum complex are available for you.

Take a walk through several of the state rooms of Golden Enfilade, including the Great Hall and the Amber Room, on video tours (turn on subtitles). Also follow the museum’s news on Twitter .

Get to know the museum in short videos presented on the official website or through a virtual tour .

Get the opportunity to know more about the Grand Peterhof Palace in The Palace Ticket multimedia project , take a virtual tour above Peterhof (300 meters high) or watch a special web-site project was launched by Peterhof State Museum-Reserve and Palace of Versailles to commemorate the journey of Peter the Great to Versailles in 1717.

Now you can visit the museum from your home. For you a 3D tour of the museum premises. There are also collections on world traditional cultures and the history of science.

The Museum invites you to listen to its free audioguides through the izi.Travel storytelling platform. You will find a vast list of exhibits featured with audio here. Enjoy the short stories about the museum’s halls, Russian folk traditions and customs, national garments, and daily items of the peoples of the world.

Museum is devoted to the history of currency circulation in Russia — from ancient times to the 21st century. The museum’s virtual doors are open for you. Weekly the museum talks about its exhibits .

Due to the museum’s online project you will be able to take a virtual tour across the whole Russia . The scale model layout with a total area of 800 m 2 features typical scenes from Russian everyday life: work, study, leisure, festivities, etc.

Take a virtual tour through Fabergé Museum’s collection.

The virtual doors of the ROSPHOTO are always open to you: visit online exhibitions , watch educational videos and flip through thematic collections of old-time photos .

Alexander Suvorov one of the most famous Russian commanders. The collection of the Suvorov Museum was initially formed primarily from the gifts of admirers of the commander’s memory. There are three large collections at the heart of the museum’s exhibit funds. Learn more about A.Suvorov and museum on official website.

You can learn more about Dostoevsky on the museum website. Here are informative articles for you: Biography, Other museums of Dostoevsky, Dostoevsky in St. Petersburg.

Sergei Kirov (1886–1934) — One of the most famous state and party leaders of the Soviet era of 1920–1930 and close companion of Stalin. Kirov’s personality, because of his charisma and circumstances of his biography, became one of the symbols of Leningrad and the time. On the official website of the museum you will find historical materials related to his life.

Visitors can virtually walk around the Museum Necropolises, explore the location of the monuments, find out who and when they were erected in the electronic guide to the Necropolis of Artists and the Necropolis of the 18th century (the former Lazarevsky cemetery of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra).

Photos of a menu by: hermitagemuseum.org, belcanto.ru, nlr.ru, pixabay.com, nadinpiter.ru

Photos of museums by: pixabay.com, np-travel.spb, vk.com/museum_goznak, artist N. Egorova. A.V. Suvorov

Theatres online

With online opportunities offered by St. Petersburg theatres it is possible to go to the theatre several times per day! Brew your favourite tea, stock up a few eclairs for the intermission and finally watch online performances you’ve always wanted to experience.

State Academic Mariinsky Theatre

The Mariinsky Theatre program: online broadcasts of performances and concerts. Watch the opening ceremony of the IV International Harp Festival “The Nortnern Lyra” or online broadcasts of operas and performances at mariinsky.tv , which will be available for viewing during the day after the start of the online show.

On the official YouTube channel, recordings of performances and concerts of the past years are published.

Some St. Petersburg theaters have become participants in the online project « Stay at home with the Russian seasons ». The site will feature theater performances, concerts, ballets and films on a weekly basis. The participating theaters from St. Petersburg are St. Petersburg State Theater «Music Hall» and Theater of Young Spectators named after A.A. Bryantsev.

We also suggest that you familiarize yourself with the repertoire of other theaters and plan a visit in the future:

Interesting

City breaks: travel podcasts for city break fans

UK based podcast “City breaks” gives an opportunity for everyone to explore European cities through different series of episodes. Each podcast covers all the essential information you need to know for making your visit unforgettable and between them they illustrate the most interesting facts on the city’s history, main sights and most famous citizens, as well as giving background information on its art, music and literature.

The podcast list includes Florence, Munich, Paris, Seville, Toulouse and moreover St Petersburg .

The 17 episodes in the St Petersburg series will take you to all city’s sights and history highlights from Peter the Great – his personality and his founding of the city – through the Imperial times and the Revolution which led to The Soviet era.

Don’t hesitate to visit the podcast website page and get to know the cities much better.

We offer you to diversify your leisure time as well as prepare yourself for the future trip to Saint Petersburg by learning interesting and unusual city history facts.

15 interesting facts about Saint Petersburg

Do you know what?

1. The oldest building, built in 1703, is a wooden house of Peter I on Petrovskaya embankment. It was built in just 3 days and served as the summer residence of the Emperor between 1703 and 1708 years.

2. If you walk along the Trinity bridge, you can see 7 more bridges spanning the Neva river, and if you visit the Kashin bridge, which spans the Griboedov canal, you can see 9 bridges at once.

3. The first version of the city water supply system was designed in the Summer garden kitchens. In those days, water was supplied from the fountain system. Later, in 1863, the city water supply system began to represent an approximate version of what we have now, its length stretched for 115 kilometers.

4. If you visit the Children’s Park on Stachek prospekt do not forget to pay attention to its fence, you can see part of the fence of the Winter Palace, which surrounded the Palace garden of in the period from 1902 to 1920 years.

5. The first street of St. Petersburg is Petrovskaya embankment. It became part of the first residential area of St. Petersburg, which began to be built up in 1703. It received its current name, Petrovskaya, in 1903.

6. The name of the Smolny monastery was derived from the tar yard (smolanoy dvor), which was located on the site of a monastery during the reign of Peter I. The construction of the monastery became the largest long-term construction of St. Petersburg — it was built for 87 years.

7. In the XIX century, on the territory of Elagin island, you could see bears, so wildness was the territory of the island at that time.

8. The main city street — Nevsky prospect is the warmest part of the city. The temperature difference with the suburbs in summer is 2-3 degrees; in winter it is 10-12 degrees higher.

9. Bolshoy Prospekt on Vasilievsky island has a width in 85 meters, all because it was originally planned to use for the passage of ships from the Spit of Vasilievsky island to the Gulf of Finland.

10. The name of Nevsky Prospekt was named after Prince Alexander Nevsky, and Zanevsky prospekt was named after the main waterway of Saint Petersburg, the Neva river, since it is located in relation to the city center as beyond the Neva.

11. During the reign of Catherine II, the Theater square had a different name-the square of Carousels, since in the 1760s and 1770s, there were «carousels» on the square — an amphitheater for horse games.

12. The narrowest street in the city is Repin street, on Vasilievsky island, its width is only 6 meters. The shortest lane is Kokushkin, adjacent to Sadovaya street (only 30 meters).

13. The facades of the Mikhailovsky castle on all of its four sides are different. This was not intended for nothing, but for the harmony of the external appearance of the building with the surrounding city environment.

14. If you want to see the strict proportions of a street designed according to ancient canons, go to the street of the architect Carlo Rossi. Its width is equal to the height of buildings (22 meters), and its length is exactly 10 times more – 220 meters.

15. In 1839, for the first time on the territory of Saint Petersburg asphalt pavement was used for streets paving. The first paved section of the road was laid in 1871, this section was located on the Fontanka embankment between Simeonovsky and Panteleimonovsky bridges.

Photo: fotokto.ru ( author: Alexander Neustroev ), pixabay.com, ru.wikipedia.org

St. Petersburg cats

Perhaps the most mysterious animal is the cat. And what can we say about St. Petersburg cats? The history of the cat tribe in the Northern capital has a long and interesting history. No wonder the poet Afanasy FET called cats «the proudest citizens of St. Petersburg».

Among the urban myths, there is one that says that the cats left the city in protest soon after its Foundation. Then, fearing an epidemic of plague, Peter I ordered them to return to the city. The cats «obeyed the Tsar’s decree», allowed themselves to be put in personal bags with the coat of arms and returned to St. Petersburg. So the friendship of the tailed ones with the city was renewed.

Many things are connected with cats in the Northern capital: monuments, images in architecture, myths, and much more. In the city center, close to Nevsky prospect on Sadovaya street in one of the houses at about the third floor you can see the statue of a cat, which leaned out the window, but on the contrary also «looks out of the window» sculpture fluffy kitties. This is a monument to the yard cats Vaska and Murka, who saved the city from epidemics during the blockade.

Also in our city there is a monument to the experimental cat, the scientist cat from the famous Pushkin poem «Ruslan and Lyudmila», and the homeless kitten Funtik.

In Petersburg have special status cats of the Hermitage, or the people «armike». By order of the Empress Elizabeth, who was very afraid of small rodents, a batch of pied cats from Kazan was delivered to the old Palace. So cats since the middle of the XVIII century protect art galleries from mouse troops. And since 1998, even the day of the Hermitage cat is celebrated, which is why some «highly qualified specialists in cleaning Museum basements from rats» already seem to be arrogant. Visitors note that the Hermitage cats have «Palace manners».

Now there are more than 50 cats and cats living at the Hermitage, and their number is gradually increasing. Each of the tailed guards has its own passport with a photo card, which certifies the high qualification in the difficult task of guarding the Hermitage basements from rodents. And in the basement of the Hermitage there is a «cat house»: a separate plot with a place to store food and a hospital for nursing sick cats. «Cat house» is equipped with a cat kitchen, places to relax, as well as quarantine rooms, where newcomers get. They are treated and sterilized, tamed and try to find a new home. And next to the Museum, portable road signs «Beware of cats!» are made, urging drivers to be careful and slow down.

Night. And in Northern Palmyra,

bridges have already been Built,

and St. Petersburg cats have woken up in this world.

And the facades are lit up with a Gentle glow of lights,

serenades of Black cats from the alleys are Heard.

And from the Garden above the cornice,

Without taking his eyes off love,

the Noble Elisha is ready to Please the whims.

On the Neva, casting their eyes,

along the granite banks in a halo of colors of Paradise Sit a couple of cats.

Petropavlovsk shines with the Color of girls ‘ lanitas,

And my cat walks with me,

Quietly purring songs to me.

​Author: Ksenia Soshnikova.

Photo: vk.com/club22503116, eldar-z.livejournal.com

Education online

Take advantage of the opportunity to enhance your knowledge without leaving your home. City museums, libraries, creative and educational associations and universities have provided free access to a wide selection of online catalogs of interesting lectures, books, courses and shows.

Lev Lurie’s Culture & History Club invites you to see and hear author excursions and lectures online. Get to know the city’s culture through the prism of outstanding stories and information. Follow the news on the official website , in the group VKontakte , and also in the Club’s profile on Instagram .

A wide selection of programs of online broadcasts along the halls and exhibitions, as well as film screenings of programs and lectures about the Hermitage are available on the Museum’s online resources. Live broadcasts are available on the Museum’s official website and on the museum’s official page on Instagram .

Additionally, online programs and catalogs of other electronic information resources are available for you by categories: online libraries and online courses. Do not miss the opportunity to expand your knowledge every day, without leaving home.

TED allows you to watch small speeches (an average of 10-20 minutes) from experts in science and art, businessmen and other interesting personalities

The education platform Coursera has provided free access to almost four thousand online courses for students of partner universities.

Dozens of free courses are available on platforms SPbSU and HSE .

Concert halls online

Jazz Philharmonic goes online. It’s time to get acquainted with the sound of jazz music. Live broadcasts for the coming month are available at the Philharmonic’s official website .

Photos :vk.com/philharmoniaspb, mariinsky.ru, vk.com/jazz_hall

Gastronomy

History of St. Petersburg cuisine

From the very first years, St. Petersburg was an international city, so its cuisine was a mix of various European culinary traditions. In different decades, the trend was in the direction of one or another national cuisine, depending on the preponderance of certain foreigners

The phenomenon of the capital’s Petersburg cuisine as a cuisine that combined Russian and French traditions began to take shape in the 18th century, and finally became established in the first quarter of the 19th century.

The main figure of St. Petersburg gastronomy should be considered M.-A. Karem, who served at the courts of Alexander I, George IV, Tylerand and Rothschild.. Russian Russian chef stayed only a few months in 1819, but during this time he managed to do a lot: he introduced the concept of precise recipes to Russian cuisine, «ennobled» traditional Russian dishes, giving them a «European» touch, etc. Already in the 19th century, there were other «agents of influence» in St. Petersburg, both foreign culinary schools and the cuisines of the peoples of the gigantic Russian Empire.

St. Petersburg specialists

In the formation of national/regional culinary or gastronomic brands, a large role is played by local «specialties» — products and dishes that differ from the country or area. For St. Petersburg, these were all sorts of fish.

Thanks to the «Auditor» of N. V. Gogol, it is known that by the 1830s, ryapushka and smelt enjoyed well-deserved fame far beyond the borders of St. Petersburg. Also famous were the Neva and Gatchina trout, Ladoga whitefish and even . the Neva sturgeon.

St. Petersburg menu

The menu in the traditional sense is a list of dishes and drinks served at the table, and a certain order of their serving, and a properly designed sheet with this list and order. In full accordance with the nature of the Petersburg cuisine, the Petersburg menu throughout the 19th and early 20th century was based on a combination of French and Russian dishes. Russian Russian pies and kulebyakami accompanied almost any soup, and the further menu provided for a direct alternation of French and Russian dishes.

Both private and restaurant dinners were accompanied by menu cards. For special cases, the text of the menu, known in advance, was printed in the printing house, for the usual restaurant-entered by hand. Since the mid-19th century, the Petersburg graphic school has been widely known.

A hallmark of old St. Petersburg dishes were so-called «Russian submission», as opposed to French and English, where all meals were brought at once, and it was cluttered Desk was a sign of wealth (although often had to eat cold food absolutely). The Russian nobles with their huge number of serfs had a consistent take-out of portioned dishes, which allowed them to correctly alternate tastes and serve food at the desired temperature.

Russian food became incredibly popular over time and by the 1870s it was almost universally accepted in Europe.

The most difficult item on the St. Petersburg menu is desserts. Ice cream, jelly, puddings, mousses, cakes and pies were served everywhere. Moreover, it is known that the usual pastries were borrowed from the poles (mazurkas, plyatsek, etc.) and the Germans; more refined desserts for parties and pastry shops were of French, Italian and Swiss origin.

Recipes of St. Petersburg dishes

Petersburg is proud of its cuisine. A rich history, convenient location near the sea, a mixture of European and Russian cooking traditions – all these factors played a huge role in the development of St. Petersburg cuisine and its flavor. Explore the recipes of famous local dishes, put them in motion and get an idea about the gastronomic delights of the city on the Neva.

Novo-Mikhailovskie cutlets

At the beginning of the 20th century, a unique dish was invented in the restaurant on Nevsky Prospect, and not in a common one, but in the restaurant opened by the Merchants’ Club — the cutlets from the most delicate chicken chop, called Novo-Mikhailovskie (in honor of the Mikhailovsky Palace located nearby).

• chicken fillet (1 pc)
• chicken wings (2 pcs)
• milk (100 g)
• butter (80 g)
• cream (3 tbs)
• salt and pepper (to taste)
• breadcrumbs (4 tbs)
• olive oil (for frying)
• egg yolk (1 pc)

• Wash, dry, clean the fillets from the films, place in milk for 2-3 minutes.
• Cut out the bones from the wings, leave a little meat on the tip to keep well on the cutlet, clean, slightly poach.
• Fillet should be cut into small pieces, add butter, it should be 20% of the total weight of minced meat, load into a blender and grind to a tender consistency.
• Add cream bit by bit and mix the minced meat well.
• Salt, pepper.
• Dip your hands in water, shape cutlets, stick a bone, leave in the freezer for 30 minutes.
• Beat the yolk, add a little cream to it. Spread it over cutlets, roll in breadcrumbs, fry in a small amount of olive oil until golden.
• Transfer to a baking dish and bring to readiness at 180 °C for 15-20 minutes.

Arina Rodionovna’s pancakes in the beetroot juice

Pushkin’s favorite nanny pampered Alexander Sergeyevich with special pancakes, which her fosterling probably loved no less than Arina Rodionovna. Beetroot juice gave them a special pinkish color, and gooseberry jam dressing wonderfully emphasized the taste of the dish.

Ingredients:

• wheat flour (200 g)
• yolks of farm eggs (4 pcs)
• proteins of farm eggs (4 pcs)
• butter (30 g)
• sour milk (1.5 tbs)
• juice of 1 beetroot
• sugar (to taste)
• salt (a little to enhance the sweet taste)
• vegetable oil to spread across the pan
• condensed milk, jam, berries for serving

• Mix 200 g sifted wheat flour with egg yolks (4 pcs).
• Add a piece of butter to the mixture and prepare the dough in sour milk.
• Pour in a little beetroot juice.
• Beat egg whites (4 pcs) and add to the dough.
• Fry quickly on both sides in a preheated pan. Gooseberry jam (the nanny historically served it to the poet) is served to pink pancakes, and these days condensed milk, fresh berries and any jam, as well as marmalade or fruit paste, will do.

« Gastronomy » section will help you to find more information