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2020 Train Travel and Destination Specialists An introduction to Moscow and St Petersburg Monkeyshrine Trans-Siberian Adventures
2020
Trans-Siberian Train Journeys
Train Travel and
Destination Specialists
An introduction to
Moscow and St Petersburg
MonkeyshrineTrans-Siberian Adventures
2 - Contents and Contacts3 - Moscow and St Petersburg
4 - photo “Annunciation Cathedral, Kremlin, Moscow”5 - About Us and How to Book
MOSCOW6 - photo “Moscow Metro Station”7 - Introduction Moscow, Tour Programs
8 - City Tour, Kremlin Tour9 - Church of the Ascension in Komomenskoye, Sergiev Posad
10 - Pushkin Fine Arts Museum, Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow Metro11 - photo “Inside the Church of the Resurrection of Christ, St Petersburg”
12 - Red Square, St Basil’s Cathedral, Lenin’s Mausoleum, Novodevichy Convent13 - photo “St Basil’s Cathedral, Moscow”
14 - Izmailovsky Market, Ritz-Carlton Rooftop Bar, Ziferblat anti-cafés 15 - Bolshoi Theatre, Gorky Park, Star City, Sanduny Baths
ST PETERSBURG16 - Introduction St Petersbrug 17 - Attractions, Best Time to Visit, City Tour, Hermitage
18 - Peter and Paul Fortress, Pushkin and Pavlovsk, St Catherine’s Palace, Kempinski19 - photo “Garden of St Catherine’s Palace”
20 - Peterhof, Yusupov Palace, Ballet21 - St. Isaac’s Cathedral, the Church of the Resurrection
22 - Russian Museum, Fabergé Museum, Museum of Political History, Canal & River Cruise23 - photo “Peter and Paul Fortress, St Petersburg”
GUM Department Store on Red Square in Moscow.2
Monkeyshrine is a registered trading name of
The Russia Experience Ltd1d, The Court Lanwades Business Park
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www.monkeyshrine.com
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Москва MOSCOW
ST PETERSBURG Санкт-Петербург
Moscow is where either your Trans-Siberian adventure starts or ends, and it would be a shame if you don’t have at least three days to explore Russia’s capital and the country’s largest city.
• Explore the Kremlin and Armoury complex and see Russia’s Fabergé Eggs and other treasures.
• Stroll around Red Square to take in the sights of this iconic place: St. Basils’ Cathedral, Lenin’s Mausoleum and the huge Gum Department store opposite the Kremlin.
• Ride the famous Moscow Metro, with many stations looking like museums.
• Enjoy an evening at the renovated Bolshoi Theatre.
Moscow and St Petersburg are connected by a dozen high-speed trains completing the 650 km in a few hours or during a comfortable overnight trip while saving hotel costs.
Four days in St Petersburg will give you a good taste of this beautiful city. Explore the treasures of the Hermitage with a private guide, take a self-guided walking tour of the city’s main sights such as the Church on the Spilled Blood, and visit the gilded behemoth of Catherine Palace in the Tsars’ Village. Our specialists know and love St Petersburg, often considered to be Russia’s unofficial cultural capital, and we’ll help design your itinerary to make the most of your time there.
• See the many treasures of the Hermitage, one of the world’s best art galleries.
• Explore the beautiful canals and grand buildings of one of the world’s prettiest cities.
• Visit the Peter and Paul Fortress, the city’s first permanent building.
• Take a hydrofoil into the Gulf of Finland to see Peter the Great’s Palace and the Catherine Palace to marvel at the phenomenal wealth of the Tsars.
The guided tour provided in Moscow was first class, our guide was fantastic, superb English, really knowledgable and kept things really interesting! Hannah Rosborough, April 2011
Annunciation Cathedral, Kremlin, MoscowAnnunciation Cathedral, Kremlin, Moscow
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It really was the trip of a lifetime. This was the best thing we’ve ever done. We were dubious about booking a ‘package’, but it didn’t feel like one.
Barclay Mullins, April 2008
About Us Specialising in railway and destination tours through Russia and Mongolia, we are happy to customise your Trans-Siberian adventure. Begin your trip in Beijing, Moscow or Vladivostok - travel the entire Trans-Siberian or Trans-Mongolian route, or depart from Beijing on a round-trip circuit through Mongolia and Siberia. Whatever your travel style, time frame or budget, we help to plan your next adventure.
Operating since 1988, Monkeyshrine is the most experienced operator specialising solely in Trans-Siberian train trips and tours. We pioneered an online Trans-Siberian website for travellers in April 1997. Despite our prominence in the field, we still remain a small company with just a handful of loyal staff, all of whom have first hand experience of the Trans-Siberian train trips and local specialist knowledge.
We have sales staff in England and at various locations in cyber space, plus local partners across Russia as well as guides and agents in each city you may wish to stop. We have partners in Hong Kong and in Beijing that can provide assistance, info and visa application support.
Since 2018, Monkeyshrine is the trading name of The Russia Experience Ltd in the UK, a fully bonded tour operator reg-istered in the UK, where EU law requires us to protect your travel funds. We are members of the Travel Trust Association (TTA) www.traveltrust.co.uk – your travel funds are frozen in a Trust Account until your trip is complete, and only released to us by the TTA`s approval Trustee.
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Planning a Trans-Siberian tour isn’t easy to organise: working out complex train schedules, deciding how long to stay in each place, booking hotel accommodation and guides, then working out dates, discussing all this with friends, and applying for tricky visas. We do most of that for you! This brochure is a great place to start.
To start off, you need to decide in which direction to travel, from Beijing to Moscow, or from Moscow to Beijing. There is also the option to travel to or from Vladivostok, or to fly into any city along the route.
Then decide which destinations you would like to visit along the way - this brochure is a big help introducing our most popular places.
How To Book Decide on the tour type that most suits you.
-Most popular and a good deal are our POLNY packages.
-Travel light on our OSNOVA Basic ‘no frills’ trips.
Our packages can be customised to create your perfect Trans-Siberian adventure.
-We offer a variety of all-in Private luxury tours.
Next, choose a date of departure, then contact us and we’ll do the rest. We’ll email you a quote, explain how to apply for your visas and of course how to make payment. All that’s left is to pack, and we’ll help you there too! We will provide an indispensable 200+ pages Infopack, advising what to take, where to find the best restaurants and lots of background info on the Trans-Siberian...
MOSCOW Moscow Tour Programs
Allowing yourself at least two or three days in Moscow definitely makes sense as it is a bigger city and it takes time to dive beneath the surface and to begin to breathe freely despite the more hectic pace of life in this cosmopolitan mecca. Of course The Kremlin is the highlight, whether you visit inside the grounds with a knowledgeable local guide, or satisfy yourself with views from Red Square.
As the capital, Moscow ticks all the boxes in regards to galleries, museums and cultural attractions, highlights including: Tretyakov Gallery, St. Basil’s Cathedral, Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, and of course the Bolshoi Theatre, and no visit to Moscow is complete without exploring the enchanting artistry of the subway stations.
Apart from a three-hour guided city orientation tour, we do not have set tours included in our packages. You can enhance the Moscow experience by adding on any one or more of the guided tours listed on following pages, most of which are available year round.
Late spring and early autumn are the best times to visit Moscow, with mild weather and fewer visitors. Although the summer months are warmer, they can be extremely busy and prices are consequently higher. Moscow can be brutally cold in winter, but the city looks at its most romantic under a sprinkling of fresh snow.
A city beyond compare
Moscow, far from merely being the bureaucratic capital of Russia, this vibrant buzzing city dominates the political, economic and cultural imagination of the entire country. To Muscovites, little else in Russia matters, and to those who live far from the chaotic vortex, the city and its inhabitants take on near mythological proportions. Moscow encompasses all that is good and bad about large cosmopolitan cities, and the city offers its own special kaleidoscopic version of Russia in an extreme dose. Some love it, some hate it, but one thing that everyone can agree upon, Moscow is a unique and extraordinary bombardment of the senses.
Old world elegance, highbrow culture, Soviet austerity and capitalist ostentation collide in Moscow, Russia’s capital and the country’s largest city. It’s a political, economic and cultural powerhouse and a city of immense contrasts where the bright fairytale domes of St Basil’s Cathedral sit next to brutalist Soviet-era blocks and gleaming skyscrapers. World renowned opera houses and galleries full of Old Masters co-exist with brash designer malls that cater for the city’s extravagantly wealthy. Yet, this inconsistency of character merely adds to the city’s vibrant and spirited nature. Moscow is anything but predictable and, consequently, a fascinating place to explore.
Moscow may be a bustling metropolis, but it also one of the greenest cities in Europe with some great parks to enjoy. In the south of the city you can enjoy the medieval architecture of the well cared for Kolomenskoye Museum Estate or the crumbling charm of Catherine the Great’s Tsaritsino. Москва
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[email protected] Moscow Metro StationMoscow Metro Station
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Moscow guided city walking tour (3 hrs)
All our guides have their own personal touch, while of course, visiting the main sites and introducing you to the diversity of Moscow’s architectural styles from Russian-Moscow Baroque and Art Nouveau to the Pseudo-Chinese and Moorish influences.
The 3-hour tour will generally include the following sites: Boulevard Ring, Puskinskaya Square, Tverskaya Street and it’s important buildings, Manezhnaya Square, Marshal Zhukov monument, Aleksandrovsky Gardens, Red Square, St. Basil Cathedral (not inside), GUM (the main department store), Cathedral of Christ the Saviour (not inside), Zamoskvorechie Region, Lubyanka (former KGB building), Teatralnya Square and Arbat Street.
Kremlin tour (3 hrs or 4 hrs with Armoury)Closed Thursdays
The Kremlin is the true heart of Russia, the history of both of the early Tsars and of the 20th-century Communist State. With your local guide and official escort we will visit the Assumption Cathedral where Russian Tsars and Emperors were crowned, the Annunciation Cathedral – private chapel of the tsar’s family, the Archangel Michael Cathedral – the burial place of the Russian Princes and Tsars.
You will hear how Russian tsars received foreign ambassadors and gave feasts in the palace. You will also see Grand Kremlin Palace (19th century) – built as Imperial Residence, the Senate building – which today is the office of the Russian President. After the tour you can sit and rest in the Upper Kremlin Gardens.
The Armoury and Diamond Fund is home to art from the 12th to the 21st centuries, including: the royal crowns and regalia, the tsar’s ceremonial dress, vestments of church hierarchy, gold and silverware of the Russian, European and Eastern master craftsmen, arms and armouries and royal carriages, lavishly decorated thrones of the tsars including the oldest of Ivan the Terrible, ambassadorial gifts from all over the world and jewellery including the famous Fabergé Easter Eggs. A world-wide treasure known throughout the world, the exhibits offer a unique and treasured experience.
Church of the Ascension in Kolomenskoye (3 hrs by car)
The Kremlin is the true heart of Russia, the history of both of the early Tsars and of the 20th-century Communist State. With your local guide and official escort we will visit the Assumption Cathedral where Russian Tsars and Emperors were crowned, the Annunciation Cathedral – private chapel of the Tsar’s family, the Archangel Michael Cathedral – the burial place of the Russian Princes and Tsars.
You will hear how Russian Tsars received foreign ambassadors and gave feasts in the palace. You will also see Grand Kremlin Palace (19th century) – built as Imperial Residence, the Senate building – which today is the office of the Russian President. After the tour you can sit and rest in the Upper Kremlin Gardens.
The Armoury is home to art from the 12th to the 21st centuries, including: the royal crowns and regalia, the tsar’s ceremonial dress, vestments of church hierarchy’, gold and silverware of the Russian, European and Eastern master craftsmen, arms and armouries and royal carriages, the thrones of the tsars including the oldest of Ivan the Terrible, ambassadorial gifts from all over the world and jewellery including the famous Fabergé Easter Eggs. A world-wide treasure known throughout the world, the exhibits offer a unique and treasured experience.
Sergiev Posad (6 hrs by car)
Six-hour tour by private car and guide to Sergiev Posad (or still better known as Zagorsk), one of the most interesting old towns of Central Russia, situated 70 km from Moscow. The blue and gold cupolas of the Trinity Monastery of St. Sergius (Troitse Sergieva Lavra) mark one of the most celebrated centers of the Russian Orthodox Church.
As the seat of patriarchate, it was permitted to function even during the Soviet era, when town was known as Zagorsk. The town was built in the 14th century as a settlement around the Trinity Monastery, established by reverend Sergius of Radonezh in 1340. He was canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church and became one of the most honored of Russia’s Saints.
The St. Trinity Sergius Monastery was one of the largest monasteries founded in Russia in the 14th – 15th centuries. In 1774 it was elevated to the status of Lavra, i.e. the monastery of the highest rank. Today it is considered to be the spiritual center of the Russian Orthodox Church and has one of the most interesting historical museums, which displays Old Russian icons, ancient church plates, needlework, embroidery and Church books.
Pushkin Fine Arts Museum (4 hrs)Closed Mondays
The Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts has one of the most representative collections of foreign art in Russia, dating from the ancient times to modern days. The exposition of the museum includes a vast collection of tinted plaster casts of famous ancient, medieval and renaissance sculptures and a collection of original works by foreign artists, sculptors and graphic designers together with objects of decorative arts. The rooms of the ground floor present mainly original works of ancient Egypt, antiquities, and European paintings of the VII-XVIII centuries. The first floor rooms acquaint the public with art of the 19th and 20th centuries; the collection of French impressionists is one of the best in the world.
Tretyakov Gallery (3 hrs)Closed Mondays
The State Tretyakov Gallery is an art gallery in Moscow, Russia, the foremost depository of Russian fine art in the world. It is located in one of the oldest directs of Moscow - Zamoskvorechye, not far from the Kremlin.
The gallery’s history starts in 1856 when the Moscow merchant Pavel Mikhailovich Tretyakov acquired works by Russian artists of his day with the aim of creating a collection, which might later grow into a museum of national art.
Moscow Metro tour (2 hrs)
Welcome to the busiest and most beautiful metro system, a world of mosaics, marble, hundreds of statues, thousands of trains and 9 million passengers daily. Over the last 60 years the Moscow metro has become an integral part of the city. Designed by the best Soviet architects and artists, it is one of the most efficient and astonishing underground systems in the world. Lavish depictions of military victories or happy Communist living adorn the station walls along with baroque stucco-work, elaborate mosaics and deliberately atmospheric lighting. Combined with crystal chandeliers, stained glass and life-size marble figures, it feels more like a series of museum pieces than a public transport system.
Guests will learn about the people responsible for the creation of the metro, their fate, often tragic historical events associated with particular stations. The guide will raise the shroud of mystery covering the so-called “special-purpose-metro”, and explain how changes in the life of the country were reflected in the design of the metro stations. The guided tour takes in the older, richly ornate stations, along with the more modern stations, also designed in an interesting and attractive manner.
Inside the Church of the Resurrection of Christ, St PetersburgInside the Church of the Resurrection of Christ, St Petersburg
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Red Square
Red Square is a city square in Moscow, Russia. It separates the Kremlin, the former royal citadel and currently the official residence of the President of Russia, from a historic merchant quarter known as Kitai-gorod. Red Square … isn’t red!
St. Basil’s Cathedral
An introduction to St. Basils’ Cathedral is generally included in the city tour. Arriving at Red Square, as part of the guided city walking tour, the guide will provide an overview of the cathedral, along with descriptions of the Kremlin and Lenin’s Tomb. Rather than prolonging the standard guided city tour, guests can visit the St. Basil’s Cathedral on completion of the tour.
The church was commissioned by Ivan the Terrible to commemorate the capture of Kazan and was built between 1555 and 1561. It came close to demolition during Stalin’s premiership, when he decided it interfered with a clear procession route for his tanks through Red Square.
Inside, eight smaller chapels surround the larger central Church of the Intercession with its soaring roof and golden iconostasis. The chapels are connected by a warren of narrow passageways and staircases whose walls are decorated in ornate floral and geometric patterns.
Lenin’s Mausoleum
Lenin’s Mausoleum on Red Square is a very special monument and guests can enter free of charge; there is no guiding allowed. Vladimir Ilyich Lenin was a highly divisive politician, he was revered by his own people and upon his death in 1924 he was embalmed using secret methods. A visit to his tomb is a surreal experience that allows you a brief look at his carefully preserved body, kept behind bullet-proof glass in a dimly-lit, temperature-controlled room. Personal belongings including bags and cameras must be left in the luggage room – this can be done at the Historical museum on Red Square or near the entrance to the Kremlin at the Kutafya Tower (Alexandrosky Garden – a good 10 minute walk from Lenin’s Tomb). The queue for Lenin’s Tomb can take some time. Visitors are kept moving, therefore, you only get to spend a few minutes inside the mausoleum before you’re hurried out by the guards. Outside you can examine the busts and headstones of other political leaders, including Stalin and Brezhnev.
Novodevichy Convent and Cemetery (3 hrs by car)
This convent was established in the 16th century and showcases a glorious collection of Russian Orthodox architecture. It is a jewel in the crown of Moscow’s convents and monasteries with it’s white walls, towers topped by festive coronas, magnificent Smolensky Cathedral and a beautiful bell-tower. Tranquil and charming today, the convent was more than once the eye of turbulent storms of the events of Russian history. The tour recalls the figures of Boris Godunov, Ivan the Terrible, Nicholas II, Napoleon and of course many Russian princesses and tsarinas who were imprisoned or took the veil here. Known as ‘New Maiden’s College’, it became a retirement home for the country’s female nobility and a prison for rebellious or unwanted wives who were forced to take holy orders.
The museum displays rare Russian artworks and illuminated manuscripts and describes how the noblewomen lived in much comfort despite their enforced stay.
You will also visit Novodevichy cemetery, famous not only for its distinguished inhabitants (including Khrushchev, Chekhov, Gogol and Mayakovsky), but also for the monuments of exceptional beauty and pleasing variety.
Izmailovsky Market
Row upon row of Russian dolls, fur hats, hand-carved chess sets and Soviet paraphernalia line the stalls at this huge market just outside the city.
It’s the best place to shop for souvenirs as well as being an intriguing place to wander, with antiques, rugs, pottery, jewellery and religious art in among bric-a-brac and second-hand clothes. The market is at its best and busiest at the weekend, when the volume and variety of stalls increases.
It’s well worth spending a day here, stopping for a lunch of fresh flat breads and shashlik (skewered meat) cooked on an open grill.
Ritz-Carlton rooftop bar
Stylish rooftop O2 Lounge and terrace featuring breathtaking panoramic views over the Red Square and the Kremlin. Relaxed and inti-mate oasis far above the streets of Moscow with home infused cocktails.
The hotel is just a couple of minutes’ stroll from Red Square, and the stylish, modern bar has become a fashionable haunt for the city’s well-heeled elite. An impressive vodka menu is accompanied by champagne, cocktails and sushi, while the restaurant serves a modern Peruvian menu.
Sip a drink on the terrace, watch the twinkling lights of the city below and just soak up the atmosphere of Moscow old and new.
Open 12 pm till 2 am. Serving: Lunch, Dinner
Ziferblat anti-cafés
A counter-culture movement started in Moscow, the Ziferblat, or clock face, cafés offer everything for free except your time. A visit has the frisson of a clandestine activity as the cafés are generally unmarked and you must ring a door bell to gain access.
On arrival, you choose from a collection of clocks, help yourself from the wide array of coffees and herbal teas, Russian cakes and biscuits and then hand back your clock as you leave, paying per minute for the time you spent there. Relaxed, unconventional and well-hidden, these underground cafés offer a glimpse of modern youth culture in Russia.
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Star City
Formerly a secret military training facility, Star City is a complete town home to the Gagarin Cosmonauts Training Centre and to Russian cosmonauts and their families. Located about 25 km from Moscow, it’s a captivating destination if you’re at all interested in space travel.
In a day trip, you can learn about the history of Russian space exploration, watch astronauts in training and even try the G-force simulator. The Space Museum houses a full-scale mock up of the Mir space station, Yuri Gagarin’s office and an impressive collection of space suits and vehicles.
Sanduny Baths
Steam baths are one of Russia’s oldest and most treasured customs, and this traditional banya, or bathhouse, is a place to relax and unwind with a hot steam bath and a vigorous massage.
Sanduny Banya is Moscow’s oldest and grandest public bathhouse and is housed in an opulent building with richly decorated rooms, elaborately carved panelling and the air of grace and elegance. The steam rooms here are extremely hot and you’ll be offered a felt hat to help you regulate your temperature and oak or birch twigs to stimulate your circulation.
Bolshoi Theatre
Known the world over, the Bolshoi Theatre is renowned both for its beauty and its ballet. The current theatre was built in the mid 18th century and has a neoclassical design with a striking portico surmounted by a statue of Apollo. This famous Moscow landmark is equally opulent inside after an extensive renovation.
Gorky Park
Leafy Gorky Park in central Moscow was designed as part of a grand plan to promote ‘culture and leisure’ in the city. It’s a vast green space where locals flock to walk, ride or skate, paddle across ponds, play tennis or enjoy the funfair rides. In winter, the ponds freeze and seemingly the whole city comes out ice-skating.
There are children’s playgrounds, formal gardens, woodland and an artificial beach, as well as a host of restaurants, open-air bars and street entertainers, making it a great place to wander and observe everyday life. The park also hosts regular events, including exhibitions and concerts.
MOSCOW < > ST PETERSBURG Санкт-Петербург
Hi-Speed SAPSAN Trains
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The majestic jewel of Russia
St. Petersburg (Russian: Санкт-Петербург Sankt-Peterburg) is one of the world’s most majestic and picturesque cities. Founded by Peter the Great in 1703, St. Petersburg was the imperial capital of Russian throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, up until the capital was moved inland to Moscow. Home today to around 5 million people, the city was renamed Petrograd (Петроград) in 1918, and Leningrad (Ленинград) in 1924, before reverting back to Saint-Petersburg in 1991. The city’s palatial and colourful baroque and neo-classical architectural is intersected by the Neva River and a handful of canals, creating an enchanting setting for visitors. No wonder the city’s historical centre, housing 36 historical architectural complexes and around 4000 monuments of cultural and historic significance make the UNESCO World Heritage List. The endless list of attractions call upon the visitor to set aside at least a couple of days in this magical city.
Straddling the Neva River’s delta, St Petersburg is a living monument to 18th-century Russia’s imperial ambition. In con-ceiving the city, Peter the Great dreamed of rivalling great European capitals like Paris. The result is a latticework city of islands, bridges, canals, cathedrals, and grand palaces.
Walking down broad prospekts (avenues) bordered with elegant classical and baroque façades, you’d be forgiven for thinking that the Revolution had never happened here at all. Russia’s second city flaunts its cultural credentials instead. There’s the fine art powerhouse of the Hermitage, the Mariinsky ballet corps and the Mikhaelovsky Theatre, and the apartments-turned-state-museums of literary idols Pushkin, Dostoevsky and Nabokov.
St Petersburg is magical, known as the Venice of the north thanks to its waterways, cathedrals and cafe-lined streets.
A monumental city of sweeping avenues and broad canals, St Petersburg is urban Russia at its most impressive. The centuries have been kind to the former capital of the Russian Empire – St Petersburg looks as grand today as when Peter the Great laid the foundation stones in 1703. The then-emperor invited Europe’s leading architects to fill the streets with extravagant palaces and elegant baroque cathedrals, and their legacy remains.
It’s said that if Moscow is Russia’s head, St Petersburg is its heart. For 300 years this has been the country’s cultural capital,
producing authors, poets, painters and playwrights.
It remains a bustling hub for the arts, showcasing everything from painting and literature to street theatre and rebel rock. Focal points include the Mari-insky Theatre, home to the famous Kirov ballet company, and the Hermitage, the world’s largest art museum, founded by Catherine the Great in 1764.
Today, superimposed over the old city is a modern metropolis, complete with alternative cafés, techno clubs and some of the deepest metro stations in the world. In addition, a new 69,000-seat football stadium is being built in the city as it limbers up to help host the 2018 World Cup. Fans are in for a memorable time, particularly as it will coincide with the city’s famed “White Nights” season, when the sun barely sets from mid-June to early July.
The historic heart of this timeless, romantic city is focused on the crescent of land bound by the Neva and Fontanki Rivers. Here you’ll find the Admiralty, the Hermitage and Dvortsovaya Ploshchad (Palace Square), as well as Nevsky Prospekt, St Petersburg’s most elegant avenue.
West of the Admiralty is Mariinsky, home to the famous theatre, and north across the river are Vasilyevsky Island, with its universities and museums, and Petrogradskaya Storona, home to the Peter and Paul Fortress and even more famous museums.
Attractions
St Petersburg is smaller than Moscow, and allows visitors to cover many of the main attractions on foot; even so, three days in St Petersburg is better than two, and the extra time will open up the opportunity for an excursion outside the city, to Peterhof (Peter the Great’s summer Palace),
where visitors enjoy wandering among the lovely fountains and gardens resting on the shore of the Gulf of Helsinki, or to the town of Pushkin (Tsarskoe Selo) to be enchanting by the exquisite Catherine’s Palace.
Winter Palace (housing the Hermitage Museum), Peter and Paul Fortress, St. Isaac Cathedral and Menshikov Palace, make the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Best time to visit St Petersburg
From late May onwards St Petersburg’s wintery weather dissipates, the fountains are turned on, and the cathedrals are kept open.
The winter period, though cold and dark, is also wonderfully atmospheric – especially when the sun finally rises on streets covered in fresh snow.
From late May to early July, the days are long in St Petersburg. The brightest period, the White Nights, normally last from mid-June to mid-July. At this time, local people strip off the greys of winter and are joined by visitors from across the globe in a celebration of life and light. The midnight sun never quite sets on this northern city making it a magical time to visit and with plenty of cultural and music festivals available, you will need the extra hours of daylight to fit in all the sightseeing!
Tour Programs
St. Petersburg guided city walking tour (3 hrs)
All our guides have their own personal touch, while of course, visiting the main sites and introducing you to this fabulous city. On the tour you will walk along Nevsky Prospect, see the Palace Square, St. Isaac’s Cathedral, the Winter Palace, and the Admiralty. You will also visit the Peter and Paul Fortress, and if you get there before 12:00 p.m. you will hear the traditional daily cannon-shot.
Hermitage Museum (3 hrs)
As one of the world largest museums, the Hermitage has a collection of more than 3,000,000 objects of art, jewels and antiques exhibited in 4 adjoined buildings with over 1,057 rooms. One of the buildings is the Winter Palace – the former Tsars’ residence. They say, “if you haven’t been to the Hermitage – you haven’t been to St. Petersburg”. The picture gallery is as famous as Louvre, Prado and the National Gallery. Our guide will help you to find the paintings or artefacts that you are interested in, tell you the history of the Hermitage and mysterious stories of the Winter Palace and its former inhabitants, and show you only the main highlights of the collection, as you would need years to see everything.
Spearheaded by Catherine the Great, who bought many paintings during her rule, the collections were bolstered after the 1917 Russian Revolution. During this period, the Bolsheviks confiscated heirlooms and artworks from Russia’s gentry with the notion of protecting them on behalf of the Russian people.
Towards the back of the Hermitage is an intimate yet lavishly decorated ballet theatre where Empress Catherine would enjoy private performances. You can still see ballets performed here today.
The guides in Beijing, Ekaterinburg, Kazan and Moscow were all top notch!
Steve Newcomer, June 2013
Peter and Paul Fortress (2 hrs – Walking/Metro)
The Peter and Paul Fortress was built in 1703 during the Great Northern War against Sweden. It has had a rich, hugely varied, and sometimes sinister history as a military base, a home of government departments, the burial ground of the Russian imperial family, the site of ground-breaking scientific experiments, and a forbidding jail that held some of Russia’s most prominent political prisoners. The list of famous residents included Dostoyevsky, Gorkiy and Trotsky. SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral is the oldest church in St. Petersburg, and the final resting place of nearly all of Russia’s imperial rulers. Depending on the time of your tour you may witness the daily firing of the cannon from the Naryshkin Bastion at noon. Your guide will explain the history of the site during your tour.
Pushkin and Pavlovsk (5 hrs)
The excursion begins with a walk in the Pavlovsk Park – the former Czarist lands. In winter, the trees are covered with snow, which gives an unforgettable experience of the Russian winter wonderland. After the walk you take a tour around Big Pavlovsk Palace (yellow classical building), the former mansion of Catherine the Great’s son Paul. During the tour the guide tells you about the palace, describes interiors of the rooms and answers your questions. After that you can take a snack at a cafe situated in the wing of the Palace and leave for Pushkin by bus (approx. 20 mins). In Pushkin you arrive in another park, quite distinct from Pavlovsk Estate. On your walk to Catherine Palace (blue and white baroque building) you pass a pond, several canals, and the tsars’ private pavilions. The guide will conduct an excursion around the magnificent Catherine Palace, former summer residence of Catherine the Great, including the famous Amber room and numerous golden chambers.
St. Catherine’s Palace at Pushkin Village (Tsarskoe Selo) (5 hrs)
Travelling from the city for about 30 km by metro and bus, on arrival in Pushkin Village, you will walk to Catherine’s Palace (blue and white baroque building) through the gardens, passing a pond, several canals, and the Tsars’ private pavilions. The guide will conduct an excursion around the magnificent Catherine Palace, former summer residence of Catherine the Great, including the famous restored Amber room and numerous golden chambers. This Palace is something of a behemoth, with a blue, white and gold façade and impossibly extravagant, rococo interiors. Its highlights include a grand enfilade of state rooms, a huge ceiling fresco titled The Triumph of Russia, and a ballroom covered in gold and mirrors.
Russian imperial life was rife with paranoia as well as grandeur. Pavlovsk Palace, down the road from Catherine Palace, is a stately lemon-hued villa built in a crescent. It was commissioned by Catherine the Great for her son, Grand Duke Paul. It’s thought to have been a way for Catherine to rid herself of her son, whom she loathed, while also keeping him close in case he mounted a coup.
Dinner at the Moika Kempinski Hotel’s rooftop restaurant
The Bellevue Brasserie offers 360-degree panoramas of St Petersburg. Punctuating the city skyline are all the major landmarks, including St Isaac’s Cathedral. The gourmet food served by the brasserie includes Russian classics like
caviar, Kamchatka crab and seafood platters.
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In general, we had very knowledgeable and interesting tour guides. I was most impressed with Ludmila from St Petersburg for her depth of knowledge with Hemitage and passion for arts.
April Li, Oct 2013
ST PETERSBURG
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Peterhof (Petroverts) (5 hrs)
Grand Palace closed Mondays
Peterhof, part of Pushkin Village, is a jewel of Russian art, a town of parks, palaces and fountains. In the past it functioned as the exquisite summer residence of the Russian tsars. From the Grand Palace of Peterhof three monumental cascading fountains (one of them comprising the famous Samson) lead to the Lower park, the real masterpiece in itself, consisting of 173 fountains. Your guide will conduct a tour of the impressive terraced fountains of the Grand Cascade before a one-hour tour of the Grand Palace. The architecture and landscaping consciously echo France’s Versailles, which Peter the Great visited in 1917.
Travel to Peterhof is by hydrofoil (30 minutes ride) or the cheaper mini-bus option. In winter, the Baltic Sea freezes over, making crossings impossible – but looking out over vast sheets of ice from Peterhof’s gardens makes for an impressive vista.
Yusupov Palace (2 1/2 hrs)
For those interested in Russian architecture and interior design, the Yusupov Palace on the Moika Embankment is not to be missed. It showcases architectural trends from the 18th through to the 20th centuries. The palace and surrounding estate dates back to the epoch of Peter the Great, who founded St. Petersburg and took nearly 200 years to acquire its present shape with contributions from the best architectural talent of the time.
The home of a Russian aristocrat married to the niece of Tsar Nicholas II, Felix Yusupov’s wealth is evident in the decadent chandeliers and tapestries that decorate the palace. Some rooms have more exotic furnishings, such as the Byzantine Moorish Drawing Room and the Turkish Study. There’s also a small private theatre designed to seat 135 people. The palace’s magnificent interior decorations, restored through the hard work of St. Peters-burg’s best restoration artists, welcome Russian and international fans of history, art, music and theatre. In addition, the palace is the site where one of the Romanov family’s advisors, Grigory Rasputin, was assassinated in 1916. The historical interior, documents & pictures helps capture the trage-dy of the times and a guide will share some of the different theories regarding this fascinating and mysterious murder. A Siberian priest, he was sus-pected of having supernatural healing powers and exerting too much control over Tsarina Alexandra while Tsar Nicholas was away with his troops in World War I. Rasputin’s murder, orchestrated by Yusupov and another aristocrat, was complicated, and he ended up being drowned in the Moika.
The Ballet
St Petersburg’s flagship ballet corps is one of the leading ballet companies of the world. The Mariinsky Ballet (known during the Soviet era as the Kirov) have their official home at the city’s Mariinsky Theatre, a sea-green and cream wedding cake of a building. At its canal side setting in the heart of St Petersburg, it hosts performances of operas as well as classical ballets. The auditorium, with its ornate balconies, can seat 2,000 people.
The Mariinsky company dates back to the 18th century. Its alumni include Rudolf Nureyev, who famously defected to the West in 1961, Mikhail Baryshnikov, and Anna Pavlova. The corps de ballet – the main company of dancers, as opposed to the star dancers and principals – are known for their perfect lines and discipline.
St. Isaac’s Cathedral (2 hrs)Closed Wednesdays
The St Isaac’s Cathedral is one of the city’s architectural landmarks and the second tallest structure after the Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral. The first St
Isaac’s temple was erected in 1707 on the orders of Peter I to honour the venerable St. Isaac the Dalmation, the Tsar‘s patron saint. The church was remodelled out of the drawing barn adjacent to the Admiralty. In this temple, the wedding ceremony of Emperor Peter I and Empress Ekaterina Alexeevna took place. Since the grand structure (The
Fourth St Isaac’s Cathedral), as conceived by Montferrand, required reliable solid foundations, pine piles were driven into the foundation site before granite slabs and quarry stones were placed on top. St Isaac’s Cathedral is the only structure in the Russian Neo-Classical style that incorporates polished granite columns and marble in its exterior decoration. The dark red portico columns, the colonnade around the main dome, the cathedral base with grey marble veneers and the gilded domes make a dramatic blend to give a stately appearance to the entire structure.
For some of the best panoramic views over St Petersburg, climb up to the colonnade of this 19th-century orthodox basilica. The cathedral itself is an imposing sight, as grand inside as it is outside, with a dome made from 90 kg of gold. With its golden iconostasis, and granite columns that were shipped over from Finland, the interior recalls the gilded grandeur of Rome’s St Peter’s Basilica. Officially classed as a museum, services are nonetheless held here on public holidays.
The decision to hand over St. Isaac’s Cathedral back to the Orthodox Church, announced in early January 2017, sparked protests by nearly 2,000 people.
The Church of the Resurrection of Christ (Savior on the Spilled Blood) (4 hrs)Closed Wednesdays
Rising up at the end of the Griboedev Canal, this church’s distinguishing feature is its five kaleidoscopic, gleaming onion domes. It purposely recalls St Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow.
The Church of the Resurrection of Christ (The Savior on Blood) was erected on the site where Emperor Alexander II was mortally wounded. The Church was jointly designed by the architect A.A. Parland (1842-1920) and the archimandrite Ignaty (secular name Malyshev, 1811-1897), a rector of the Troitse-Sergievsky Monastery. To fulfil Alexander III’s wish, the cathedral was erected in “the true Russian style”, enclosing the actual assassination site within the walls of the church.
The Church of the Resurrection is one of the most extraordinary churches in St Petersburg. Its vibrant, painterly composition and varicoloured decor make it a bright, distinctive landmark in the surrounding architecture of the city’s center. The opulence continues behind the Russian Orthodox façade.
The interior is encrusted with rainbow-hued mosaics and icons blending modernist and Byzantine styles. On August 19, 1907, the Metropolitan Antony of St Petersburg and Ladoga consecrated the church, and a new temple emerged at the Catherine Canal (now called Griboedov) to perpetuate the memory of Emperor Alexander II.
Oh my goodness we just LOVED the train journey and really enjoyed the folk in our group. The guides were fabulous, each of them very dif ferent, of fering an interesting mix of personalities to each tour. We loved the fact the tours were walking tours.
Glenda Hinkley, May 2010
The Russian Museum (3 hrs)Closed Tuesdays
The Russian Museum was established, in 1895, as the first state museum of Russian fine arts in the country. It was established by a decree of the Emperor Nicholas II and is today a unique depository of artistic treasures, a famous restoration centre, an authoritative institute of academic research, one of the major cultural and educational centers in Russia, and a research and instructional centre of art museums of the Russian Federation, overseeing activities of 260 art museums in Russia.
The Fabergé Museum
The riverbank palace of Shuvalov houses the largest collection of objets d’art by masterly Russian goldsmith Peter-Carl Fabergé ever amassed.
Inside, you’ll embark on a self-guided tour through ornately furnished halls to admire the museum’s highlights. In artfully lit display cabinets sit nine Imperial Fabergé eggs, which Russia’s royal family would exchange as Easter gifts.
Variously encrusted in opal, agate, pearls, pink enamel and diamonds, the eggs remain some of the world’s most beguiling artistic objects. Some are still thought to be lost. You’ll learn about the stories behind each egg’s creation and their features, from the simple Hen Egg to the art nouveau Lilies of the Valley Egg.
Museum of Political History (2.5 hrs)Closed Thursday and last Monday of every month
The only St. Petersburg museum that reflects the country’s history as regards the upheavals in society in the 19th and 20th centuries. Located in two unique old mansions of the ballerina Matilda Kseshinskaya and of Baron V. Brant, the Museum collection counts over 460,000 items. Among the most remarkable exhibits are documents concerning the legislative activities of Catherine the Great and S. Vitte’s and P. Stolypin’s reforming activities, items referring to the epoch of the Great Reforms carried out by Alexander II and objects telling about three Russian revolutions. A large volume of unique materials reveals the activities of supreme state organs of the Russian Empire, the USSR, and the Russian Federation.
Canal & River boat cruise (3 hrs)
Canal cruises usually start from one of the moorings on the Moika or the Fontanka rivers. After embarking the cruise heads for the St-Isaac’s Square passing under Narodny (Peoples) bridge across the Nevsky Prospect, Red bridge across Gorokhovaya street and Blue bridge, the widest bridge of the city and enclosed into St-Isaac’s Square. Having passed under Pochtamtsky (Post), Potseluev (Kissing) and Krasnoflotsky Bridges you’ll find yourself in the waters of Krukov Channel and enjoy the view on the Mariinsky Theatre, the Conservatory, the Nicolsky Square and the St-Nicolas Cathedral. Entering the Fontanka river between Egyptian and Smezhny bridges not far from hotel Sovetskaya and heading in the direction of the Nevsky Prospect under Izmailovsky bridge you’ll pass the Izmailovsky Gardens and the University of Railway Transportation, between Obukhovsky and Semenovsky bridges you’ll see houses of the 19th and the 1st quarter of the 20 century designed in different architectural styles: Renaissance, Pseudo Russian.
Guest will see the famous Tovstonogov Drama Theatre between Semenovsky and Lomonosovsky bridges on the left bank of the river and at Anitchkov bridge, the Palace of Beloselsky-Belozersky, the Anitchkov Palace, the classic Shuvalovsky Palace, and the Sheremetievsky Palace; at Belinsky bridge, the building of the Circus to the left and the Semenovsky Cathedral to the right. After passing the monumental building of the Mikhailovsky Castle and the Summer Gardens, the cruise boat enters the Neva, making a large circle and passing under Troitsky bridge before returning into the Fontanka. From the Fontanka the boat goes into the Moika passing under Pantelejmonovsky Bridge, the Mikhailovsky Garden and the Champ du Mars and returning to the mooring at Pevchesky Bridge.
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