28 Best things to see & do in St Petersburg

Vast complex housing a jaw-dropping collection of Egyptian antiquities, European Renaissance Art, treasure galleries and Russian military history. Second largest art museum in the world.

A summer palace that’s a showcase for the grandeur of Imperial Russia, and a fascinating insight into the gilded lives of the Tsars.

Visiting St. Petersburg is a chance to discover the larger-than-life personalities who ruled the city: the powerful Romanov dynasty aka the Tsars.

The extraordinary summer retreat of the Russian tsars, home to exquisitely restored Baroque palaces and formal gardens, including the Catherine Palace.

Revel in the expansive grandeur of Imperial Russia at Peterhof, a staggering complex of palaces, gardens and follies, half an hour from central St. Petersburg.

Ornate onion-bulb domes, glittering mosaics and buildings on a vast scale make St Petersburg’s churches and cathedrals some of the most impressive in the world.

Discover the art of Peter Carl Faberge, creator of the Imperial Easter Eggs, in the museum dedicated to his craft.

An exquisite Baroque cathedral designed by St. Petersburg’s favourite architect, Bartolomeo Rastrelli.

One of the city’s only traditional Russian churches, built on the spot of the assassination of Tsar Alexander II  1881, it is also the most beautiful, with jaw-dropping gold-leaf interiors.

Enjoy an unforgettable evening of classical ballet or opera at the world-renowned Mariinsky Theatre. It was here that Tchaikovsky’s famous ballets, The Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty, and Swan Lake were first performed.

Russia’s rich tradition of visual arts is celebrated in the network of buildings and gardens of the State Russian Museum, housing 400,000 exhibits dating back to the 10th century.

The burial place of Russia’s Romanov tsars from Peter the Great to Nicholas II, the Cathedral was the first landmark to be built in the city, and is thus the oldest – dating back to 1733.

Wander through history as you traverse St Petersburg’s main thoroughfare – a grand, 3-mile boulevard of elegant facades, imposing buildings, basilicas, monuments and theatres.

Discover St Petersburg’s spectacular architecture from the water, with a slow-paced cruise through the city’s rivers, waterways and canals.

Dominating the city’s skyline, St Isaacs is magnificently decorated with Orthodox icons and frescoes, and offers panoramic views from the alfresco colonnade.

Visit the elegant mansion of the wealthy and colorful Yussupov family, the notorious site of the grisly murder of Grigory Rasputin in 1916.

Dostoyevsky’s apartment/house museum, located in the Haymarket, is where much of ‘Crime and Punishment’ is set and offers fascinating insights into the writer’s life and work.

Founded by Peter the Great to house his collection of physical oddities and preserved ‘freaks’, this museum has a ghoulish lure; not for the faint-hearted, or children.

One of the city’s oldest and most famous apartment blocks, home to scores of Russian Scientists since 1708; the facade of the building has nearly 30 memorial plaques honoring its past residents. You can g inside and visit the house-museum of its most famous resident, the great physiologist Ivan Pavlov.

This museum dedicated to Russia’s political history is housed in the exquisite art nouveau mansion gifted by Nicholas II to his mistress, a prima ballerina of the Mariinsky Theatre.

Built on the orders of Catherine the Great for her grandson, the future Alexander I, this extraordinary, neoclassical palace in the Tsars’ Village was also home to the last tsar, Nicholas II, and his family and is considered one of the greatest creations by the renowned architect Giacomo Quarenghi.

Looming over Nevsky Prospekt, the scale of Kazan is breathtaking. Modelled on St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, the church took ten years to build between 1801-11 and is famous for its impressive stone colonnade.

Kuznechny Market offers a chance to step off the sightseeing trail and visit the city’s largest farmers’ market, with fresh produce, meat and fish. Open daily except Monday.

Considered by some to be St. Petersburg’s most impressive single church, Chesme has a unique candystripe frontage, in pink and white, and an elegant, rose-hued interior.

A huge, Baroque confection, Kronstadt served as the main shrine for the Russian navy until the revolution in 1919. The Cathedral is actually two churches on separate floors, with opulent, gilded interiors.

Instantly recognisable by its bright blue domes, Trinity was a former regimental church of the Russian Imperial Army, and is famous for its icons, dating back to the 18th century.

St Petersburg’s oldest eatery is a favourite of Russia’s famous writers and an excellent place to sample traditional Russian food.

Enjoy a night of Russia’s outstanding classical music at the elegant Philharmonic Hall, right in the center of the city.