The State Hermitage Address: 34, Dvortsovaja Embankment Open: Tuesdays – Saturdays 10:30-18:00, Sundays 10.30 - 17.00 Closed: Mondays, 1. January, 9. May
Hermitage Museum is one of the most famous and biggest museums in the world. The State Hermitage occupies six magnificent buildings situated along the embankment of the River Neva, right in the heart of St Petersburg-Palace Square. The leading role in this unique architectural ensemble is played by the Winter Palace, the residence of the Russian tsars that was built to the design of Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli in 1754-62. This ensemble is extended by the eastern wing of the General Staff building, the Menshikov Palace and the recently constructed Repository. The Hermitage collection of works of art counts over 3,000,000 items, which are presented in 400 halls. During one visit you have the opportunity to see world-famous rooms of this museum-Gold drawing-room, Stage hall, Malachite Room, Loggia of Raffail and etc. On the second floor there are works by Leonardo da Vinci, Rembrandt and German, France, Flemish, Spanish, English, Dutch paintings. Besides you have a chance to join France impressionism or antique halls or art of ancient Egypt or Gold larder and Scythian Gold…
	The Menshikov Palace Address: 15, Universitetskaja Em. Open: Tuesdays – Saturdays 10:30-18:00, Sundays 10.30 - 17.00 Closed: Mondays, 1st. January, 9th. May
The Menshikov Palace was built for the associate of Peter I – Alexander Menshikov. It is one of the first stone mansions in Saint Petersburg. Nowdays the Menshikov Palace presents the exposition, which is devoted to Russian history of art in the 18-th century. Besides the visitors can see original interiors, such as the hall, the gala staircase, the Dutch-style rooms…. The interiors of the palace are decorated with gold, silver, marble, precious kinds of wood, paintings, Antique Italian sculptures, large Venetian mirrors, crystal chandeliers, Chinese silk wallpaper and tapestries. The palace features rich collections of applied art objects, sculpture, coins and canvases by Russian and European artists.
	The State Russian Museum (Mikhailov Palace) Address: 4, Inzhenernaya St. Open: 10:00-17:00 (Mondays 10:00-16:00) Closed: Tuesday
The State Russian Museum occupies magnificent buildings located in the historical center of Saint Petersburg – the Stroganov and Marble palaces, Mikhailovsky (Engineer) castle and the main building, the Mikhailovsky palace with the Benois wing. Mikhailov Palace was built to the design of architect Karlo Rossi for Great Prince Mikhail, a brother of Russian Emperor Alexander I. The State Russian Museum contains the world's largest collection of Russian fine art. The collections number over 400,000 exhibits. The exposition of the Museum opens with the Ancient Russian painting department, where the visitors can see the icons by Andrei Rublev, Dionisiy, Simon Ushakov, as well as by unknown masters of Novgorodian and other schools of Russian icon painting. Besides there are marvelous portraits by A. Antropov, F. Rokotov, D. Levitsky, sculptural works by B. Rastrelli, F. Shubin, M. Kozlovsky, an interesting collection of works of the first half of the 19th century - "The Last Day of Pompeii" by K. Brullov, "The Brazen Serpent" by F. Bruni, "The Tidal Wave" by I. Aivazovsky and etc.
	Mikhailovskiy (Engineer) castle Address: 2, Sadovaya street. Open: 10:00-17:00 Closed: Tuesdays
Mikhailovskiy Castle was built in 1797-1801 to the design of architects Brenn and Bazenov as a residence for Emperor Paul I. The Mikhailovsky Castle was a silent witness of some interesting episodes in the dramatic story of the short-lived reign of Emperor Paul I, son of Catherine the Great. Catherine overthrew her husband Peter III to gain access to the Russian Imperial throne and then ruled the country until her death in 1796. By then her son Paul was 42 years old and would normally have already taken over the mantle of power from his mother. However, neither the nobility nor the royal guards liked or respected Paul and he lived his life in constant fear of assassination. In order to allay these fears he ordered a fortified palace (a castle surrounded by deep ditches) to be built for him. According to a legend, one of the soldiers guarding the construction site experienced a vision of the Archangel Michael guarding the castle alongside him. This was reported to the Emperor and the castle was given the name Mikhailovsky (St Michael's). The paranoid Emperor Paul did not live in his new palace for long. In 1801 he was assassinated in his own bedroom by a group of officers who organized a coup, inspired by Paul's son Alexander. Later the castle was used for the Army Engineers School and became the Engineer's Castle. Nowadays the Mikhailovsky Castle is a branch of the Russian Museum and houses several permanent exhibitions: "Portrait Gallery of the Outstanding Figures of the 18 - 19th Centuries Russian History" and "Exposition of the 18th Century Sculptural Portrait". The core of gallery is formed by the official portraits of Russian monarchs starting with Peter the Great and ending with Nicolas II, as well as members of royal family and Russian generals.
	Summer garden Open: May – September 10:00-21:30 October – March 10:00-18:00 Closed: April Tuesdays Last Monday of each month
Summer garden is one of the most romantic places in Saint-Petersburg, where you can feel the spirit of the Peter’s times. Summer garden is a pearl between the parks of Saint-Petersburg. And there is no denying the fact that it was the beloved Peter’s place in this city. The Summer Garden occupies an island between the Fontanka, Moika, and the Swan Canal in Saint Petersburg and shares its name with the adjacent Summer Palace of Peter the Great. The park, first conceived by Peter in 1704, was laid out by foreign garden planners between 1712 and 1725 in a Dutch Baroque style. Three years later, the walks were lined with a hundred allegorical marble sculptures, executed by Pietro Baratta, Marino Gropelli, Alvise Tagliapietra, and other Venetian sculptors. In the late 20th century, 90 surviving statues were moved indoors, while modern replicas took their place in the park. Sculptures in Summer garden are one of the most important details of its decoration. That’s way this garden can be named the museum of garden sculpture of 18th century. Nowadays Summer garden is a great monument of Russian culture of the 18th century.
	Summer Palace of Peter the Great Address: Summer garden Open: May–November – 10:00-17:00 Mondays – 10:00-16:00 Closed: Tuesdays, last Monday of each month
Peter the Great's private palace was designed between 1710 and 1712 by St. Petersburg's most celebrated architect, Domenico Trezzini. The small palace, built in the delightful Summer Garden, contains just 14 rooms and was the summer residence of Peter the Great and his family from 1712 until the Emperor's death in 1725. The two-storied yellow palace is very modest in appearance for a royal residence. Its facade is simple and features only a few depictions of mythological subjects in relief. Unlike the old palaces of 17th century, this palace has got a high roof and large windows, which let plenty of natural light get into the interior. During its construction, its design was referred to as "Dutch". In 1925, the Summer Palace became a museum. In 1934 it was opened for visitors. On the first floor, you can see two official rooms for visitors, a study, a bedroom and a turner's workshop of Peter the Great, as well as a dining-room and a kitchen. The rooms of Catherine I are on the second floor. These include the Green Room where pictures, furniture, carpets, glassware and china dishes dating back to the epoch of Peter the Great are exhibited. Although the palace was reconstructed several times. The original decorations of most rooms, including the halls, the oak stairs, the upper and the lower kitchens have been preserved. Clothes and other personal belonging of Peter the Great and Catherine I can be seen here.
	Peter and Paul Fortress (museum of history of Saint-Petersburg) Address: 3, Peter and Paul fortress Open: May – October 10:00 – 18:00; Tuesdays 10:00-17:00 October – May 10:00-17:00; Tuesdays 10:00-16:00 Closed: Wednesdays (October – May)
The Peter and Paul fortress was founded on a small Zayachiy (Hare) island in the Neva delta on May 27, 1703 (May 16 according to the old calendar) and that day became the birthday of the city of St Petersburg. At first it was the wooden fortress, but thanks to architect Dominico Trezini we have now the stone monument. In the middle of the fortress stands the impressive Peter and Paul Cathedral, the burial place of all the Russian Emperors and Empresses from Peter the Great to Alexander III. The remains of the last Emperor family of Nicolaus II were buried in 1998. The Cathedral was the first church in the city to be built of stone (between 1712-33) and its design is curiously unusual for a Russian Orthodox Church. The bell tower is 122, 5 meter high and the Cathedral is the highest architectural construction of Saint-Petersburg. On top of the cathedrals’ gilded spire stands a magnificent golden angel holding a cross. This weathervane is one of the most prominent symbols of the city. In the Peter’s times the fortress housed part of the city's garrison and rather notoriously served as a high security political jail. Among the first inmates was Peter's own rebellious son Alexei. Later, the list of famous residents included Dostoyevsky, Gorkiy, Trotsky and Lenin's older brother, Alexander, Decembrists and etc. The other building in the fortress includes the Mint, one of only two places in Russia where coins and medals are minted.
	St. Isaac's Cathedral Address: 1, St. Isaac’s square Open: 10:00-19:00 Closed: Wednesdays
St. Isaac’s Cathedral (built by the French architect Auguste Montferran, 1818-1858) is one of the biggest cathedrals (the forth largest domed cathedral in the world, after the Cathedral of St. Peter in Rome, the Cathedral of St. Paul in London and the Cathedral of St. Maria in Florence), the main church of Saint-Petersburg and the largest cathedral in Russia. The construction works started in 1818 and lasted for almost 40 years. St. Isaac’s Cathedral is a symbol of Saint-Petersburg. It is 101, 5 meters high and has the area of 4 thousand square meters, can hold up to 14 thousand people. For building of this cathedral one used 400 kilograms of gold and 16 tons of malachite. The interior decor of the cathedral features an abundant use of paintings, mosaic works and sculptures made by well-known Russian artists and sculptors, such as Bryullov, Klodt, Pimenov and others. The Cathedral's facades are decorated with sculptures and massive granite columns (made of single pieces of red granite), while the interior is adorned with incredibly detailed mosaic icons, paintings and columns made of malachite and lapis lazuli. A large, brightly colored stained glass window of the "Resurrected Christ" takes pride of place inside the main altar. The solemn opening and the consecration of St. Isaac Cathedral that was announced the cathedral of Russian Orthodox Church took place on the 30th of May 1858. But in the early 1930s the church was closed and reopened as a memorial museum. The church services are held here only on major ecclesiastical occasions. Visiting this cathedral you can take a closer look at it’s history and it is worth climbing the 300 steps up to the cathedral's colonnade, where you can enjoy the magnificent views over the city.
	Church of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ („Our Savior on the Spilled Blood”) Address: 2, Griboedov kanal Open: 11:00-18:00 Closed: Wednesdays
This church is known as the Church of the Savior on Blood because it marks the spot where Alexander II died of wounds inflicted in an attack by the terrorist group on March 1, 1881. Immediately, his heir, Alexander III, declared his intention to erect a church on the site in his father's memory. Designed by Alfred Parland in the style of 16th and 17th-century Russian churches, the Church of the Resurrection provides a contrast to its surroundings of Baroque, Classical and Modernist architecture. The church has an outstanding and varied collection of mosaic icons. Several icons were completed in the traditions of academic painting, modernist style and Byzantine icon painting. The large icon of St. Alexander Nevsky was created according to a design by Nesterov. The icons of the main iconostasis Mother of God with Child and the Savior were painted to designs by Vasnetsov. The walls and ceiling inside the Church are completely covered in intricately detailed mosaics - the main pictures being biblical scenes or figures - but with very fine patterned borders setting off each picture.
	The Russian Ethnographic Museum Address: 4/1, Inzenernaja Street Open: 10:00-17:00 Closed: Mondays
The Russian Ethnographic Museum was founded in 1901 as a branch of the Russian Museum and counts over 3,000 items. It is the largest ethnographic center, where the unique collection is concentrated. It characterizes the way of life and culture of the people of Russia. This museum is one of the biggest ethnographic museums in Europe. The special storeroom of the museum contains national jewelry, objects of cult and armory made of precious metal, pearl, precious and semiprecious stones. In the museum there are 24 exhibit halls, where the materials of traditional ethnography of the people of Russia between the 19th and 20th centuries are presented (Russians, Ukranians, Byelorussians, Moldavians, The Baltic states, the people of the Volga and Ural regions, the people of Siberia and Far East, the people of Middle Asia and Kazakstan, and the people of the Caucasus). Most of the collection presents the people's clothes, embroidery, fabrics, furs, objects from trees, ceramics and metal. Besides this, the museum preserves artifacts which consist of pictographically letters, icons, completed by anonymous Ukrainian craftsman, ritual costumes, masks and many others. The premise of the museum has got a distinct plan. There is the festive entry hall in the center, which connects to the left and right wings of the building. There are 12 halls and one central gallery located on the second floor. From the entry hall visitors can get to the massive Marble Hall, which contains one of the most significant monuments of Saint Petersburg.
	Peter the Great Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography (Kunstkamera) Address: 3, University Embankment Open: 11:00-16:30 Closed: Mondays, the last Tuesday of each month
The Kunstkamera was established in 1714 by the order of Peter the Great and based on Peter's own collection. It is one of the world's largest ethnographic museums and the first museum founded in Russia. The exhibits tell us about the genesis of races, the history of primitive society, the culture and everyday life of people of all continents. The Kunstkamera has been the symbol of the Russian Academy of Sciences since the early 18th century. Its purpose was to collect and examine natural and human curiosities and rarities. There was the first observatory in Russia, a dissecting room and other establishments of the Academy of Sciences. On the basis of Kunstkamera, in 1836 have been created 8 academic museums and among them-museums of Anthropology and Ethnography. Long time a great Russian scientist М.В. Lomonosov worked in this building. Today, the collections of Peter the Great’s Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography (Kunstkamera) are among the most complete and interesting in the world. These collections contain over one million artifacts and reflect the diversity of traditional cultures in the Old and New World. The Museum has always been one of the world’s largest centers where human cultural heritage is studied, continuing the traditions of the Great Russian cultural and physical anthropologists of the 18 - 20th centuries.
	The Museum of Urban Sculpture (Alexandro-Nevskaya Lavra) Address: 179/2, Nevsky Prospect Open: May-September - 9.30-18.00 October-April – 9.30-15.30 Closed: Thursdays
Alexandro-Nevskaya Lavra is a monastery, which was established in 1713 by the order of Peter the Great. There is relic of Saint prince Alexander Nevsky, a patron of Saint-Petersburg. The Alexander Nevsky Monastery complex was built to the design of Trezini, Starov and other architects of the 18th century. In 1797 this monastery received a status of Lavra. By the beginning of the 20th century the territory of the monastery complex was a home to impressive 16 churches. Today, only five of them survive: the Holy Trinity Cathedral, the Church of the Annunciation, the Church of St. Lazarus, the Church of St. Nicholas, and the Church of the Holy Mother of God, the Joy of All Those who Mourn, which is over the monastery gates. A lot of visitors are mostly attracted by the monastery's graveyard, a home of the final resting for many of the great names of Russian culture. The Tikhvin Cemetery contains many of the most famous graves: There is an impressive bust of Tchaikovsky over his grave in the far right-hand corner from the gate. There are graves of Rubinshtein, Mussorgsky, Rimsky-Korsakov and Glinka near by. Dostoevsky grave is a little bit further, near the wall, towards the gate. The other main cemetery, the Lazarus Cemetery, is the resting place of several of the great architects who left their indelible mark on the city, including Starov, Quarenghi and Rossi.
	The Memorial Pushkin Apartment Museum Address: 12, Moyka Emb. Open: 11.00-17.00 Closed: Tuesdays, last Friday of each month
The Memorial Pushkin Apartment Museum is the last house of a famous Russian writer, Alexander Pushkin. It is one of the most popular museums of St. Petersburg situated in the centre of the city not far from the Winter Palace. The museum is housed in Alexander Pushkin's memorial apartment where he lived between 1836 and 1837. He died after being mortally wounded in a dramatic duel. On a wave of nationwide grief for the untimely death of this major Russian literary figure, Pushkin's apartment has been carefully preserved and remains a fine example of a nobleman's residence of the 1830s. The museum contains numerous literary and historical exhibitions, charting the life, work and times of Russia's greatest writer.