Let’s see one of the best cities. St. Petersburg is old capital and second biggiest city in Russia. You can get more information about the city on wikipedia etc. , i will try to explain about travel to St. Petersburg.
When To Go :
I visited St. Petersburg on 19-26 August 2021 but i advise to visit on June or July. Especially the period of White Nights.
Visa :
Normally there is a free online visa system for Russia and it seems quiet simple. But it was suspended because of pandemic process. It was easy for me to get a visa , but it will depend where you live.
How To Go :
There direct flight from many cities to St. Petersburg. I arrived at Pulkovo Airport after 3 hours 20 mins flight from Istanbul. When you exit the airport , you can catch the bus 39 on the left side of the exit gate and reach at Moskovskaya Metro Station. You don’t need to buy a ticket for public transportation at the airport , you can pay by your credit card on the bus and it will cost 5 ruble. Then when you reach at metro station , you can buy transportation ticket while calculating how many days you stay. For example 3 days pass for 460 Ruble or 5 days pass for 815 Ruble. Also while there is not many exchange office in the city , first you can use the exchange office at the opposite of the road when you get off the bus in Moskovskaya Metro Station , just left side of Mc Donald’s.
Where To Stay :
There are many different options in St. Petersburg for accommodation such as hotels and apartments. I stayed at a hotel on Goncharnaya Street next to Moscow Train Station. I found via airbnb and paid only around 25 euros per night.
Things To Do :
Generally i am explaining the things to do region by region and makes it much easily reachable. But i will not do the same for St. Peterburg while there are some places which take a day.
1-) Nevsky Avenue :
Nevsky Avenue is on the top of the list while it is the main avenue and also nearly all the sightseeings are around it. If you walk around this 4.5 km long avenue , you will have a better idea about sightseeing and the plan.
2-) The State Hermitage Museum :
It can be most known symbol of St. Petersburg. It is a huge museum , including the highest number of paitings , that you can leave without finish all. It is located next to Neva River where Nevsky Avenue ends. You can buy a free ticket online for the 3. thursday of every month. On the other hand i recommend to buy the museum tickets online and at least a week before. Otherwise you will need to buy the ticket for 1000 Ruble on blackmarket in front of the museum instead of 500 Ruble online. You can buy the ticket online on ; https://tickets.hermitagemuseum.org/en/#id=1
3-) Palace Square :
When you visit The State Hermitage Museum , you will already visit Palace Square but i would recommend you to visit Palace Square also in the evening. It will be also great to see The State Hermitage Museum in the evening full of with lights and in Palace Square you will see Alexander Column and General Staff Building too.
4-) St. Isaac’s Cathedral :
It is located on 10 mins by walk from Palace Square and it is one of the symbols of the city. Entrance fee is 350 Ruble and if you would like to go up to columns and enjoy the view , you will need to pay another 200 Ruble. I think it will be enough to have around 1 hour here. In front there is a grass that you can have best photos including St. Isaac’s Cathedral. Also on the way to St. Isaac’s Cathedral on the right , you can have a look at Alexander Park and Admiralty Building.
5-) Church Of The Savior On Spilled Blood :
It is located next to Griboyedov Canal , 15 mins by walk from Palace Square and mins by walk from Nevsky Avenue. Looks so similar to St. Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow. The entrance fee is 350 Ruble.
6-) State Russian Museum :
It is located 5 mins by walk from Church Of The Savior On The Spilled Blood. It is a huge museum inluding many parts. I visited only the main part which is Mikhailovsky Palace. This part is the most known part including many paintings of famous russian painters. The entrance fee for this part will be 500 Ruble. On the other hand the other parts : Benois Wing ; 400 Ruble , St. Michael’s Castle ; 500 Ruble , Marble Palace ; 500 Ruble , Stroganov Palace ; 500 Ruble. Totally it becomes 2400 Ruble for all parts and it will take a day. It is closed on Tuesdays. For detailed information ; http://en.rusmuseum.ru/
Shuvalov Palace became Faberge Museum after display of the jewelry easter eggs of Carl Faberge. Actually all the museums buildings are originially palaces in St. Petersburg. It is not big as others and will be enough to spend at most an hour. Entrance fee is 500 Ruble. Museum is opened everyday till 20:00. It is located through Fontanka River , 2 mins by walk from Nevsky Avenue.
8-) Kazan Cathedral :
Another symbol of St. Petersburg , located on Nevsky Avenue and next to Griboyedov Canal. It is really beautiful from outside but not much charming inside. It is still in use as a cathedral and has a free entrance.
9-) Peter and Paul Fortress :
It is located on Hare Island on the entrance of Neva River and built in the shape of star. It is another symbol of the city. Russian Tsars’ tombs located inside the castle. You can also visit Peter and Paul Cathedral inside. You can reach at the museum by bus or tramway and also walk through Troitsky Bridge. Also you can visit Cruiser Aurora and St. Petersburg Mosque close to castle. I was planning to visit the island the last day but because of the rain , i will visit there next time.
10-) Peterhof Palace :
One of the most important place in St. Petersburg. It is located on a huge territory that we can even name it Peterhof Complex of Palaces etc. It is known as the best palace in Russia. Not only the Grand Place but also its gardens are wonderful. It is located quite far away from old cit part. You can reach at the palace by ferry in around 1 hour 10 mins. 2 ways ticket for the ferry ride will be 2000 Ruble. Second option to reach at Peterhof Palace is public transportation. After reaching at Avtovo Metro Station , across the road , you can catch the bus 200 or 210 and reach at Peterhof Palace in another 1 hour drive by bus and don’t forget to count the time you also spend in metro. When you arrive at Peterhof , you will pay 1000 Ruble at the main entrance to garden. Here you can have a walk in the huge garden with a fantastic view and you can reach to Finland Bay too. If you would like to visit Grand Peterhof Palace , you will need to pay another1200 Ruble. The other parts of the complex ; Alexandria Park 300 Ruble , Oranienbaum Park 300 Ruble , Grand Menshikov Palace 500 Ruble , Catherine Block 500 Ruble , Special Treasury 500 Ruble , Palace Of Peter 3 400 Ruble , Monplaisir Palace 500 Ruble , Marly Palace 400 Ruble , Grottoes Of The Grand Cascade 500 Ruble and Cottage Palace 500 Ruble. So if we count , all becomes 6600 Ruble. Also you can finish all these parts in 2 days , after coming such a long way. I think the main entrance which is 1000 Ruble and Grand Peterhof Palace which is 1200 , are the most important 2 parts.
11-) Tsarskoye Selo State Museum Preserve :
While its english meaning is like village Tsars etc , it is used as Tsarskoye Selo and not translated. This is another complex spread into a huge territory like Peterhof and it is also quiet far from city center. If you get in the metro line 2 , you can go till the last station which is Kupchino Metro Station. Then across the street you can catch the bus 186 and after an hour drive , you will reach to Pushkin Area where Tsarskoye Selo located. First you can buy a ticket for 1200 Ruble which includes the main park(Catherine Park) and the first part of Catherine Palace. If you would like you can also visit the second part of the palace with an extra payment. You can have some great walking in huge park and for another 200 Ruble , you can visit Alexander Palace and Alexander Park. When you leave the museum , you can have a walk in Pushkin Area too. This visit also will take around a day in total. Tsarskoye Selo will be closed on Tuesdays.
12-) Smolny Cathedral :
You can reach to Smolny Cathedral in several mins by bus from Nevsky Avenue.
It has a free entrance while it is in use as a cathedral. If you would like to go up to tower by stairs , you will pay 200 Ruble for this. You should think twice for this because it will take time and energy to climb that much stairs.
13-) Avenues , Bridges And Canals :
It will worth to walk and search all the streets and avenues next to Nevsky Avenue. Neva , Fontanka , Moika , Griboyedov , Ovbodny Canals and Rivers should be seen. For view , Alexander Nevsky , Anichkov , Troitsky , Bank , Palace , Exchange and Lomonosov Bridges shouldbe visited.
14-) Canal Tours :
There are many kinds of canal tours in St. Petersburg. You can choose any kind for around 1000 Ruble and have a tour for one and an half hour.
15-) Other Places To Visit :
There are some more places to visit in St. Petersburg. I didn’t visit some of them and they are in my list for the next time. For example , Mariinsky Theatre , i couldn’t join to anything while events start on September. It is the biggest and most important theatre of Russia. Yusupov Palace , known as the palace where Rasputin killed. Mariinsky Palace is another place to see. Rostral’naya Kolonna which you can reach passing by Palace Bridge. Then you can watch the sunset over Finland Bay , then see Zenit’s Stadium ; Gazprom Arena after arriving at Zenit Metro Station by metro 3.
FOOD
Russian Kitchen has nothing special for me. The only thing i find unique to Russian Kitchen should be Beef Stroganoff. It is really delicious and should be tried. Second option is Borscht. We accept it as an Ukranian originated soup but you can find in nearly every restaurant and it is nother good option to try. On the other hand St. Petersburg vodkas are famous too. For example Russian Standarts and Tsarskaya. You can buy 1 LT of these vodkas in super markets for only around 9-10 usd and beers cost around 1 usd. Here is the list of the restaurants which must be visited ;
1-) Market Place :
I think this is the best restaurant in St. Petersburg and its location is also perfect , just on Nevsky Avenue. Most probably you will pass through it many time , while it is on your way. I found the quality of the dishes quite well.
2-) Karl & Friedrich :
It is located 15 mins by walk from Zenit Metro Station. It spreads into a large area , portions are quiet big , tasty and prices are really good. This is a german style restaurant , even the waitress’ wear traditional german dresses. A quiet different and good restaurant.
3-) Galeria Mall :
The restaurant part on the top floor of Galeria Shopping Center is good too. You will find many different and good options there.
4-) Stolovaya :
Stolovaya is a restaurant chain which have many branchs. It is so cheap , parallel to its quality. But you will see that branchs are always full and good for small budgets.
SHOPPING
St. Petersburg known as an expensive city for shopping , especially for souvenirs. You can check GalleriaMall next to Moscow Train Station. The flea market in Udelnaya was a big disappointment that even the souvenir shops in Nevsky Avenue were better. There are some souvenir shops in the underpass in Nevsky Avenue and you should better buy souvenirs there. The things to buy ,which special to St. Petersburg , vodka , chocolate , jewel easter eggs such as in Faberge Museum and amber is something identical to St. Petersburg.
BARS-PUBS
I didn’t like bars in St. Petersburg. One of the reason should be that i come from Istanbul and another reason can be the season. June and July must be really busy but season ends around August for tourists. I visited Union Bar and didn’t like the atmosphere. But Rubinstein Street was good with many bars and street musicians. Here i visited Fiddler’s Green many times. Craft beers are around 250-400 Ruble in this area but not good enough. In Dumskaya Avenue and Lomonosov Street there are many bars and clubs but they are all touristic places. One of the most joyous place is O’Hooligans , but just seems for fans.
Consequently , St. Petersburg is the most beuatiful city ever for me and i only visited South Africa , Ukraine and Serbia yet. I will make the comparison later again after visiting some european cities. Palaces , architecture , large avenues and streets , canals and rivers... It must be the largest old city part in Europe. The cleanlines , quietness and respect combines with the beauty of the city. I was suprised that it is totally a european city , even maybe better than european cities. I will definitely visit again.
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