canvasses by Van Gogh, Matisse, Gauguin and several sculptures by Rodin. The collection is both enormous and diverse and is an essential stop for all those interested in art and history.
The experts say that if you were to spend a minute looking at each exhibit on display in the Hermitage, you would need 11 years before you’d seen them all.
Open: Tuesday-Sunday from 10.30 am to 5.00 pm.
Russian Museum
The State Russian Museum is the world’s largest museum of Russian art. It is located in the very center of St Petersburg, just of the city’s central magisterial, Nevsky Prospect. The museum is housed in the former Mikhailovsky Palace, a stunning monument of Empire architecture.
The collection of the Russian Museum numbers some 400,000 works and covers the entire history of Russian fine art from the 10th century to the present day. It reflects virtually every form and genre of art in Russia, including a unique collection of Old Russian icons, works of painting, graphic art and sculpture, decorative and applied art, folk art and numismatics, as well as the world's finest collection of Russian avaunt-garde.
If you walk from the main building up to Nevsky Prospect and then turn to the right, you can see the plastic front of the oldest Stroganov Palace, named after its owners, the Stroganov family.
Then you can have a wonderful trip upon embankment of the Moika river. When you come to Mars Square, you can see to the left the Marble Palace, built in the late Neoclassicism style. And to the right you can see the romantic silhouette of St. Michael's (Engineers) Castle.
Open: Wednesday – Monday from 10.00 am to 5.00 pm.
Kazan Cathedral
The cathedral is named after the miracle-working icon of Our Lady of Kazan – the protectress of the Imperial House of Romanov – which was kept here. The cathedral was put up in 1811 by architect Andrey Voronikhin on Nevsky Prospect – the main street of the city.
It was conceived as a replica of St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome. It has the colonnade that is similar to that of Bernini. But there are certain differences between the two constructions and Kazan Cathedral has its own inimitable charm and brilliance. In 1811-1858, Kazan Cathedral was the main cathedral of the city. In front of it there are two monuments to the field marshals who defeated Napoleon in fearless battles – Kutuzov and Barklay de Tolly. Mikhail Kutuzov is buried inside the cathedral.
After 1932, when the cathedral was closed, the building housed the Museum of the history of Religion and Atheism. In 1991, services have been resumed. Now it is an acting Orthodox church.
Open: daily.
Kunstkammer
It is the oldest state museum in Russia. It was founded in 1704 as the library and collections of "monsters and rarities" gathered by Peter I.
In 1992, the Kunstkammer became an independent museum and research institute within the Department of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The museum has kept its original title – "Kunstkammer" (translating from German – "chambers of curiosities") – and has the name of Peter the Great given to it in 1903. Today its complete name is: Peter the Great's Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography (Kunstkammer) of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
Open: Tuesday-Sunday from 11.00 am to 4.30 pm. (except last Tuesday of each month).
Cruiser Aurora
The cruiser Aurora was built in 1897-1900 by the "New Admiralty" in St. Petersburg and joined Russia's Baltic fleet in 1903. The ship is 126.8 meters (418 feet 5 inches) long, 16.8 meters (55 feet 5 inches) wide and weighs 7600 tons. With the speed of 20 knots (23.3 miles per hour) it can travel independently for up to 1440 nautical miles.
As the training ship of the Baltic fleet, on the night of October 25-26, 1917, the Aurora fired a blank shot at the Winter Palace (then the residence of the Provisional Government), giving the signal to the rebellious workers, soldiers and sailors to storm the palace. That moment changed Russia's history for over 70 years.
In 1952 the cruiser was turned into the Ship Museum, which became the branch of the Central Naval Museum. In 1992 Saint Andrew Naval Flag raised over the Cruiser Aurora.
The Aurora exposition features over 500 original documents, photographs, and ship objects concerning the cruiser's history and its participation in Russian history. For those who wish there are thematic excursions of the underwater cruiser part and machine-boiler sector.
Open: Tuesday-Thursday, Saturday-Sunday from 10.30 am to 4.00 pm.
Museums (in the countryside)
Peterhof, modern name is Petrodvorets (by bus, with a guide/interpreter; duration – 6 hours).
The Grand Palace of Peterhof stands on the hill. Two parks which surround it received the names Upper & Lower ones. The most famous part of this ensemble is Lower Park. With its 173 fountains it makes a strong competition to French Versailles.
On the territory of Lower Park you can find three monumental fountains, one of them comprising the famous Samson – "Samson, tearing apart the jaws of the lion". The whole composition of the fountain complex is devoted to the victory over Sweden. Samson symbolizes Russia defeating Sweden – the lion. The Great Cascade is decorated with gilded statues of ancient Greek and Roman gods and heroes, which all are allegories of different events of the Northern War.
Since the time of Peter the Great remained the so-called joke-fountains – a fun for kids and adults. For example, a calm park bench. Once you sit on it, the jets of water pour over you! There are 5 types of joke-fountains, all different and unique.
Fountains start to work on the last weekend of May and are closed around the middle of September. The exact dates are different from year to year.
There are 8 museums on the territory of the park.
Open: daily except Mondays and last Tuesday of each month, from 10.00 am to 5.00 pm.
Lower Park (fountains) is open daily, from 10.00 am to 6.00 pm.
Gatchina (by bus – with a guide/interpreter; duration – 6 hours).The palace and park complex of Gatchina, a town located 45 km south-west of St. Petersburg, is an outstanding example of eighteenth-century landscape architecture. The palace for Catherine II’s favorite, Count Orlov, built in the Early Classical Style upon the project of Antonio Rinaldi between 1766 and 1781, was enlarged by Vincenzo Brenna in 1796 – 1798, and reconstructed by Roman Kuzmin between 1845 and 1860. It had about 600 rooms, a theatre, and many works of art, and was also surrounded by a fine park. Upon Orlov’s disgrace the palace passed to Catherine's son, Paul I, who transformed it into a combination of palace, fortress, and barracks. Although badly damaged during World War II, the palace was restored and is now a museum. The modern city is a railway junction, with machine building, metalworking, and light industries.
Gatchina Palace is opened: 10.00 am – 5.00 pm.
Closed: Monday and last Tuesday of each month.
Tsarskoye Selo (Pushkin) (by bus – with a guide/interpreter; duration – 6 hours).
Tsarskoye Selo (formerly known
