Complete St. Petersburg in a week

COMPLETE ST.PETERSBURG IN A WEEK tour of most of St.Petersburg highlights gives you a deep insight into the history and present day life of St.Petersburg, one of the world’s most beautiful cities. With no rush you will see all the highlights of St.Petersburg, including the Hermitage and the Winter Palace, Peter and Paul Fortress, St.Isaac’s Cathedral, the Church on Spilled Blood, Catherine Palace with the Amber Room, fountains of Peterhof, Yusupoff Palace, Menshikov Palace, Monument to the Defenders of Leningrad.

DAY 1

Upon arrival in St.Petersburg, you will be transferred to the hotel.

DAY 2

You will start this day with a guided sightseeing tour of St.Petersburg during which you will see Nevsky Prospect, the main street of the city, the Square of Fine Arts, St.Isaac’s Cathedral and go to Peter and Paul Fortress, the birthplace of the city, and visit St. Peter and Paul’s Cathedral, the burial place of all Russian Emperors from Peter the Great to Nicholas II. After an independent lunch in a local café you will have a guided tour of Menshikov Palace, the oldest stone building of St.Petersburg.

DAY 3

In the morning you will have a guided tour of the Hermitage, one of the world’s largest art museums. During the tour you will see the lavishly-decorated reception quarters of the Winter Palace, the highlights of the Old Masters’ Collection (Leonardo da Vinci, Rafael, Rembrandt) and Impressionists’ and Post-Impressionists’ collection. After an independent lunch in a local café you will have the guided tour of the splendid St.Isaac’s Cathedral, the fourth largest domed cathedral in the world, and Our Saviour’s Church on the Spilled Blood with the amazing 7,000 m2 of glass mosaics, more than anywhere else in the world.

DAY 4

After breakfast you will drive to Tsarskoe Selo where you will have a guided visit to Catherine’s Palace, the largest summer palace of the Russian Royal family, famous for the splendor of its Baroque interiors, including the Gold Rooms and the unique Amber Room, the 8th wonder of the world. On the way back to the city you will visit the WWII Monument to the Defenders of Leningrad (this was the name of the city between 1924 and 1991) followed by a visit to a local supermarket.

DAY 5

In the morning you will have a guided tour of Yusupoff Palace, one of the most elegant private palaces in Europe, included in the Registry of the best private palaces of Europe, where Grigory Rasputin was murdered in December 1916. You will have this afternoon at leisure for independent sightseeing and shopping.

DAY 6

You will start this day with an excursion to Peterhof, the Russian Versailles, located on the coast of the Gulf of Finland, a former official royal summer residence, where you will have a guided tour the Royal Bath House and Kitchen, which will give you an insight into the private life of the Romanovs, and the Lower Park, the elaborate grounds featuring over 150 fountains, among which you will see the breathtaking Great Cascade, the largest fountain ensemble in the world. After an independent lunch on the grounds, you will drive back to the city for a visit to Kuznechny farmers’ market, where locals do their everyday shopping, which will be followed by a boat ride along rivers and canals (available May-September).