Top 10 Tour Attractions in St. Petersburg

There are many wonderful attractions and places to visit in St. Petersburg. With such high expectations St. Petersburg certainly delivers the magic and beauty of an open air museum waiting for you to discover. Here you can find more information about the 3rd largest city in Europe.

With so many historical treasures it can be difficult to decide what are some of the must-see attractions in St. Petersburg. To help with this decision I present to the reader my top 10 attractions in St. Petersburg:

1. Hermitage – One of the largest and oldest museums in the world, the Hermitage contains a collection of over 3 million items. If you tried to spend a full minute viewing every piece of art in the Hermitage, it would take you nine years to make your way through the museum.

2. Peterhof – Nicknamed the “Russian Versailles” Peterhof is a  shining star of Russian beauty, a town of parks, palaces and fountains which is very often compared with French Versailles. Walking through the park you will find many amazing and curious looking fountains.

3. Peter and Paul Fortress – Peter the Great built this fortress as the first structure in St. Petersburg and includes a cathedral, mint, and prison. The fortress is a historical treasure and a beacon of Russian history.

4. Church of “Our Saviour on the Spilt Blood” – The church was erected on the location of assassination (on the 1st of March in 1881) of Russian Tsar Alexander II. The church sits at on the Moika canal with a view to Nevsky Prospect.

5. St Isaac’s Cathedral – The Cathedral is the third tallest cupola construction in the world. And served as a model for White House in Washington. Nearly 100 kilograms of pure gold were used to gild the dome alone, and the manner in which the solid marble columns were erected is considered a modern engineering marvel.

6. Catherine Palace (featuring the Amber Room) – One of the most popular tourist destinations in St. Petersburg, Catherine Palace was originally constructed for Catherine I in 1718. The palace includes the famous Amber room, which is one of the mysteries and majestic treasures of Russia and a must-see attraction.

7. Grand Choral Synagogue – The Grand Choral Synagogue of St. Petersburg is the 2nd largest synagogue in Europe and has an interesting history. It represents the perseverance of the Jewish community of St. Petersburg to have their own place of worship (and a beautiful one at that).

8. Pavlovsk – The former summer residence of the Russian Emperor Paul the First and his family. The residence includes Pavlovsk Park, which is one of the largest in Europe and covers an area of 600 ha.

9. Chamber of Curiosities (Kunstkamera) – This is the first museum in Russia and it contains a collection of almost 2,000,000 items. The museum houses a collection of natural and human oddities and was initially created to enlighten the Russian people dispel the belief in monsters.

10. Russian Museum – The Russian Museum contains the world’s largest collection of Russian art. The museum houses 400,000 exhibits from the 10th century to today.

Brian Schweitzer, the author of the “Top 10 tour attractions in St. Petersburg” is an internet marketing consultant , a world traveller, and recommends TJ Travel, a fully authorized and licensed tourist company offering a selection of city tours and shore excursions in St. Petersburg.