Nearest metro: Petrogradskaya
The Amsterdam Hotel has a riverside location in the northern part of the Petrograd Side, one of St. Petersburg's most attractive historic districts, a few minutes' walk from Petrogradksaya Metro Station.From Petrogradskaya, it is only two stops south to Nevsky Prospekt Metro Station, making nearly all of St. Petersburg's major visitor attractions - including the Hermitage, the State Russian Museum, the Church of Our Saviour on the Spilled Blood, and Kazan and St. Isaac's Cathedrals - easily accessible from the hotel in a little over 20 minutes.
Moskovsky Station is only one metro stop on from Nevsky Prospekt, and can be reached by taxi in around 20 minutes. Vitebsky Station is only slightly further away, while Ladozhsky Station is situated in the eastern outskirts of the city, and the journey to/from the hotel will take 30-40 minutes depending on traffic conditions.
Pulkovo-2 International Airport is around 23km from the Amsterdam Hotel. The journey by taxi will take at least 40 minutes, and longer at peak times. Pulkovo-1, the domestic terminal, is a further 2km away from the city.
Local Sightseeing
By taking the metro one stop south from Petrogradksaya to Gorkovskaya, guests will find themselves within a few minutes' walk of the Peter and Paul Fortress, the oldest building in St. Petersburg. Founded as a fortress, it was never actually fought over, but was used most notoriously as a political prison. Its spectacular Cathedral of Ss. Peter and Paul, with its distinctive golden spire, is also the burial site for nearly all of the Romanov Tsars. The fortress also contains several interesting museums related to its diverse history. Nearby are the Museum of Artillery and the Leningrad Zoo.In the immediate vicinity of the hotel, Aptekarsky Island, which was once the site of the Apothecary's Gardens founded by Peter the Great and is still home to St. Petersburg's Botanical Garden, leads to a chain of islands - the Kirov Islands - which have been used by the citizens of St. Petersburg for rest and relaxation for centuries. The closest, Kamenniy Island, was once a royal residence and then the site of the suburban homes of the city's most prominent citizens. Its leafy, overgrown avenues are lined with scores of beautiful villas displaying well over a century of varied architectural styles. The island is a charming place to stroll in the summer, even though the impressive Kamennoostrovsky Palace is not open to the public. The neighboring neo-gothic Church of John the Baptist is also worth seeking out.
Yelagin Island is more popular with visitors, thanks to its almost completely unspoilt (although again overgrown) parkland and Carlo Rossi's beautiful Yelagin Palace, built on the orders of Alexander I for his mother, Maria Fyodorovna. Krestovsky Island, the furthest of the three, is only really worth visiting for guests with small children - as well as modern elite housing developments and two sports stadiums, it is home to the city's largest amusement park and to the dolphinarium.
