Peterhof: Half-day tour

This four-hour tour of Peterhof, the magnificent palace and park originally founded by Peter the Great and widely acclaimed as the "Russian Versailles", is probably the most essential trip out-of-town that all travelers with any more than one day in St. Petersburg should consider taking.

Founded as the summer residence of Peter the Great, Peterhof was greatly expanded and further adorned by generations of his successors, but retains the mark of the great Tsar's personal tastes and proclivities. As well as the beautiful baroque Grand Palace, this whistle-stop tour will take in Peter's charming Monplaisir Palace, with interiors fully restored to the style of his day, as well as the highlights of the parks including the spectacular Grand Cascade and the numerous "joke" fountains in the Lower Park.

Outside the summer season, when the fountains are not operating, the tour will concentrate more heavily on Peter's time at Peterhof, with visits to the smaller Marly Palace and the Hermitage pavilion, both of which were built on his instruction to meet his requirements for entertaining. In summer, meanwhile, more time can be spent exploring the parkland and the numerous fountains. There is also the possibility during the navigation season (May to October) to visit Peterhof by hydrofoil, with services leaving from the pier in front of the Winter Palace and taking you across the Gulf of Finland direct to the Lower Park and back again.