Two-day all-inclusive tour of St. Petersburg
|
PRICE
UPON
REQUEST
|
Offering an action-packed 48 hours in St. Petersburg, this itinerary is designed for cruise ship passengers, but is equally suitable for all travelers who have only limited time in the city and want to see as much as possible of St. Petersburg and its surroundings.
As well as the main visitor attractions of the historic downtown – the State Hermitage Museum and the Peter and Paul Fortress among them – this tour takes in the two most famous suburban Imperial estates at Peterhof and Tsarskoye Selo. Other highlights include a hydrofoil trip across the Gulf of Finland and a sightseeing cruise of St. Petersburg's central rivers and canals. This intensive itinerary provides two very full days of sightseeing, but finishes early enough to allow time for visits to the ballet or other evening entertainments, which can be booked separately.
Itinerary
Day 1| 8:00am – 10:00am |
City bus tour
This introductory guided tour takes in the main landmarks of St. Petersburg's historic center, including the Peter and Paul Fortress, the Winter Palace, Nevsky Prospekt and St. Isaac's Cathedral. During the tour, your guide will provide an overview of St. Petersburg's three-century history, including its political, cultural and architectural development. This tour can be made longer or shorter depending on the time you wish to start.
|
|---|---|
| 10:00am – 10:30am |
Hydrofoil trip to Peterhof
The most spectacular (and the quickest) way to reach Peter the Great's summer residence at Peterhof is by hydrofoil across the Gulf of Finland, departing from the embankment in front of the Winter Palace and taking you directly to the Lower Park at Peterhof.
|
| 10:30am – 12:00pm |
The parks at Peterhof
The first of the grand Imperial residences in St. Petersburg's suburbs, Peterhof was founded by Peter the Great and embellished by his descendants to create one of the world's most magnificent residential estates. You arrive at Peterhof just in time to see the world-famous fountains being turned on for the day, and then tour the exceptional landscaped gardens with their beautiful pavilions and small palaces.
|
| 12:00pm – 1:00pm | Traditional Russian lunch |
| 1:00pm – 2:00pm |
Transfer to Tsarskoye Selo (Pushkin)
After having lunch at Peterhof, the group travels by bus to the town of Pushkin, famous for the Tsarskoye Selo palace and park.
|
| 2:00pm – 3:30pm |
Tour of the Catherine Palace
The grand rococo Catherine Palace at Tsarskoye Selo is almost as famous as the Winter Palace, designed by the same architect, Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli, for Empress Elizabeth, and expanded and adapted by Catherine the Great, who used it as her main summer residence. Of particular note is the celebrated Amber Room, an extraordinarily ornate chamber originally gifted to Peter the Great by King Frederick William I of Prussia.
|
| 3:30pm – 4:30pm |
Return to St. Petersburg with tour of the metro
On the journey back to the city center, the group will take a brief tour of the Saint Petersburg Metro, the deepest underground railway in the world. One of the greatest urban developments of the Soviet era, it is famous for its beautiful marble-clad stations and dizzyingly long escalators.
|
| 4:30pm – 5:00pm |
Visit to St. Isaac's Cathedral
St. Petersburg's largest church, St. Isaac's Cathedral was the life's work of the French-born architect Auguste de Montferrand. Its monumental red granite neoclassical facades are matched by the richly decorated interiors, worked on by the most prominent Russian artists and craftsmen of the day and executed using gemstones and minerals brought from every part of the Russian Empire.
|
| 5:30pm – 6:00pm |
Visit to the Church of Our Saviour on the Spilled Blood
The final stop in the day's itinerary, the Church of the Resurrection of Christ (popularly known as the "Saviour on the Spilled Blood") was built to mark the assassination of Tsar Alexander II by anarchist terrorists. Its riotously colorful Russian Revival architecture, reminiscent of St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow, make it one of St. Petersburg's most popular and instantly recognizable landmarks.
|
| 8:30am – 9:30am |
Canal tour
This hour-long boat trip along the central rivers and canals of St. Petersburg is a great way to see the city from a different perspective, including the palace-lined embankments of the Moyka and Fontanka Rivers and the famous bascule bridges across the Neva River, as well as new vistas on the Winter Palace and the Peter and Paul Fortress.
|
|---|---|
| 9:45am – 12:00pm |
Visit to the State Hermitage Museum
The Hermitage is one of the world's great repositories of art and cultural artifacts, and this two-hour tour can only scrape the surface of its vast collections. Nonetheless, it gives visitors the chance to view the spectacularly ornate state rooms of the Winter Palace and the highlights of the collection of Western European art, including masterpieces by Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Rubens, Rembrandt, Caravaggio and Poussin, to name but a few.
|
| 12:30pm – 1:15pm | Traditional Russian lunch |
| 1:30pm – 2:30pm |
Peter and Paul Fortress tour
The Peter and Paul Fortress was the first construction project of Peter the Great's new city, and it has played a vital role throughout St. Petersburg's three-century history. The tour takes in the fortress's impressive defenses, it's infamous prison, and the landmark Ss. Peter and Paul Cathedral, the burial place of nearl all the Romanov Tsars and their families.
|
| 3:00pm – 4:30pm |
Visit to the Yusupov Palace on the Moyka
The Yusupov Palace on the Moyka River was home to two of Imperial Russia's most powerful noble families in the 18th and 19th centuries. Unspectacular from the outside, it boasts some of the best preserved palatial interiors in St. Petersburg, but is probably most famous as the site of the assassination of Rasputin, which is the subject of a perennially popular display in the palace's basement.
|
NB This itinerary is designed for summer visits (May to October) and may not be available on every day of the week, depending on visitor attraction opening schedules.
Itinerary and route details
Tour start point
At the passenger sea port for cruise passengers, at hotel or by agreement for all other travelers.
Tour finish point
General Staff Building
Length of tour
10 hours (Day 1) and 9 hours (Day 2)
Approximate schedule
| Day 1 | |
| 8:00am – 10:00am | City bus tour |
| 10:00am – 10:30am | Hydrofoil trip to Peterhof |
| 10:30am – 12:00pm | The parks at Peterhof |
| 12:00pm – 1:00pm | Traditional Russian lunch |
| 1:00pm – 2:00pm | Transfer to Tsarskoye Selo (Pushkin) |
| 2:00pm – 3:30pm | Tour of the Catherine Palace |
| 3:30pm – 4:30pm | Return to St. Petersburg with tour of the metro |
| 4:30pm – 5:00pm | Visit to St. Isaac's Cathedral |
| 5:30pm – 6:00pm | Visit to the Church of Our Saviour on the Spilled Blood |
| Day 2 | |
| 8:30am – 9:30am | Canal tour |
| 9:45am – 12:00pm | Visit to the State Hermitage Museum |
| 12:30pm – 1:15pm | Traditional Russian lunch |
| 1:30pm – 2:30pm | Peter and Paul Fortress tour |
| 3:00pm – 4:30pm | Visit to the Yusupov Palace on the Moyka |
Days on which tour is available
Daily in summer (May to October), itinerary may vary depending on the days of the week.
Attractions visited during tour
- Peterhof
- Tsarskoye Selo
- St. Petersburg Metro
- St. Isaac’s Cathedral
- Church of Our Saviour on the Spilled Blood
- Peter and Paul Fortress
- State Hermitage Museum
- Yusupov Palace on the Moyka River
Extra options (free)
None
Extra options (paid)
None
Languages tour is available in
English, Spanish, German, French.
Transport
Bus/minibus/car, hydrofoil, metro, boat.
Breaks for meals/refreshments
A break for lunch is included in the itinerary. Choice of restaurant or café can be arranged with guide during tour or in advance.
Travelers
Who is the tour for?
Russian citizens, foreign tourists, cruise ship passengers.
Physical intensity of tour and health restrictions
This is an intensive tour that requires long periods of standing and walking through museums and palaces. If you have mobility issues or are a wheelchair user, this tour can be adapted for your requirements, but the itinerary may undergo significant changes.
Minimum recommended age for children
14 years
Payment
Included in tour price
- Admissions tickets
- Guide services
Not included in tour price
- Lunch
Further information
Important information
This is a very intensive two-day tour designed for travelers who wish to pack as much as possible into a short time in St. Petersburg.
Main tour highlights
This intensive tour covers nearly all the most famous and popular visitor attractions St. Petersburg and its suburbs have to offer, including the Hermitage, the Imperial palaces at Peterhof and Tsarskoye Selo, and the Peter and Paul Fortress.
