Tourist Attractions in Saint Petersburg

Both of these walks begin at the romantic heart of the city—Palace Square. It's a majestic setting, lying between the magnificence of the Winter Palace and the pale yellow sweep of the General Staff building. Not more than five minutes away lies the thriving commercial street Nevskii Prospekt, while beyond the Winter Palace lies a panoramic vista across the Neva river.

Tour One: Nevskii Prospekt and Environs

Nevskii Prospekt is St Petersburg's main street, stretching for more than four kilometres from the Admiralty across the arc formed by the Neva within the city. It is St Petersburg's busiest thoroughfare, with a history almost as old as the city itself. After the foundation of St Petersburg in 1703, shipyard carts carried all manner of materials along the Novgorod road tо the shipyards at the Neva. The original thoroughfares were not intended for heavy traffic and so a decision was eventually taken tо carve out a main road through 4km of marsh, meadow and forest, enabling easy movement from the Novgorod road tо the Admiralty on the Neva. By the mid-18th century this thoroughfare had already become the city's main street and commercial centre, and many cathedrals, palaces, mansions and public buildings were erected along it. From Palace Square you can slip on to Nevskii Prospekt along the Moika canal. Look out for the newly renovated Kapella building just over the canal off the square and the popular ex-pat hangout City Bar tucked away in the same courtyard. Having reached Nevskii Prospekt, you can see the 18th-century Stroganov Palace (1753-1754) on the opposite side of the street. This is an elaborate but rather jaded creation of the Italian architect Rastrelli. A little further up the road (again on the south side) stands Kazan Cathedral, designed and erected in 1801-1811 by the architect Andrei Voronikhin. The cathedral with its semi-circular Corinthian colonnade comprising of 96 thirteen-metre high columns is the dominant feature in one of the most elegant areas of the city. Opposite Kazan Cathedral stands the city's major book store Dom Knigi, a building with a polished granite façade, crowned with a globe atop a glass tower. Built in 1907, before the Revolution this building belonged to the Singer Sewing-Machine Company.

Stretching away from Kazan Cathedral on the other side of the street is Kanal Griboedova, at the visible end of which stands the Saviour on Spilled Blood Cathedral and Museum, an elaborate and colourful domed building erected on the site where Alexander II was assassinated by members of the revolutionary terrorist organization 'People's Will' on March 1st, 1881. Kanal Griboedova also plays host to a number of cafés and restaurants—try out Laima Bistro for some Russian fast food.

Having swept round the back of the Saviour on Spilled Blood Cathedral, take your first left along Inzhenernaia Ulitsa and you'll reach Arts Square. Designed by architect Carlo Rossi, it's an elegant area surrounded by a cornucopia of cultural attractions—three museums and three theatres, including the famous Russian Museum, the Apartment-museum of the poet Blok, the Mussorgsky Opera and Ballet House and the St Petersburg Philharmonia. Each owner of a plot of land on the square had the right to build a house of his own choice, but only on the condition that the façade overlooking the street or the square conformed to Rossi's standard project. In 1957, a statue of Pushkin was erected in the centre of the square's public garden.

From here you can nip back onto Nevskii Prospekt via Mikhailovskaia Ulitsa, with the prestigious (and expensive) Grand Hotel Europe appearing on your right-hand side. At this point you emerge onto the bustling heart of Nevskii. Across the road stands the vast shopping complex that is Gostinyi Dvor, a two-storied colonnaded quadrangle built by architect Jean-Baptiste Vallin de la Mothe from 1761 to 1785. Opposite Gostinyi Dvor is another of the largest and most famous department stores in the city: Passazh (meaning 'passage' or 'arcade').

Walking along the southern side of the street (you can cross via several underground passages at this point), continue along Nevskii and on the right you'll come across Ostrovskii Square, in the centre of which stands a Monument to Catherine The Great built in 1973. She is shown in an ermine robe, holding a scepter, and surrounded by her associates at the foot of the high granite pedestal. Further along Nevskii, past the Anichkov Palace and colonnaded Kabinet building of Alexander I, you'll come to the elegant Anichkov Bridge spanning a broad sweep of the Fontanka canal. If you fancy stopping for a bite to eat, there's two options nearby. The restaurant/bar Propaganda lies just off Nevskii to the north along the far side of the Fontanka.

Tour Two: Southwest of Palace Square

Crossing the busy main road from Palace Square takes you to the park in front of the Admiralty. Initially a major shipyard and as such one of the city's most important locations in Peter's time, the Admiralty was reconstructed between 1806-1823 by Zacharov as a development of the earlier building by Korobov. It had been remodelled earlier (between 1727-1738) whilst retaining the original layout. Its weather vane—topped by an elegant spire in the form of a ship—is one of the city's principal landmarks. The building today houses a Naval College and naval administrative offices.

Continuing through the gardens in front of the Admiralty and veering right beyond the end of the building, you'll eventually see the most famous statue in Russia, that of the Bronze Horseman, sitting on a granite obelisk weighing 600 tons, designed by Falconet and erected in 1782 on the orders of Catherine the Great. This statue is the symbol of Peter the Great. This is the first stop for newlyweds posing for photos after taking their vows—the statue is believed to bestow good luck on any marriage.

Away from the Neva behind the Bronze Horseman stands the gargantuan form of St Isaac's Cathedral, the third highest cathedral in the world. It was completed in 1858 after 40 years of construction. The granite and marble building is cruciform and the great golden dome is one of the earliest examples of the use of iron as a structural material.

On the other side of the cathedral lies St Isaac's Square, in the centre of which stands an impressive Monument to Nicholas I. Also here is the luxurious Astoria hotel, where Hitler had planned to hold celebrations after taking the city. On the opposite side of the square to the cathedral stands the Marinskii Palace, a building given as a somewhat generous birthday present from Nicholas I to his daughter.

Joining the Moika here, you can continue along its south side, where things get a little quieter. Look out for the Kafe Idiot, a popular haunt for tourists and new arrivals to the city and a good place to stop off for a decent (vegetarian) lunch.