ST. PETERSBURG
Elegant and exotic, St. Petersburg somehow feels familiar and far away at the same time. Set on the Gulf of Finland, Russia’s second city has a more relaxed, European flavor than anywhere else in the country—and its fluctuating name reflects the rebellious city’s turbulent history. Envisioned by Peter the Great as a ‘window into Europe’, St. Petersburg is a grand city of waterways and wide boulevards. Stacked with museums, galleries, soaring architecture and open squares, St. Petersburg is Russia at its most inviting and culturally eclectic. St. Petersburg is known for its astonishing white nights during summer, a period when the sun never truly sets, and the city revels in light for 24 hours a day and the sky glows like a work of art, as it shifts from blue to pink. While the city has a contemporary sheen—with lively bars and restaurants—the elegance of emperors’ palaces, mighty cathedrals and river walks lend a timeless grace. See the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood’s gloriously flamboyant, colorful onion domes, on the site where Emperor Alexander II was murdered. The Winter Palace is another landmark of this city, located on Palace Square, where seismic historical events have unfolded—including the Bloody Sunday massacre and October Revolution. Don’t forget to visit the Hermitage, the famous art museum, as you’ll always have three days to explore the city.
