Today we discover the rest of St Petersburg on a guided coach
tour. Surprisingly for such a large city, the vast metropolis of St
Petersburg was only developed about 300 years ago. The city
developed after a defensive garrison was constructed in order to
reduce the threat of Swedish attack.
After the St Peter and St Paul fortress was completed, the Tsar
decided to relocate the capital here, and the glorious new city was
built with an almost unlimited supply of money. The city was
completed in 1712, and further flourished under the reign of
Catherine the Great in the latter half of the 18th century, as she
financed some splendid architecture and the arts.
After the successful 1917 revolution, Lenin moved the capital
back to Moscow, and St Petersburg (now renamed Leningrad) was
largely neglected. Ironically, this did much to preserve it; the
city generally missed out on Soviet buildings and street planning.
When communism fell in 1991, St Petersburg regained its name, and
its wonderful historic centre was declared a UNESCO World Heritage
site.
Today this magnificent city, with its grand boulevards and open
squares, is a delight to explore - boasting a wealth of historic
monuments and celebrated cultural attractions. We explore these
attraction today of a tour which includes the Hermitage, or Winter
Palace, the Church of our Saviour of Spilled Blood, Nevsky
Prospect, St. Isaac's Square and the Peter and Paul Fortress, which
occupies a commanding position on an island in the Neva River. This
is followed by a visit to a vodka museum, where you can partake in
an authentic tasting for that real Russian flavour. After warming
your cockles with the local tipple, there's some time at leisure
before a final group dinner at a nearby St Petersburg
restaurant.
Includes