The printing museum was built in 1905. It is an old printing house and is devoted to the history of printing in St Petersburg at the beginning of the 20th century. Collections include copies of newspapers and magazines, restored interiors and printing equipment from the mid 19th century up to early 20th century. There are various exhibitions on particular subjects.

To get to the museum, you can take the metro. Take a train to the metro station 'Nevsky Prospect', take the exit to Griboedova Canal and walk down Nevsky Prospect. You can also take a taxi from the metro station.

Open: Monday, Thursday-Sunday (11.00 a.m to 5.00 p.m)

Tel: +7 812 312 0977

Address: 32 Reka Moika Embarkment (Naberezhnaya Reki Moiki)

Nevskiy Prospekt (Avenue) is the main thorough fare of St. Petersburg.It starts from Admiralty Prospekt and ends at the Alexander Nevskiy Square (a distance of about 4.5 kilometers). The avenue is about 26-60 meters wide. Old Nevsky Prospekt is the part between the square of Insurrection and the Alexander Nevsky square. Three rivers cross Nevskiy Prospekt namely the Moika, Fontanka and the Griboedov Canal.

Nevskiy prospekt appeared in 1710 as two roads in a boggy forest leading from the Admiralty and from the Alexander Nevskiy Monastery to the Old Novgorod highway. The part that led from the Admiralty was the main entrance to the city and was referred to as Big Prospekt. This was later renamed Neva Prospekt in the 1730s.

Today Nevskiy Prospekt can boast of magnificient architectural masterpieces and sculptural monuments which include

The Triumphal Staff of the General Staff The St. Peter Church (Lutheran) The House of Books Monument to Pushkin The Opera and Ballet theatre (named after Mussorgsky) The Mikhajlovskiy Palace The Temple of Christ's resurrection The Russian Ethnographical Museum The St. Ekaterina Church Armenian Church The Sheremetevskiy Palace The State Circus The Mikhaylovsky Castle The Stroganovskiy Palace The Cathedral of the Icon of Our Lord of Kazan The Duma The Bolshoy Gostiny Dvor The State Public Library (named after Saltykov-Shchedrin) The Alexandrinskiy theatre The Ekaterininskiy Public Garden Monument of Ekaterina II The Anichkov Palace The Zodchego Rossi Ulitsa. The Beloselskikh-Beloserskikh Palace The Anichkov bridge Simeona and the Anny Church The Spaso-Preobrazhenskiy Cathedral The Vladimirskaya Church Dostoevsky Memorial Museum Monument of Dostoevsky The Sheremetjevskiy Palace Monument of A.S Pushkin The Moskovskiy Railway station The Alexander Nevskiy Lavra (and its ensembles)

The Church of the Ressurection (Church of Our Saviour on the Spilled Blood) is a monument of Russian architecture and decorative art of the 19th century. The cathedral was designed by the architect A. Parland. It was modelled after St Basil's in Moscow. It was constructed between 1882 and 1907 on the spot where Tsar Alexander II was mortally wounded by a terrorist bomb.

The unique interior and exterior decorations of the Church include icons and panels made from majolica and mosaic. Most of the designs were made from drawings of leading Russian artists of the last century. There is also a permanent exhibition titled "Tsar Alexander II". One major decoration on one of the exterior domes is Leonardo Da Vinci's painting of the last supper in the "upper room".

To get to the museum, you can take a metro train to the "Nevsky Prospekt" station, take the exit to Griboedova Canal and walk down the Griboedova Canal Embarkment. The cathedral stands out distinct of all the buildings on the Embarkment.

Open: 11a.m-6p.m daily except wednesday.

Tel: +7 812 315 4361

Address: 2a Griboedova Canal Embarkment ("Nevsky Prospekt" subway station)

Located on Senate Square (Decembrist square), the Bronze Horseman is a monument to Emperor Peter the Great- founder of the city of St Petersburg.

The monument depicts a rider on a horse whose hind legs are trampling on a venomous snake. The famous statue is the work of the sculpture E. Falconet except for Peter's head (carved by his pupil M-A Collot) and the snake (carved by F. Gordeyev). A massive crag found near St Petersburg forms the pedestal of the monument: it weighs 1600 tonnes. The monument was unveiled in 1782.

The senate square is situated very close to the Admiralty on the Dvortsovaya Embarkment. The closest subway station (metro station) to the monument and the Senate square is Nevsky Prospect. At the metro station, take the Canal Griboyedova Embarkment exit.

To reach the monument, you can make a number of choices:

Walking: This is about the best way to reach the square if you really want to savour the beauty of Nevsky Prospekt. This will take about 10 to 15 minutes.

Taxi: This is the fastest way and would cost about 20 Roubles (about 70 cents).

Route taxis: Most of the route taxis that ply Nevsky Prospekt go to Senate Square. On an average this costs between 8 and 10 Roubles (about 35 cents).

Address: Senate square (Senatskaya Ploshchad)

This monastery was founded by Tsar Peter the Great in 1710 as "the Monastery of Holy Trinity and Grand Duke St. Alexander Nevskiy" some years after the founding of St Petersburg. The monastery (then called lavra) was built to commemorate the victory of Prince Alexander Nevskiy (Grand duke of Novgorod) over the Swedish troops in the Neva battle of 1240.

Construction of the stone monastery started in 1717. On 30 August 1724 the remains of St. Alexander Nevskiy were transferred to the church of the Annunciation at the orders of Peter the Great.

In 1797, the monastery was given the official title of "The Alexander Nevskiy Monastery of the Holy Trinity". At the turn of the century, there were six churches in the monastery complex, of which five are still surviving. The surviving churches are: Holy Trinity Cathedral built between 1776 and 1790 by architect J. Starov, the Church of the Anunciation built between 1717 and 1722 by architect D. Trezzini (A.V Suvorov was buried here.), St. Lazarus' Church, St. Nicholas Church, and the Church of the Holy Mother of God "the joy of mourners" which is over the monastery gates.

There are some cemetries located on the territory of the monastery. These include Lazaryevskoye Cemetry (Nekropol of the 18th century) and Tikhvinskoye Cemetry (Nekropol of the masters of arts). A lot of important people were buried here. These include the renowned scholar M. Lomonosov; architects A. Voronikhin, C. Rossi, A. Zakharov; composers M. Glinka, P. Tchaikovsky, M. Moussorgsky; and writers A. Ivanov, I. Kramskoi, I. Shishkin.

The nearest metro station to the monastery is 'Ploshchad Alexandra Nevskogo'. From the station walk down 'Prospekt Obuknovskoy Oborony', then turn right on Reka Monastyrka Embarkment.

Tel: +7 812 274 0409

Address: No. 1 Reka Monastyrka Embarkment

This monument was created by the sculptor K. Izenberg and unveiled in 1911. The monument commemorates the heroic exploits of two sailors from the torpedo boat "Steregushchy" during the Russian-Japanese War. Even when sorrounded by the enemy navy, the sailors still prefered death to captivity: they went down to the hold and scutled the ship.

The monument is about ten minutes walk from the "Gorkovskaya" subway station.

Address:Kamennostrovsky Prospekt

Used for ship-building unitl the 1860s, the building is now used home to the Naval Engeneering College.

This is a very special cathedral for the residents of St Petersburg. It was built between 1801 and 1811 to a design drawn by Voronikhin. The cathedral was built to house the miracle-working icon of Our Lady of Kazan (the icon is now kept in the Prince Vladimir Cathedral). Kazansky Cathedral was constructed in the shape of a Latin cross. The side facing Nevsky Prospect boasts a colonnade of 96 columns. Exhibitions are held here regularly according to the Orthodox church and the Ecclesiastical art.

It is very easy to get to the cathedral. Take a metro train to Nevsky Prospect, get up the elevator leading to Griboedova Canal. The building opposite the subway exit is the cathedral.

Tel: +7 812 311 0495

Address: 2 Kazanskaya square (Kazanskaya Ploshchad)

St. Nicholas Cathedral of the Epiphany otherwise known as "Sailor's Cathedral" was built as a church between 1753 and 1760. It became a Cathedral in 1941. The cathedral has a four-storey bell-tower to the west, which was built between 1756 and 1758. The cathedral contains some of the relics of St. Nicholas the miracle-worker, saviour of those dying at sea and the patron saint of sailors.

The cathedral can be reached from the metro station 'Sadovaya-Sennaya Ploshchad'. It might be necessary to use an autobus, trolley bus or tram car from the station.

Tel: +7 812 114 0862

Address: 1 Nikolskaya square (Nikolskaya Ploshchad)

Situated in the Summer Garden, the Summer Palace was erected on the banks of Fonanka River during 1710 to 1714.

The monument to Nicholas I is situated on Isaakievskaya Ploshchad (Isaac square). This particular monument was designed by A. Montferrand and unveiled on 25th June 1859. The horse and the Tsar were carved by P. Klodt, while the other figures, the weapons and the Imperial monograms are the works of R. Zaleman.

The enormous statue spans a length of six metres and is supported on only two points- the horse's hoofs. The pedestal is of marble and granite. The four seated female figures are supposed to resemble the wife and daughters of the Russian Emperor Nicholas I.

The statue's location is strategic. It can be reached from the subway station (metro station) Nevsky Prospekt. Take the exit to Canal Griboyedova Embarkment. You can walk if you are in the mood. Isaac square is about 10 to 15 minutes walk from the subway station. You may wish to use a Route taxi or bus from here. Taxis are also readily available.

Address:Isaakievskaya Ploshchad (Isaac square)

Located on Suvorovskaya Ploshchad (Suvorov Square), this monument was erected in 1818 on the approach to the Troitsky bridge. The heroic figure of the general carved to resemble Mars, the Roman god of war, is the handwork of the sculptor M. Kozlovsky. F. Gordeyev designed the bas-relief on the base, which represents the spirits of Glory and Peace.

To get to the monument, take a metro train to Gorkovskaya subway station (metro station). From here you can walk along Kamennostrovsky Prospekt to the Troitsky bridge. The monument is at the far end of the bridge.

This monument to the founder of the Soviet Union is situated on Ploshchad Lenina (Lenin square). Vladimir Lenin can best be referred to as the father and founder of the Soviet Union. He was at one time a student of the Saint Petersburg State University.

The monument to Lenin was erected on the square near the Finland Station in 1926. It is the work of the sculptor S. Yevseyev, architects V. Shchuko and V. Gelfreikh. It was on this square in 1917 that the communist leader made a speech immediately after his return to Russia from exile.

The monument is so super-imposing; you can see it as soon as you come out of the subway station (metro station) 'Ploshchad Lenina'. Take the exit to the Finland Train Station.

Address:Lenin Square (Ploshchad Lenina)

The museum displays everything from Balinese puppets to Inuit kayaks. There are sections covering Southeast Asia, the Antipodes and Melanesia as well as Africa and the Americas. In the round hall a selection of Tsar Peter's curiousities is being shown and fills vistiors with wonders and disgust: Siamese twins, a two-faced man and a two headed calf, followed by surgical and dental instruments and teeth pulled by the tsar himself, who was an ambitious amatuer dentist.

The Museum of Zoology was established in 1832 on the basis of the collection of the Kunstkamera. It has one of the finest collections in the world, with over one hundred thousand specimens including a set of stuffed animals that once belonged to Peter the Great. the most evocative display shows the discovery of a 44,000-year-old mammoth in the permafrost of Yakutia in 1903.

The closest subway stations are "Vasileoostrovkaya" and "Nevsky Prospekt". Recommended you take a route taxi or trolleybus. (about 10-20 minutes)

Tel: +7 812 328 0112

The St. Isaac's cathedral is Russia's biggest cathedral and one of the most beautiful cathedrals in the world. It is named in honour of St Isaac of Dalmatia, on whose day (30th May) Peter I was born .

The cathedral was built between 1818 and 1858 to a design made by the French architect Auguste Montferrand, who was commissioned to build the most spectacular church - a prime landmark of the Russian Imperial capital. Many leading artists and craftsmen of that time participated in the construction of this edifice. These include sculptors I. Vitalli and P. Klodt; painters K. Bryullov and F. Bruni, the bell-maker I. Stukolkin from Valdai and a host of others.

One hundred and eighty years after, the gilded dome of St. Isaac's still dominates the skyline of St. Petersburg. Although the cathedral is smaller than a newly rebuilt Church of Christ the Savior in Moscow, it has by far more inspirational facades and interiors.

St. Isaac cathedral has columns of Karelian granite and pediments with statues of the Apostles and the Evangelists. The cathedral is 101.5 metres high, and there is a marvelous view over St Petersburg from the colonnades.

The facades are decorated with sculptures and massive granite columns (made of single pieces of red granite), while the interiors dazzle the eye with mosaic icons, paintings and columns made of malachite and lapis lazuli. A large stained glass of "Resurrected Christ" located inside the main altar is truly fascinating. The church, designed to accommodate 14 thousand standing worshipers, was closed in the early 1930s and later re-opened as a museum. Nowadays, church services are held here only on major occasions like the Orthodox Easter celebrations.

St. Isaac's square is situated right in front of the cathedral, giving a wonderful view as if the square was a part of the cathedral.

To get to the cathedral you can make use of the metro. Take a train to the station 'Nevsky Prospect' or 'Gostiny Dvor'. The cathedral is located on Isaac square which is about 10-15 minutes walk from "Nevsky Prospekt" subway station.

Foreign visitors can buy their tickets at the right door of the southern facade (not at the ticket booth). We recommend that you also climb about 300 stairs to get a bird-eye view of St. Petersburg from the "Colonnade" observation point at the bottom of the dome.

Metro: Nevsky Prospekt/Gostiny Dvor

The Colonnade observation point is open on Thursday to Tuesday 11:00-18:00;last admission at 17:00; closed on Wednesdays.

The Central Naval museum is one of the largest naval museums in the world. It was established in 1709. Museum's exhibitions include items related to the history of the Russian fleet, and the traditions of Russian sailors. The museum stores over 800,000 exhibits which include 2,000 ship models, over 3,500 banners, over 7,000 items of arms, weapons and military facilities. There are also about 2,000 paintings. Peter the Great's boat is a unique part of the Museum's exhibition.

The museum is located close to the Dvorsovvy bridge (about ten minutes walk from Palace square). Closest metro station is "Nevsky Prospekt".

Tel: +7 812 328 2502

Address: No. 4 Birzhevaya Ploshchad

The Aurora Cruiser was founded in 1897 and launched in 1900. It is named after the Aurora frigate that defended Petropavlovsk on Kamchatka during the Russia-Japan war of 1853-56. The cruiser also took part in the Tsunima. The cruiser became the monument of the October Revolution on November 17 1948. Today it is a part of the Navy Museum.

Aurora is located on the Petrogradskaya Embarkment of the Bolshaya Nevka River .

Open: Daily from 10.30 a.m to 4 p.m except Mondays and Fridays

Tel: +7 812 230 8440

Address: No. 3 Petrogradskaya Embarkment (subway station "Gorkovskaya")

The State Hermitage is the world's second largest museum (only the Louvre in France is bigger). Situated in the city center, the museum is one of the most popular tourist attractions in St Petersburg. The colourful green and white paint combination of the Winter palace is done in Russian baroque style, such that it becomes very difficult not to fall in love with The Hermitage at first sight. The museum is situated on Dvortsovaya Embarkment (Dvortsovaya Naberezhnaya); few metres away from the Dvortsovaya bridge- one of the oldest and most beautiful bridges in St Petersburg.

The State Hermitage comprises five buildings: The Winter Palace (built by B. Rastrelli between 1754 and 1762), the Small Hermitage (built by V. de la Mothe in 1775), the Old Hermitage (built by Y. Felten between 1775 and 1787), the Hermitage Theatre (built by G. Quarenghi between 1783 and 1787) and the New Hermitage (built by L. Klenze between 1839 and 1852). All the buildings are interconnected by passages in the form of arches, covered brigdes and a hanging garden. The museum opened to the public at the end of the 19th century.

The museum comprises eight departments some of which include:

i. The Antiquities department, which contains a collection of monuments of the culture and art of Ancient Greece and Rome. Popular works here include the statue of Venus- the goddess of love and beauty and the statue of Gonzaga Cameo who was executed in Alexandria in the 3rd B.C.

ii. The department of West-European art which represents a collection of world famous paintings, sculptures, drawings, engraving and objects of applied art. There are masterpieces of Leonardo Da Vinci, Paohael, Rembrandt, Rubens, Titian, El Greco, A. Van Eyck and other great artists. French paintings and culture of the 15-20th centuries occupy two floors. There are works of Poussin, Chardin, Watteau, Fragnard, Falconet and Picasso.

iii. The department of the History of Primitive Culture, which shows the develpoment of the primitive cultures on the territory of the former USSR from the beginning of the stone age to the formation of the states.

iv. The Oriental department, which was founded in 1921. The largest exhibition is the culture and art of the peoples of Central Asia.

v. The department of the History of Russian Culture, which was set up in 1941. The exhibition illustrates very fully the important stages of the history of Russian culture and life.

The museum's collection now numbers more than three million items which include paintings, graphic arts, sculptures, applied art, coins, and archeaological discoveries. There are 350 halls in the museum. The museum keeps 15,000 paintings, 12,000 sculptures, 600,000 drawings, over 600,000 thousand monuments of archeology, over 1,000,000 coins and medals, and 4,224,000 thousand items of applied arts. Admission into the museum costs 250 Roubles (approx. 9USD) For students with student I.D cards, admission is free. To get to the museum: Using the metro: Take any train to the subway station "Nevsky Prospekt". Take the exit that leads to Griboedova Canal. The Museum is about twenty minutes walk from here. You may take a taxi, autobus, or trolleybus.

Museum Open: Tue-Sat (10.30a.m-6.00p.m) Sun (10.30a.m-5.00p.m)

Website: http://www.hermitage.ru