Saint Petersburg
Travel Guide

Europe - Russian Federation - Saint Petersburg

Saint Petersburg is the second biggest city in Russia and one of the cities with a highest cultural heritage in the country. It is located in the delta of the Neva river. The water is more than the 10% of the city, which explains why many people call it the Northern Venice, because it has several water canals, islands and bridges. Named as the Leningrad in 1924 in honour to Lenin, the city took back its original name... which refers to the apostle Saint Peter in 1991.Probably the biggest attractive of this huge city is all the number of magnificent buildings, palaces and streets that is has, most of them heritage from the ancient tsars who transformed this city into one of the most beautiful in the world. Saint Petersburg has survived wars, various political systems and hard times for the population, but the city has kept the same through the years. Very cold one in the winter, but with the white nights in the summer, when the sun never goes down, the city is like an open air museum which is definetely worth to be admired and explored.

You need to be registered in Bautrip in order to save or like an article.
Join us!
Are you a member of Bautrip?
Log in

Saint Petersburg Overview

Language

The official language in Russia is the Russian. In Saint Petersburg many signs are written in English, but probably not a lot of people will understand and speak English very well, just in the touristic sites.

Weather

Saint Petersburg has a quiet template and wet climate even it is a nordic city. The climate is considered between maritime and continental, with temperatures over the 0 ºC most of the year thanks to the Atlantic winds. During the winter, most of the days are gray and cloudy and usually the houses are covered with the whitest snow. The canals and the river freeze and you will see people walking on them. The avarage temperature in this period is of -5ºC. Spring an Autumn are some quiet beautiful periods in this city. In Autumn the liefes cover squares and streets and in the Spring you can enjoy ofthe amazing views of the Neva river. But without any doubt, the best and most famous moment of the year to go to this city is in the Summer, thanks to the famous White Nights. This phenomenom happens to the cities which are near the polar circles, in which then the sun stays on the horizon around 19 hours a day and it is never completely dark. The avarage temperature in the Summer is of 18ºC.

Money

Rouble (RUB). In all shops, restaurants, museums etc… you won’t have any problem to pay by card (credit or debit), even in some street markets or touristic shops they accept euros and dollars. To exchange the currency you will find banks and currency exchange offices almost everywhere in the city, in the airports and even in some hotels.

When to go

Both for the climate and the high quantity of activities which you can do, the best moment to visit Saint Petersburg is between May and September, so basically in the Summer. Temperatures are very pleasent, it is not cold and the daya are very long thanks to the white nights. Also, during this moment of the year you can enjoy of a cruise throughout the canals. The only bad thing is maybe that it is the moment that the city receives more tourists, so the prices are also higher than the rest of the year.

Days

3-4 days. If you want to do like an express trip you can even visit the city in 2 days, but if you really want to understand the culture and essence of the Russian city you will have to stay at least 4 days. As we said, the city is like an open air museum and there are many must-see attractions to discover, not just in the city, also in the surroundings.

Surroundings

Lake Ladoga
Helsinki (Finland)
Tallinn (Estonia)

Store Hours

Most of the shops open every day of the week from 10h to 20h. Some groceries open 24/7, and the markets and street markets open also every day, but some may close on Mondays.