When planning your trip to St. Petersburg, allow a few days to explore the surroundings. What to see in the Leningrad Region? Palaces and castles, lakes and canals, fortresses and museums - you can create a varied route in which there is a place for both historical buildings and natural monuments.
The best time to travel around the outskirts of St. Petersburg is late spring and summer, when precipitation is less likely, thermometers confidently reach + 23 ° С - + 25 ° С, and the day lasts a long time.
TOP-15 sights of the Leningrad region
Vyborg castle
The oldest fortification in the city, Vyborg Castle was erected in the 13th century on an island in the Gulf of Finland. It is perfectly preserved and is a monument of medieval military architecture. The castle was founded by the Swedes during the Third Crusade to the Karelian lands. For many years, the watch tower of the Vyborg Castle was considered the tallest such structure in Scandinavia.
Today the State Museum "Vyborg Castle" is open in the fortress.
To get there: buses from the metro "Parnas" and "Devyatkino" or the train from the Finland Station in St. Petersburg.
Ticket price: 30 rubles.
Lake Onega
The second largest freshwater reservoir in Europe after Lake Ladoga, Lake Onega serves as a transport artery for tourist ships departing from Petrozavodsk to Kizhi. At the end of July, the Onega sailing regatta is traditionally held on the lake - the largest competition among cruising yachts in Russia.
Tourists who come to rest on Lake Onega are also interested in fishing. Vendace and smelt, pike perch and burbot are found in the waters of the lake.
On the shore of the lake you will find the most important sights of the Russian north - monuments of wooden architecture and petroglyphs dating back to the 2nd-4th millennia BC.
Great Gatchina Palace
A favorite vacation spot for the royal family, the Gatchina Palace was built in the 18th century by Antonio Rinaldi. Its architecture traces the features of a medieval hunting castle, and in the design of the interiors, molding and gilding, draperies and tapestries, piece parquet of precious woods and crystal were used.
A museum has been opened in the Great Gatchina Palace, where special events for children and adults are held. You can take part in training sessions or quizzes.
To get there: from St. Petersburg by car along the Kiev highway or by train from the Baltic station, or by bus N431 from the Moskovskaya metro station.
Ticket price: from 350 rubles.
Priory Palace
The original small palace in Gatchina was built at the end of the 18th century in the style of Russian architecture. The structure slightly resembles a medieval castle, and its location on the shores of the Black Lake gives the impression that the palace is floating above the water. The peculiarity of the project is the absence of symmetry and the use of earth-bit technology in the construction. The Priory is the only building of this kind that has survived in Russia.
In the museum, which has opened in the palace, you will be told the history of the Order of Malta, for whose knights the Priory was built.
To get there: from St. Petersburg, take a train from the Baltiysky railway station to the Gatchina Baltiyskaya station or the N431 bus from the Moskovskaya metro station.
Ticket price: 350 rubles.
Mon Repos
Mon Repos Park on the shores of Zashchitnaya Bay near Vyborg is of undoubted interest both for lovers of beautiful landscapes and for those who are not indifferent to the history of Russia. An architectural and natural museum-reserve has been opened on the territory of the park.
The first work in the park began in 1760 by the commandant of the Vyborg Fortress, and Mon Repos flourished at the beginning of the 19th century, when the estate was acquired by the president of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences, Ludwig Nikolai.
- In Mon Repos, you can look at the park gates and Chinese bridges, a pavilion and a tea gazebo, a manor house and residential outhouses.
- The park hosts the annual "Door to Summer" festival, which is attended by representatives of various styles - bards, rockers and musicians playing folk and reggae.
To get there: from St. Petersburg buses from the metro "Parnas" and "Devyatkino" or the train from the Finland Station.
Ticket price: 100 rubles.
Nut
The ancient fortress Oreshek was built at the beginning of the 14th century at the source of the Neva on Orekhovy Island. It has the shape of a triangle on the plan with five watchtowers along the perimeter. The fortress was founded by the grandson of Alexander Nevsky, and it has withstood enemy sieges more than once. In Oreshka, which served as a prison in the 18th century, the wife of Peter I, Evdokia Lopukhina, was imprisoned, and then some of the Decembrists. During the Great Patriotic War, the fortress was defended by a garrison of sailors, who for 500 days did not allow the Nazis to close the blockade ring and cut the Road of Life.
How to get there: From St. Petersburg, from the Ulitsa Dybenko metro station, take a bus N575 to Shlisselburg or a train from Finlyandsky railway station to Petrokrepost station. Then ferry by motor ship to about. Walnut.
Ticket price: 200 rubles, ferries to the island - 250 rubles.
Korela
The stone fortress in Priozersk was first mentioned in written documents at the end of the 13th century. She played a significant role in the history of the Karelian Isthmus. Today a local history museum has been opened on its territory.
The most extreme in the north-west of Russia in the Middle Ages, the city of Korela was of great strategic importance and the fortress was built to protect against Swedish raids.
To get there: From St. Petersburg by train from Finland Station to the Priozersk station, by bus N859 from the Devyatkino metro station.
Ticket price: 100 rubles.
Alexander-Svirsky monastery
An Orthodox monastery in the Leningrad region was founded in the 15th century. In the monastery you can look at several architectural monuments of the 16th-18th centuries. Many religious relics are kept on the territory of the monastery, including the relics of St. Alexander Svirsky and a copy of the Turin shroud.
The monastery was founded by saint Alexander Svirsky, famous for many miracles, among the settlements of pagans.
The nearest town to the monastery is located 20 km away and is called Lodeynoye Pole.
To get there: from St. Petersburg by car along the M18 highway or by intercity bus.
Church of the Intercession
You can see the restored copy of the Intercession Church, which has existed since 1708, in the Nevsky Forest Park of the Vsevolozhsky District. The former temple was the brightest monument of wooden architecture, and its resemblance to the famous Church of the Transfiguration in Kizhi suggests that both structures are the work of the same craftsmen.
At the base of the restored temple, stones were installed from the foundation of the burnt one. The height of the church is 19 meters and its dome is decorated with 25 chapters.
The altar Gospel, printed by decree of Peter I, and several icons, especially revered in these places, were handed over to the temple.
To get there: from St. Petersburg buses N476 and K-476 from the station. metro station "Lomonosovskaya". Stop "Nevsky Lesopark".
Vyborg Clock Tower
The former cathedral bell tower in Vyborg, the clock tower is clearly visible from many points of the city. Its construction dates back to the 15th century, and the tower received its present appearance at the end of the 18th century after reconstruction.
The clock mechanism is still in good condition and, despite the unpresentable appearance of the structure, the clock on it faithfully serves the residents of Vyborg.
Broken ring
The memorial on the western shore of Lake Ladoga symbolizes the Road of Life, along which food was delivered to the city during the blockade of Leningrad, and people were evacuated from it. At the foot of the memorial, the Eternal Flame was lit, delivered from the Piskarevsky cemetery.
To get there: by car along the A128 road to the village. Kokkarevo (approx. 40 km).
Yalkala
Historical and ethnographic museum-reserve "Yalkala" once told about several days in the life of the leader of the world proletariat spent here underground, and today the theme of the exposition is the life of the indigenous population of the Karelian Isthmus.
The surroundings of "Yalkala" will appeal to those who like hiking. The shores of the Big Simaginsky Lake are very picturesque, and the relict lake ridge is listed in the Red Book of Nature.
Stationmaster's House
The Literary Museum was created according to the pages of Pushkin's story "The Station Keeper". Art critics were also guided by archival documents preserved in the old building of the Vyr post office, where the poet stayed more than once.
An interesting feature of the museum is the ability to send mail, marked with a special postmark.
What to see: the atmosphere typical for the workers of postal stations of the Pushkin era.
Old Town Hall Square
The oldest of the Vyborg squares is connected by a stone bridge with Petrovskaya Square. It appeared in the XIV century and served as the main gathering place for the townspeople. On the square of the Old Town Hall, the decree of the Swedish king on the establishment of the city of Vyborg was solemnly read out.
You will find many interesting monuments and architectural sights on the square:
- The guardhouse building from 1776, designed by the architect Speckle.
- Borchardt's merchant house, where the famous navigator Vitus Bering lived for some time and Empress Catherine II stayed for the night.
- The building of the town hall, which now houses the historical and ethnographic museum.
- Allegorical female statues, symbolizing industry and maritime trade, installed in the second half of the 19th century on the site of the city gate.
Burgher's estate
A medieval architectural monument in the center of old Vyborg gives an idea of the life and life of wealthy citizens in the period of the XVI-XVII centuries.
The walls of the building are made of boulders, its first floor was occupied by a workshop or warehouse, and above there were living quarters.
The interiors have vaulted ceilings, a fireplace, and a weather vane on the roof. The manor houses a tourist center and a small museum exhibition.
