2 Day Saint Petersburg Highlights, Feel Like a Local (Visas Included)

Experience overview

St. Petersburg was the imperial capital for 2 centuries, founded in 1703 by Peter the Great, subject of the city's iconic "Bronze Horseman'' statue. Today, it remains Russia's cultural center with a multitude of iconic venues.Throughout this tour your local, knowledgeable guide will take you to some of the city's major attractions and landmarks as well as less celebrated areas that will give you a deeper understanding of the history and culture of this vibrant city. Your city tour will also include photo stops along the way for excellent opportunities to capture the many landmarks.Your excursion into St. Petersburg begins with a boat tour exploring rivers and channels of Northern Venice. Head to the Hermitage, a former residential Winter Palace of the Romanov rulers that today houses one of the world's most prestigious museums. You will explore the Palace and view artworks from the masters, including DaVinci and Rembrandt, hanging on the walls of the Hermitage display rooms.At Peterhof Fountain Gardens you will take a stroll around the park grounds dotted with fountains and charming pavilions. This place served as the summer residence for the Tsar and is reminiscent of France's Versailles. A walk down Nevsky Prospect, St. Petersburg's central avenue, is like a walk through the history books as you are flanked by the huge neoclassical Kazan Cathedral, the Art Nouveau Bookhouse, several 18th-century churches, a monument to Catherine the Great, the Russian National Library, the Anichkov Bridge with its horse statues, the Singer House and more.Stop for photos of the colorful onion domes on the Church of the Savior on the Spilled Blood, built on the site of the 1881 assassination (spilled blood) of Tsar Alexander II, then go inside to view colorful religious mosaics. You will also visit one of the landmarks of the city, the Elisseeff Emporium; this large retail and entertainment complex was constructed in 1903 for the ambitious Elisseev Brothers and is a must-see when in the city.During the tour you will take the infamous Subway whose stations are fondly referred to as the "palaces" of the Soviet Union. No visit to St. Petersburg would be complete without a visit to the downtown local market with its beautiful architecture, exotic atmosphere and colorful locals.This 2-day tour experience is the next best thing to living in St. Petersburg, Book now!Please Note: The order of sites visited can vary day by day based on traffic and can be substituted depending on availability. The tour duration is adjusted to fit your ship's time in port each day, for a total of approximately 20 hours of touring split between the two days..