Stay : St. Petersburg for a weekend

As soon as you arrive on Friday night. Immerse yourself in the atmosphere of St Petersburg through a boat walk on its canals. You don't need to be tired by walking after your trip: Let yourself be worn with the water, and enjoy the view. From the Ashnikov bridge on Nevski perspective, you will take one of the large covered boats that leave every 30 minutes. You can choose different routes, depending on the channel you want to borrow. But you choose to surf Griboyedov, Fontanka or Moika, you will stay in the historic center. You will thus be able, while passing through charming small bridges, to discover and even go through magnificent monuments - Kazan Cathedral, Saint Sauveur Church, to name but them! If weather conditions are there, the boat will be out on the Neva, and you will have a grandiose overview of the enlightened city.

Saturday morning. A good compromise between art, history and nature is available to you: the palaces. On that day, choose two of the most dazzling. To vary the pleasures, choose a summer residence and a main residence located in the city. For example, Petrodvorets and the Youssoupov Palace. From 9:30 a. m., take the hydrofoil to the main entrance of the Ermitage. After half an hour of navigation on the Gulf of Finland, you will accomodate at the foot of the Petrodvorets park which was the official date of the czars for two centuries. Inspired by Versailles, Pierre the Great wanted an equally grandiose architectural ensemble. Stroll through beautifully arranged gardens, discover the small private pavilions that hide there, as many treasures in nature, contemplate these stunt games to unequaled ingenuity... And within the palace open your eyes. The dance room, the baroque staircase, the throne room, are all elements that make up a fabulous décor. The Peterhof restaurant, near the western entrance of the lower garden, can be restored for a modest price. Then, back to the reverse hydrofoil.

Saturday afternoon. Come down from the hydrofoil, here you are facing the official Czars. Go to the palace square, literally gigantic, which allows to embrace the whole Ermitage of the eye. Observe these 500 meters of baroque and yet perfectly balanced architecture, as well as the column of Alexander, raised by Nicolas I to commemorate the reign of his predecessor. Join the banks of the Neva and turn left on Angliskaya Street, along the Admiralty, this fortress which has been an important shipyard. Turn left and reach Saint-Isaac Church, the most impressive religious monument in St Petersburg. Then join the Moïka towards the palace of Youspov. These large landowners were the largest family after the Romanov, and occupied very high positions in the administration. Immerse yourself in the intimacy of a lingering stay, follow the vast apartments, the bedrooms, the Moorish lounge, the stained glass room, the Turkish cabinet... Above all, relive the assassination of Rasputin, poisoned in these places.

Then take a typical Russian dinner at the Yat restaurant in the Naberezhnaya Reki Moyki Street, nab. Reki Moyki, 16. Finally, you can spend the evening in the Nikolaïevki Palace, located in the same neighborhood, where you will see a traditional dance show.

Sunday. It is impossible to stay in St Petersburg without strolling along the Nevski perspective, the city's largest artery. Take a morning to walk back on foot (towards the Ermitage) from the Anitchkov Bridge. Depending on the time you have, you can just take a look or take the opportunity to contemplate the various historical monuments that mark it: the Stroganov Palace, the Bellosselski-Belozersi Palace, the Anitchkov Palace, the Sainte-Catherine Church... Do not miss the magnificent Elisseïev grocery store (at No. 56, open from 11 a. m. on Sunday), in which you can buy a few souvenirs, but also admire the wealth and finishes. the feeling of the decor. Just opposite Notre-Dame-de-Kazan Cathedral, enjoy a pleasant snack at the small Kazanskovo restaurant (No. 26). Then return to your steps, turn left and walk along the Griboyedov canal over a few hundred meters. You will arrive at the Russian Museum in which you can spend about 2 hours, provided you set a theme. The icons, the painting in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the movement of the itinerants, the folk arts, the avant-garde... you have only the embarrassment of choice.