Before reading, those who are interested can read the first two paragraphs of this article. They contain information about the composition of our “family travel group”, about what kind of preparation for a family trip I did in advance and why, as well as information about the “structure” of the material in this article.
Wednesday is the sixth day in St. Petersburg.
On the sixth day of our trip through St. Petersburg, we planned to visit the Hermitage (which, of course, took up most of the day) and a boat tour of the city’s rivers and canals on the Neva.
1. Hermitage
The most convenient and fastest route to the Hermitage for us was to proceed to the “Admiralteyskaya” metro station. When we got out of the subway, almost immediately we found ourselves on Malaya Morskaya Street. We walk along it to Nevsky Prospekt, turn left on the avenue and a few minutes later we find ourselves in Palace Square, where the Hermitage is located.
Hermitage opening hours:
From 10:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.
From 10:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. on Wednesdays and Fridays.
Free day – Monday.
You can check the information about working hours on the official website.
On all weekdays at the Hermitage, the ticket office closes one hour before official closing time. But, in my opinion, there is no point in going to the Hermitage an hour before your work is finished. Unless you visited the Hermitage before, but now you are only interested in one or two specific rooms or a new exposition (exhibition). There will simply be no more time.
Now about buying tickets. Tickets can be purchased directly at the Hermitage box office before the visit. You will have to queue. You can buy a ticket at the terminals (ticket machines) that are installed next to the Hermitage. There is no queue, but you can only buy a full ticket (you will not be able to buy a discount ticket for children). And you can buy a ticket in advance online here or here. The price is usually lower than at the box office. The voucher is valid for six months from the date of purchase. Fast (no queues), cheaper. The voucher is exchanged for an entrance ticket at a special box office, which is located under the arch behind the main gate of the Winter Palace. The entrance to the Hermitage is here, but it is not the main one, and entering through it you will have to go around the Hermitage “from end to end”, against the main flow of visitors who bought tickets at the ticket office and entered the Hermitage through the main entrance.
Another “trick” in the Hermitage’s working hours is free (free) admission for visitors every first Thursday of every month. I absolutely do not recommend it. The queue for the “Free Hermitage” stretches for literally a kilometer. Even if you get close to opening time on that day, you still have to queue, probably for over an hour. Also, due to the influx of visitors, the Hermitage will be disastrously filled with “art lovers”. Instead of quietly and thoughtfully enjoying the works of art, you will have to follow the crowd and try to see something behind the backs and heads of the visitors.
Each of us found his room and his exhibition, which was the most interesting for him.
The daughter was delighted with the room with the exhibition of ancient Egypt (with mummies).
My wife really liked the throne room.
And I was “stuck” in the Hall of Knights for a long time. I went through the entire exhibition several times (in my childhood and youth I was very fond of the theme of knightly arms). My daughters had to drag her husband and father out of Knight’s Hall “using gently but with force”.
2. Boat ride
We spent most of the day at the Hermitage. The next “stage” was a boat trip on the rivers and canals of St. Petersburg. There are quite a few moorings and docks near the Hermitage. The closest to the Winter Palace is the Hermitage Quay. A ticket for a water excursion can be purchased both at the pier and at the “barkers”, of which there are many in and around the Winter Palace. The boats leave the dock almost one after the other, so you won’t have to wait long for the start of the aquatic excursion.
The boat ride lasted over an hour. During this time, the weather changed from sunny to cloudy, with a fairly cold breeze (the crew gave the tourists blankets), and then the sun came out again and it was hot again. The recorded narration of the audio guide accompanied and informed us throughout the excursion on the boat. Some bridges were so low in the water that even without getting up from the chair, stretching your arm up, you could touch the base of the bridge. And sometimes she even had to instinctively tilt her head so as not to damage it and the bridge that hung over the water impossibly low. Very interesting, very beautiful, very informative, very romantic – all these are our impressions of the boat trip. Class! We are very satisfied.
Previous articles about our visit to St. Petersburg:
About interesting places and sights of St. Petersburg
Friday – the first day in St. Petersburg
Saturday is the second day in St. Petersburg.
Sunday is the third day in St. Petersburg.
Monday is the fourth day in St. Petersburg.
Tuesday – the fifth day in St. Petersburg
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Source: IXBT
