Sights of St.-Petersburg

St. Petersburg is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. It is often referred to as the Venice of the North or the Paris of the East, but its beauty is really a brand all its own.

St. Petersburg is the second largest city of Russia. Its population is 4.7 million inhabitants. Officially proclaimed as the "Cultural Capital of Russia" St. Petersburg is a place, where you need weeks just to see all its major landmarks. St. Petersburg was founded in 1703 by the Russian tsar Peter the Great. In 1712 it became the capital of Russia and retained this status till 1918. In 1914, when World War I broke out, the city's original name St Petersburg (a German word meaning the city of St Peter) was changed into Petrograd (which was a mere translation from German into Russian).

In 1924, after the death of Vladimir Lenin, the head of the first Soviet government, the city was renamed Leningrad. Then in 1991, as a result of Memorandum, its original name St. Petersburg was restored. Over almost 300 years of its history St. Petersburg accumulated all the grandeur of the Russian Imperial Heritage and became one of the largest centers of culture, science and industry. Created by Peter the Great as a sea port on the Baltic it was essentially "a window to the West" for Russia, combining the best of the West and the East.

St. Petersburg is a beautiful and fascinating holiday destination and one of the most intriguing and historically significant cities in Europe. Whether you chose to visit the city in the midst of a romantic and snowy Russian winter or during the dazzling White Nights of the summer months, you will be spellbound by St. Petersburg's culture and beauty.