Attractions

St. Petersburg

The Hermitage Museum/The Winter Palace Saint Petersburg's prime attraction, this massive palace-cum-museum shows the highlights of its collection of over 3,000,000 pieces. The Hermitage is one of the world's great museums, displaying priceless works by Rembrandt, Da Vinci, Michelangelo, Reubens and more.

Peter and Paul Fortress When Peter the Great reclaimed the lands along the Neva River in 1703, he decided to build a fortress to protect the area from possible attack by the Swedish army and navy. However, the Swedes were defeated before the Peter and Paul Fortress was completed, and it served as a high-security political jail instead. The list of famous residents included: Dostoyevsky, Gorsky, Trotsky and Lenin's older brother, Alexander.

The Admiralty The Admiralty was Russia’s Naval Headquarters until 1917, and now serves as a naval college. The gardens in front of the Admiralty are particularly beautiful in summer, and Go Ahead recommends walking through them on your way from the Hermitage Art Museum to the Bronze Horseman and St. Isaac's Cathedral.

The Cabin of Peter the Great The first residential building to be built in the newly founded city of St. Petersburg was a wooden cabin, intended for Tsar Peter himself. The cabin is very small and is strange combination of a traditional Russian house and a Dutch home with large and elaborate windows and a high roof.

St. Isaac’s Cathedral Built in the first half of the 19th century by the French architect Auguste Montferrand, this enormous cathedral features solid granite columns, detailed mosaic icons, a magnificent gilded dome, and the most impressive views of the city from its high colonnade.

The Church of Our Savior on Spilled Blood Built on the spot where Emperor Alexander II was assassinated in 1881, this church has a lively combination of brightly colored onion domes, glittering spires and a breathtaking mosaic interior. It is St. Petersburg's answer to St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow.

Tallinn

Old City Tallinn's prime attraction is the excellently preserved Old City, built between the 15th and 17th centuries. The compact area is easily explored on foot.

Viru Gate The entrance to the street of the same name, the Viru Gate is a great place to begin exploring the Old City. Viru Street is now Tallinn's trendiest shopping drag.

Raekoja Plats The main square in the heart of the Old City is ringed with cafes and restaurants. The Raekoja (or "Town Hall") was built in 1371 and dominates the square.

Toompea Head up the hill along Pikk Street, through the gate tower, and you will reach the site of the Danish castle that founded the city in 1219. Rebuilt in the 18th century, part of the castle now houses Estonia's Parliament (Riigikogu).

Alexander Nevsky Cathedral This distinctive and beautiful Russian Orthodox Cathedral near the Raekoja Plats was built by Mikhail Preobrazhensky in a typical Russian Revival style between 1894 and 1900, during the period when Estonia was part of the Russian Empire.

Museum of Occupations The museum illuminates the harsh conditions Estonians endured under both the Soviet and Nazi regimes.
Kadriorg A beautiful and rich seaside district, mostly filled with wooden buildings from the 18th century and 20th century Art Deco and Functionalist structures. It also includes the baroque pearl of Estonia, the Kadriorg Palace and Garden.

The Kadriorg Palace An imperial Russian summer residence built by Italian architect Niccolò Michetti for Peter the Great in 1718, the palace is situated in a 222-acre park in the eastern part of the city. For most of the 18th and 19th centuries, Tallinn was the famous summer resort for the noble and rich of Russia. The palace currently houses a painting collection and other art work.

Patarei (Battery) Prison The most recent historical attraction, this prison was a cannon fortress built around 1840 to protect the city from the sea-born attacks as well as a notorious USSR prison, which didn’t cease operations until 2004. They currently offer "jail tours," up to 5 hours in length, which include single and torture cells, a prison meal and, of course, execution.

Riga

Vecriga The Old Town district, Vecriga is home to the magnificent Doma Cathedral and an energetic nightlife. The area around Vecriga was mostly built in the 19th and 20th centuries and the architecture resembles that of Berlin, Paris or Rome.

The Occupation Museum Located in a gloomy box-like building that was previously a museum dedicated to Soviet heroes, the Occupation Museum is a must for anyone wanting to learn about Latvian history. In front of the building stands a controversial occupation-era statue of the Riga Red (Soviet) Riflemen.

Jugendstil Architecture Walk the streets of Alberta and Elizabetes to see the creations of Art Nouveau artists like Eisenstein.

Mezaparks A pleasant park area on the outskirts of Riga, which features large, gorgeous residential houses once used by Riga's pre-war elite as summer homes. They were largely let go during Soviet times but many are now being refurbished and brought back to their original glory. The Riga Zoo is also here, along with an amusement park.

The TV Tower The tower stands over 1,200 feet high and is constructed on three concrete legs. It has an observation deck at 315 feet.
St. Peters Church The church has an elevator to the top, from which you can see a great panoramic view of Riga.