A city of particular value from the point of view of history and culture is Pushkin. It is directly related to the life and reign of the Romanov dynasty. From Peter I to Nicholas II, emperors spent a lot of time here, and their stay in St. Petersburg ended here. The legendary A.S. Pushkin studied at the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum, after whom the city was named. The old name was Tsarskoe Selo - it changed more than once. We’ll tell you further how Pushkin works, what tourists should see and where they should definitely visit.
Catherine Palace and Park
A great place for both walking and studying history and architecture. Such famous architects as Rastrelli, Cameron, Quarenghi, Stasov and others worked here. All tsars, starting with Peter I, left their imprint here.
The role of the compositional core of the entire ensemble is played by the Catherine Palace - a grandiose building in the Russian Baroque style. The Great Hall of the palace and the “golden suite” of state halls, including the world-famous revived Amber Room, amaze with the luxurious decoration. Once here, you will feel the spirit of the Elizabethan and Catherine eras, partly of the era of Emperor Alexander I, and you will see rare objects of applied art.
Working hours: 10:00 — 18:00
Recommended duration of visit: More than 3 hours
Address: Sadovaya st., 7, Pushkin, St. Petersburg
Telephone:
the Amber Room
She delights those who enter with the richness of the interior and the refinement of details. This masterpiece began to be created by the German Schlüter (according to another version, it was the palace architect Eosander). The heir to the King of Prussia gave the Amber Room to Peter the Great in 1701.
Rastrelli took over the finishing touches to the interior of the room. The composition was put together.
More than once the room will change its location, more than once it will be restored. With the advent of the Great Patriotic War, the occupiers took amber panels out of the country.
The work of recreating the amber panels by Russian craftsmen dragged on for 24 years. As a result of painstaking work, the “eighth wonder of the world” was recreated.
State Museum-Reserve Tsarskoe Selo
All tsars, from Catherine I to Nicholas II, left their mark here. Led by the Baroque-style Catherine Palace, this place is filled with many famous monuments of world architecture. The legendary Amber Room is also located here. Separately, it is worth noting the Alexander Palace, where you can get acquainted with the life of the last Romanovs - Nicholas II and Alexandra Fedorovna.
On the territory of the Catherine and Alexander parks, with a total area of 300 hectares, there are more than 100 architectural structures: from majestic palaces and monumental monuments to pavilions, bridges, marble monuments, exotic structures made in the style of Gothic, Turkish, and Chinese architecture.
Recommended visit duration: 1–2 hours
Location : st. Sadovaya, 7, Pushkin, St. Petersburg
Telephone:
Saint Sophia Cathedral
The St. Sophia Cathedral was created in the district city of Sofia (later the city will belong to Tsarskoe Selo) in the likeness of the St. Sophia Cathedral in Constantinople. This is what Catherine the Second intended. Its construction began in 1782. Seven years later the building was consecrated.
In 1817 the cathedral was given to the Life Hussar Regiment. From 1918 to 1934 it was active. Then the cathedral was closed. During the Great Patriotic War, the building was almost completely destroyed. In 1849, the restoration period began.
St. Sophia (Ascension) Cathedral is famous for its eight internal columns made of dark red marble.
Architectural monument. The current temple. It is especially beautiful in the evening when the lights turn on.
Address: Sofia Square, 1.
Memorial Museum-Lyceum, Branch of the All-Russian Museum of A.S. Pushkin
The lyceum is interesting not only for children, but also for adults. It’s better to take a tour and listen to the guide, after which, slowly, walk through the halls again. The museum is small and will take no more than an hour. Entrance fee: adults 120 rubles, pensioners 50 rubles, children under 16 years old free. You can take a single ticket for two museums: the Lyceum and A.S. Dacha. Pushkin. Cost 400 rubles.
Location: Sadovaya street, 2, Pushkin, St. Petersburg
Telephone:
Alexandrovsky Park
A park of extraordinary beauty and sophistication is located in the city of Pushkin. This is a wonderful place for exploring on foot, on bicycles or on roller skates. Well-groomed paths, beautiful alleys, ponds where you can feed the ducks by hand.
You can walk alone, with a group or with a loved one. Here you can spend 3-4 hours unnoticed and enjoy the atmosphere in which the emperors rested. Particularly interesting in the autumn and summer seasons.
Recommended visit duration: < 1 hour
Location: st. Dvortsovaya, 2 | Tsarskoe Selo, Pushkin, St. Petersburg
Telephone:
House of Kologrivovs
A. P. Bryullov. Portrait of N. N. Pushkina, 1831
House of the Kologrivovs on Tverskoy Budvar, 22. 1904-1905. Photo: Scherer, Nabholz and Co.
On the site where the Gorky Moscow Art Theater is now located, the Kologrivovs’ house used to be located. Dance master Pyotr Yogel often gave balls there, to whom the entire Moscow elite went for dance lessons. From his earliest years, Pushkin was also taken there - to children's balls.
Then, many years later (Pushkin was almost 30), one evening he met sixteen-year-old Natalya Goncharova in this mansion. The poet fell in love. According to the recollections of his friends, the passion was so strong that Pushkin was literally obsessed with the dream of marrying this girl, who at first was quite cold towards him.
Alexander Sergeevich courted Natalya for three long years. During this time there was everything - both outbursts of tenderness and quarrels. During one of them, Pushkin announced that the poem “Madonna,” written for Goncharova, was actually dedicated to another woman. However, despite everything, in 1831 the couple went down the aisle.
Moscow, Tverskoy Boulevard, 22
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Hermitage Pavilion
The Hermitage is a place for solitude. Located opposite the palace. In the same baroque style and also beautiful. It was built in the mid-18th century at the same time as the Catherine Palace and is its continuation. The same snow-white columns, soft turquoise walls, some details are covered with gilding, large light windows and an elegant balcony, bridges over the moat. An octagonal two-story building with four extensions on the sides, where galleries are located. The central building for entertainment gatherings of a narrow circle of courtiers; dinners were given here for foreign guests.
It is worth visiting this place with a tour. Guests are shown a seven-minute film about the complex as a whole, including the Hermitage. Demonstration of raising and lowering tables, how everything works, who served all this beauty and how.
Recommended visit duration: < 1 hour
Location: Catherine Park, Pushkin, St. Petersburg,
Turkish bath
The Turkish bath is located on the peninsula of the Big Pond. It was built in honor of the victory over the Turks. The bathhouse looks like a mosque. The combination of a golden dome and pink walls looks especially festive.
The inside is quite spacious, there are six rooms. But we didn’t go to the bathhouse to take a steam bath. The interior decoration is striking with a harmonious combination of colored mosaics and luxurious stucco. I want to stay here longer and look at everything in detail.
In the post-revolutionary period, it was inaccessible to idle visitors, but opened as a museum in the late 1930s.
During the war, the bathhouse was shelled. Later a boat station was built here. In 2009, restoration was completed, returning the bathhouse to its former appearance.
Address: Parkovaya street - 40.
Cameron Gallery
A wonderful masterpiece of architecture. The light gallery floating above the park invites you to take a walk and feel like a part of that era. Decorated with fabulous floral arrangements and sculptures. The gallery offers beautiful views of the park design and floral compositions. Here you can often find a whole line of newlyweds and for good reason - the place is enchanting.
Location: Sadovaya, 7a, Pushkin, St. Petersburg
Museum of Russia in the Great War
The building was specially built to perpetuate the memory of the heroes of the First World War. All areas of military operations, medicine and much more are affected. Now it is the only museum in Russia dedicated to the history of the First World War. A large-scale exhibition tells about the course of hostilities, life, uniforms and weapons of soldiers, located in the newly restored building of the Military Chamber on the territory of the Tsarskoe Selo State Museum-Reserve.
We recommend visiting this museum, especially with school-age children. You need at least 2 hours. The audio guide is provided free of charge when purchasing entrance tickets. But you need to have money for bail. They will be returned later.
Recommended visit duration: 1–2 hours
Location: Fermskaya road, 5A, Pushkin, St. Petersburg
Telephone:
Fedorovsky Cathedral
The Fedorovsky Cathedral was built and consecrated in 1912. The first stone was laid by Nicholas II with his own hand.
Fedorovsky Sovereign Cathedral was considered a regimental temple and was a parish for the Free Infantry Regiment and the Emperor's personal convoy. The ruler himself and his family also came here for the liturgy. The rest of the parishioners were allowed into the walls of the cathedral only by invitation.
Between 1933 and 1991 the cathedral was closed to parishioners. Church utensils were divided between museums, the mosaic was mercilessly destroyed. The building was used as a cinema.
The Great Patriotic War caused enormous damage to the building. In 1985-1995 a major restoration was carried out.
Address: Academic Lane - 14.
The Egyptian Gates
When entering the city of Pushkin by car, you can see the Egyptian Gate. They are also called Kuzminsky Gate. Built in 1830 on the site of the former Bolshoye Kuzmino settlement at the entrance to Tsarskoe Selo. The decorative decoration includes motifs from Egyptian mythology. The cast iron elements of the gate were cast at the Aleksandrovsky Iron Foundry.
Location: at the entrance to Tsarskoe Selo, Pushkin,
How to get there
The best way to get to Pushkin is by train. If you depart from Vitebsky station, then any route will suit you. All trains in this case pass by the Tsarskoe Selo station. You will have to spend 30 minutes on the road on weekdays; on weekends, the time is reduced to approximately 15-20 minutes. The fare will be 46 rubles per person.
You can also use the services of minibus No. K287, K342, K347a, K545 or bus No. 187 if you have to go from the Moskovskaya metro station. Without traffic jams, you can get there in 30-40 minutes, but during rush hour you will have to travel for about an hour. From the Kupchino metro station you can get there by minibuses No. K286, K347, K342, K545, which will take 20-30 minutes.
On the official website of the bus station and railway station there is a schedule of trains and minibuses, as well as ticket prices.
White Tower in Pushkin
If the White Tower itself is inferior, for example, in terms of convenience of location to the Singing Tower, located in the very center of Tsarskoe Selo, it surpasses it with a unique view of the surroundings of this open-air museum city from its observation deck. Not far from it there is another must-visit object - Fedorovsky town.
The White Tower in Alexander Park is 38 meters high and consists of several tiers. The main decoration is cast iron statues of knights and a crenellated parapet. The upper platform of the tower was the highest point in Tsarskoye Selo parks and was intended for observation of the surrounding area, and during the war it was also used for shooting.
Location: Alexander Park, Pushkin,
Colonist Pond
The colony pond was created from two storage pools and a small lake. But this reservoir does not look somehow artificial. Willows growing over the water and adjacent meadows with tall grasses create a comfort zone. The pond also attracts vacationers with its equipped beach. Even in the Epiphany frosts, those who want to take a dip come here.
