Travel Russia News May 2021

Summer is coming and so is travel season! Navigation has begun and you can enjoy boat ride in one of the most beautiful cities of Europe - Saint Petersburg to which this issue is devcoted. Days are longer and we will soon see the famous White Nights when the sun almost never goes down. Restaurants and bars' open terraces are awaiting the guests.

Sincerely,
Helen Isaeva


Saint Peterburg news

Oreshek Fortress Hydrofoil has started operating from St Petersburg to Oreshek Fortress. The duration of the trip - 50 min-1,2 hrs depending on the weather. The hydrofoil can room up to 123 people.

The fortress at Shlisselburg is one of a series of fortifications built on Orekhovy Island in Lake Ladoga. The first fortress was built in 1323 by Grand Prince Yury of Moscow on behalf of the Novgorod Republic in 1323.
Oreshek Fortress It guarded the northern approaches to Novgorod and access to the Baltic Sea. It was the scene of many conflicts between Russia and Sweden and changed hands between the two empires. During World War II, it was heavily damaged. Today it is part of the UNESCO World Heritage site
Tourists can reach the island from May to October

Kazansky stationPulkovo airport has been named the best airport in Europe (in a category of 15-25 mln passengers a year airports) by International Council of airports. The passengers evaluated the aiport as per 34 criterias including the staff work at the check in, navigation access, wait time, cleanness of the halls, general atmosphere, accessibility of restaurants, shops, waiting halls comfort.

Yelagin palace opens the doors after long-term reconstruction

Yelagin palaceThis charming summer palace on one of the islands in the north-west of St. Petersburg was commissioned in 1818 by Alexander I from the young architect, Carlo Rossi, who would go on to become the undisputed master of neo-classicism in the city.
The land and the original palace had been bought for the Imperial Estates from the heirs of Ivan Yelagin, a historian, poet, and statesman in the reign of Catherine the Great. Alexander chose it as the site of a summer residence for his mother, Empress Maria Fyodrovna, who found the journey between the city and her permanent home at Pavlovsk too wearisome. Rossi was responsible for much of the interior decoration of the palace, which feature richly painted marble walls and intricately inlaid wooden doors.
Yelagin palaceAfter Maria Fyodorovna's death, Yelagin Palace was never again the official residence of any member of the Imperial family and, by the time of the October Revolution, it had become a summer retreat for Russia's prime ministers. Briefly turned into a museum by the Bolshevik govenment, the palace was badly damaged during the siege in WWII, but fully restored in the 1950s following photographs and the original blueprints and used as a resort for workers.

Yelagin palace Since 1987, Yelagin Palace has been home to the Museum of Decorative and Applied Art and Interiors from the 18th-20th Centuries. Exhibitions are hosted on the second floor of the building, while the ground floor is devoted to Rossi's restored interiors. 280 mln roubles was spent by the city government for the palace reconstruction (it was closed the latest 4 years) and now one can see the cabinet of Alexander I.