Round trip transportation from your St. Air conditioned, fully licensed and insured private excursion transportation! Bilingual professional private St. Petersburg shore excursion guide! Other languages speaking guides available, please check notes! Admission fees to all the sites visited! Services of a licensed local driver! Tasty typical lunch included! All port fees, local taxes and the cost of
blanket Russia tourism excursion visa included! Guests will visit: The Catherine Palace, Podvorie Restaurant, and The Hermitage Museum! Private guide and private transportation! Included is lunch at the famous Podvorie restaurant, a Russian Folkloric Show and even a blanket visa! Please do not be fooled by the cruise lines...they are not the only ones that can provide you access to see St. Petersburg and all its beauty. For this private St. Petersburg cruise shore excursion, a "blanket" visa is included that allows you to travel St. Petersburg and the surrounding area with your official, government sanctioned cruise excursion guide. You won't have to deal with overcrowded cruise ship sponsored bus excursions. Enjoy the private "royal" treatment as you see 2 of Russia's royal palaces. You will be provided step-by-step instructions on how to clear immigration outside of your cruise ship and exactly where to meet your official excursion guide to start your memorable private day shore excursion in Russia. After a scenic 1 hour drive, you will arrive at Tsarskoye Selo and your excursion will begin with an inside visit to the Catherine Palace. Everybody who visits Catherine Palace will feel Catherine the Great's presence and her love of luxury in its sumptuous rooms. The Catherine Palace wasn't used by any of Russian Tsars as homes as regularly as by Catherine the Great and still nowadays, one can feel her influence both in its interior and exterior design. From its rich blue exterior to the art-filled hallways and displays of Catherine's gown and jewels, you will feel the luxury. Constructed primarily during the reign of Catherine the Great, however, the lavish opulence of the Catherine Palace was due to her daughter, Empress Elisabeth's tastes. It is also important to note that the palace was continuously revised with further constructions and additions from 1730 until 1917. Catherine's Palace is said to be a prime example of the strength, beauty and might of Imperial Russia at that time, and is certainly considered to be one of the most luxurious sights to be seen anywhere today. After the inside visit of Catherine`s Palace, you will have a leisurely stroll through the massive Gardens before continuing on for lunch at the famous restaurant, Podvorie. The Podvorie restaurant is built in the best traditions of the Russian wooden architecture. The log house restaurant is decorated in traditional Russian folkloric style. The restaurant has welcomed visitors to St. Petersburg from ministers and presidents, to nobility from all over the world. Your included lunch will be accompanied by a Russian Folkloric show. Following lunch, re-board your private sightseeing excursion transportation for the approximate 40-minute drive back to St. Petersburg and an inside visit to the world-famous Hermitage. Upon arrival, proceed for a visit to the Winter Palace and the buildings that now make up the Hermitage museum complex. The whole museum complex consists of five buildings facing the embankment of Neva River. Enjoy viewing the fabulous treasure house of art whose collections are world-renowned. The Hermitage is considered to be the largest art museum not only in Russia but also in the world with a collection of 2.7 million pieces. Although you will only see a small fraction on the contents, you will marvel at the architecture and its elegant interior that recalls centuries of historical events. The contoured ceilings, precious woods, magnificent halls and staterooms, elegant richly decorated staircases exude the highest level of wealth and beauty that is above imagination. Your guided visit includes the suite of gala rooms, the Small Hermitage with its sparkling Pavilion Hall. Once your visit of the Hermitage comes to an end, you will board your private transportation and return to your St. Petersburg cruise ship pier and terminal. Your blanket visa only covers you during your St. Petersburg Catherine Palace and Hermitage Museum Private Excursion. Please note that the transportation used will depend on your group size ranging from a luxury car to a minivan to a deluxe motor coach. The Hermitage is closed on Mondays and Catherine's Palace is closed on Tuesdays. Guests must book a minimum of 72 hours before their excursion date. At the end of your booking, after you make the payment, you will be redirected to another page to fill out all the necessary passport information about each guest. Your booking cannot be started until we receive the complete information.
