Imperial Palaces Tour - Tsarskoe Selo and Pavlovsk

Culture and History tour in St. Petersburg

Tour Price : from 70 EUR per person Duration : 5 hours Languages: English, German

Tsarskoe Selo (Royal Village) is located 25 km south of St. Petersburg. Peter I gave this land first to his favourite, Prince Alexander Menshikov, but later took his gift back and granted it instead to his wife, Ekaterina Alekseevna, the future Empress Catherine I.When Empress Elizabeth, the daughter of Peter the Great, inherited this property, she decided to turn this estate into her gala summer residence. By order of Elizabeth, the unique palace (with the famous “Amber Room”) and park ensemble was created here by architects Rastrelli, Zemtsov, and Chevakinskiy.

The most significant alterations, however, were made to the palace and park during the reign of Catherine the Great. The Catherine Park was extended with the layout of the garden landscaped in the English style. In the palace itself part of “Elizabeth’s baroque” interiors with abundance of gilded mouldings and sculptures were completely altered by the Scottish architect Charles Cameron in the spirit of the increasingly fashionable Classical style, which got the name “Catherine’s Classicism”. Since then the palace and park with a series of galleries and monuments (with some built for Catherine’s minions and favourites) have remained the symbol of “The Golden Age of Catherine the Great”.

Pavlovsk which is located 6 km south of Tsarskoe Selo, was presented by Catherine the Great to her unloved son Paul I. Charles Cameron created a palace in classical Palladian style and Pietro Gonzaga turned the banks of the Slavianka river into one of the biggest landscape parks in Europe.In Pavlovsk everything reminds us of the life and death of one of the most eccentric and enigmatic Russian emperors – Paul I, the one who was nicknamed “Eternal Heir” and “Russian Hamlet”. It is the most romantic and quiet Imperial residence. We will drive to Tsarskoe Selo and then to Pavlovsk by private car or minivan, walk around the parks , see the unique interiors of the palaces ( including the world famous Amber Room).

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